Lobbying stories from this week's National Journal (subscription):

• In "PhRMA's Big Bet," Peter Stone writes about a memo PhRMA CEO and former Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La. wrote to his members in August to defuse political criticism and ease members' jitters over a high-stakes deal that PhRMA cut in June with the White House and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont. In it, PhRMA offered $80 billion in savings over 10 years to help pay for health care reform.
• In "7-11 Fights Card Costs," Sara Jerome reports on the retailers efforts to enlist customers in a crusade against credit card transaction fees.
• The AFL-CIO's newest leader John Trumpka talks about the labor union's 'absolute minimum' in a Q&A with Kirk Victor.
• In "On The Move:" Wal-Mart has hired Sheila Greenwood as a director of federal government relations dealing with tax and financial services issues; and after 17 years as a lobbyist for the American Academy of Pediatrics, Karen Hendricks has moved to the Trust for America's Health as the director of policy development.