Quote of the Day: “No Bill or Joint Resolution shall embrace more than one subject at a time, and that shall be clearly and descriptively expressed in the Title.” – One Subject At A Time Act, Section 3(a)
We warned you about it last week . . .
The Barney-Frank-Chris Dodd finance “reform” bill could have the effect of stealing your vitamins.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
There are provisions in the bill that will give the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) broad, almost dictatorial powers over the American economy. Wait until you see the list in our sample letter to Congress below.
Your company or job could come under the sway of the FTC’s vast new powers. This could place your economic future in the hands of faceless, unelected bureaucrats in far-off Washington, DC.
Is this the future you want?
DownsizeDC.org’s One Subject At a Time Act (OSTA) was written to prevent outrages like this, because . . .
Empowering the FTC’s authority over most industries has NOTHING to do with Wall Street finance. It’s an UNRELATED subject.
You may borrow from or copy this letter . . .
A classic example of the need for OSTA is the so-called finance “reform” bill. The House version contains an UNRELATED provision giving the FTC authority over almost every sector of the economy.
EXPANDING THE FTC’S POWER HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH FINANCIAL REFORM.
The FTC is charged with protecting consumers and eliminating “anti-competitive” business practices across all industries. However, Congress reduced the FTC’s powers in 1975 and 1980 because it had a bad record of abuse.
The FTC now must closely follow Congressional intent when crafting regulations, and all of its actions are subject to judicial review. Please take note . . .
The current so-called financial reform bill turns back the clock by resurrecting the kind of monstrous FTC we had before. The FTC would have authority to . . .
* Make up new regulations on its own – as an unelected legislature
* Censor the Internet http://tinyurl.com/2c8dlny
* Require all companies to undergo costly tests to prove their claims are true before a product can go to market, rather than putting the onus on the FTC to prove their claims are false
* Hold advertisers responsible for claims made by their clients
* Punish companies (and entire industries!) that were NOT RESPONSIBLE for the financial meltdown and recessionThe results of this FTC dictatorship would be . . .
* lost jobs as businesses fold due to compliance costs
* higher prices as the FTC increases the costs of producing goods and servicesNo wonder dozens of industry associations from many sectors of the economy have come out against this dangerous power-grab: http://tinyurl.com/26d72c6
And remember, this expansion of the FTC has NOTHING TO DO with financial reform. It’s an UNRELATED subject that punishes industries that didn’t cause the recession.
The health of the economy is at stake. MY JOB could be at stake!
I demand that you . . .
* oppose the inclusion of this poisonous provision in the Senate version of the bill
* oppose its inclusion in the final conference committee version of the financial “reform” bill
* and introduce the One Subject At A Time Act to prevent unrelated provisions from being snuck into future bills
END LETTER
You can send your letter using DownsizeDC.org’s Educate the Powerful System.
Spread the word! Forward to your friends and share on Facebook!
And thanks for taking action!
James Wilson
Assistant Communications Director
DownsizeDC.org