Politico Brings In Major Dem Donor’s Public Affairs Firm

Politico, the Washington insider outlet that bills itself as a “leading destination for non-partisan news and unbiased policy coverage,” has been paying for the services of a liberal mega-donor who has already forked over six figures directly to the Democrat Party this calendar year.

First appearing in a February newsletter from Politico Influence, its daily bulletin on the swampy world of lobbyists in the nation’s capital, was a disclosure that one of the biggest figures in the industry, Invariant, is now working for Politico. Invariant is the influence shop founded and run by Heather Podesta, the former wife of lobbyist Tony Podesta and longtime power-player in Democrat politics.

“POLITICO is a client of Invariant,” read the disclosure, which has appeared in at least seven disclosures since the middle of February.

Podesta has contributed more than $250,000 to Democrat candidates and committees this election cycle, including the maximum allowed $44,500 to both the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Over the years, Podesta has given millions of dollars to Democrats.

It is unclear what Invariant is providing for Politico. Neither responded to a request for comment.

Invariant offers not only lobbying, but also public relations and crisis management. The firm brought in over $47 million from lobbying clients in 2025, according to figures compiled by Open Secrets.

The addition of Invariant comes just a few months after Politico brought in a veteran Democrat operative to be its head of communications. The operative, Evan Hollander, was named senior vice president of communications, a post he picked up after years of crafting messaging for House Democrats, according to a report from the Free Beacon. 

Politico also found itself in hot water in recent weeks over a cartoon that depicted President Donald Trump and Republican senators Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham wearing blood-covered Jewish prayer shawls and yarmulkes. The cartoon was taken down with an editor’s note saying it did not “meet our standards,” but only saying it could be “reasonably interpreted” to be “hateful.”

It is unclear whether Podesta and Invariant were involved with crafting the statement.

Politico just added a new editor-in-chief, Jonathan Greenberger, who will take the helm in May.