{"id":19945,"date":"2017-09-28T14:48:46","date_gmt":"2017-09-28T14:48:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.citizen.org\/news\/trumps-deregulation-push-is-setting-the-stage-for-major-national-disasters\/"},"modified":"2019-06-05T14:55:03","modified_gmt":"2019-06-05T18:55:03","slug":"trumps-deregulation-push-is-setting-the-stage-for-major-national-disasters","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.citizen.org\/news\/trumps-deregulation-push-is-setting-the-stage-for-major-national-disasters\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s Deregulation Push Is Setting the Stage for Major National Disasters"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Monday, Oct. 2, President Donald Trump is expected to deliver a major address pushing for deregulation. Trump and the Republican Party\u2019s attacks on regulation are hurting regular Americans and setting the stage for large-scale deregulatory disasters. Their deregulatory push is premised on a series of demonstrably false claims about the costs of regulation, defies public opinion and major campaign promises, and represents a craven attempt at self-enrichment and payback to corporate donors. In fact, robust regulation and enforcement are essential to economic prosperity.<\/p>\n

We urge you not to simply pass on Trump\u2019s bogus claims and distortions to your readers without challenging them on empirical grounds. Public Citizen is providing you with information in this memo so you can challenge his falsehoods with the truth.<\/b><\/p>\n

What\u2019s driving this deregulatory push is crystal clear: corporate greed. As a forthcoming Public Citizen report will show, Trump\u2019s business empire will profit from the deregulatory measures his administration is pushing. Furthermore, Trump\u2019s Republican enablers in Congress are eager to repay the more than $1 billion<\/a> in campaign contributions and lobbying spent by corporate interests hostile to regulation.<\/p>\n

Voters did not ask for this deregulatory push and do not want it. Polling<\/a> consistently shows that Democrats, Republicans and Independents by overwhelming margins want more protective rules and tougher enforcement \u2013 whether the question is framed in general terms or addresses specific regulations. We saw this illustrated most clearly during the spring, when Republicans used the Congressional Review Act to repeal 14 Obama-era regulations<\/a> \u2013 provoking widespread public outrage<\/a> over the repeal of broadband privacy safeguards, worker health and safety rules, and clean water protections. Perhaps that\u2019s because these actions directly contradict promises<\/a> made by candidate Trump to stand up for regular workers, rein in Wall Street and drain the swamp.<\/p>\n

WHAT\u2019S IN THIS MEMO<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s Deceptions Debunked<\/a>
\nThe Economic Case for Regulation<\/a>
\nDeregulation Hurts American Families<\/a>
\nSetting the Stage for Deregulatory Disasters<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a>TRUMP\u2019S DECEPTIONS DEBUNKED<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s deregulatory push is premised on a series of false beliefs, distortions and discredited studies that do not stand up to even the most basic scrutiny. Some of the president\u2019s advisers and allies have admitted as much or have taken active steps to cover up the truth.<\/p>\n

False Claim #1: Regulations cost too much.<\/i>
\nThe Washington Post\u2019s fact checker<\/a> and Politifact<\/a> have debunked the outlandish claims made by Trump and Republicans regarding regulatory costs. Most industry-backed studies are not scientific or peer-reviewed, exaggerate the costs and omit the benefits side of the ledger. The facts are that major regulations produced up to $800 billion in net benefits<\/a> over the past decade \u2013 up to 12 times the costs \u2013 according to the U.S. Office of Management and Budget\u2019s (OMB) latest figures. The Trump administration evidently considered OMB\u2019s reports so damaging to its case that it took steps to hide these reports<\/a> from the public upon taking office.
\nThe Bottom Line: The benefits of regulations vastly outweigh the costs.<\/i><\/p>\n

False Claim #2: Cutting regulations creates jobs and grows the economy.<\/i>
\nWhite House Legislative Affairs Director Marc Short admitted<\/a> on an April 5 press call that repealing regulations does nothing to create jobs or grow the economy. This truth was echoed by coal industry executives (close allies of the president) who acknowledged that repeal of the stream protection rule and other climate change measures like the Clean Power Plan would do nothing to bring back coal jobs. What\u2019s more, Americans have seen firsthand that cutting regulations can lead to economic devastation. The deregulation of Wall Street in the 1990s and 2000s led to the financial crisis of 2008 and the Great Recession, which cost Americans up to $14 trillion, destroyed 8.7 million jobs and caused pension funds for workers to lose nearly a third of their value.
\nThe Bottom Line: Regulations are essential to a prosperous economy and can even create jobs.<\/i><\/p>\n

<\/a>THE ECONOMIC CASE FOR REGULATION<\/p>\n

We do not have to choose<\/a> between jobs and commonsense safeguards that protect our pocketbooks, homes and workplaces. A sound system of regulatory safeguards not only is compatible with economic prosperity, innovation and entrepreneurship \u2013 it is essential to them. New standards create<\/a> jobs<\/a> by encouraging<\/a> innovation<\/a>. They create opportunities for savvy entrepreneurs to enter the market and out-compete established players, while encouraging incumbents to innovate and exceed even the highest standards.<\/p>\n

Regulation also protects those who work hard and play by the rules<\/a> from those who cheat and cut corners. It does so by keeping the playing field level for small businesses and entrepreneurs who are honest and responsible and by holding bad actors accountable. Indeed, strong regulation can restrain anti-competitive behavior from industry incumbents \u2013 keeping markets open to competition from new entrants and startups. Here\u2019s one example. When antitrust regulators at the U.S. Department of Justice stepped in to block a merger of AT&T and T-Mobile, it led to a surge of price competition<\/a> in the telecom industry. Wireless carriers slashed prices while offering more services, saving consumers tens of billions.<\/p>\n

Regulation is an investment in our future and in a world where businesses can thrive. Keeping our air and water clean is one of the best investments we can make. In 2010, Clean Air Act rules saved nearly 165,000 lives (PDF)<\/a> \u2013 a number that will only continue to grow. By 2020, these rules will save 237,000 lives each year. Consider the words of Bill Mook, the owner of a small oyster farm in Maine, who recently wrote<\/a> about how environmental regulation is essential to his economic survival:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy business is wholly dependent on clean coastal waters. In 1998, I was nearly put out of business by a septic tank pumper illegally emptying his truck 150 yards from our hatchery intake pipe. But many factors \u2013 sometimes from distant sources \u2013 can seriously affect the productivity of the ocean ecosystem I rely on. For example, carbon emissions are causing acid levels in our coastal waters to increase as more CO2 dissolves in the water and freshwater runoff increases. Warming ocean temperatures are linked to the rise of pathogenic bacteria that can kill our oysters or make people sick. For us to avoid these threats and continue providing safe, healthy seafood to consumers, we must have clear, commonsense regulatory limits on pollution \u2013 period.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the pleas of small business, it\u2019s not unusual for corporate executives and conservatives in Congress to predict doom and gloom<\/a> over regulations, but they\u2019ve been wrong every time. Our own history shows that public protections are compatible<\/a> with corporate profits and that the costs of deregulation are painful.<\/p>\n

<\/a>DEREGULATION HURTS AMERICAN FAMILIES<\/p>\n

Trump and the GOP\u2019s deregulatory agenda harms American families and children. In an Aug. 10 press conference, six regular people from around the country explained the devastating consequences of lax regulation and enforcement, sharing their heartbreaking stories<\/a> of loss and tragedy. Here are just a few of them:<\/p>\n