More reasons that Congress==a bunch of weasels

Alliance for Natural Health (HT: Bill Quick):

The Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009 (H.R. 4173), recently passed in the House of Representatives, includes language going far beyond finance inserted by Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA).  This language could be used for an end run around the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), the legislation that governs dietary supplement regulation by the FDA [by expanding powers of the FTC].

Washington Post (via Ed, via: Insty):

The Federal Trade Commission could become a more powerful watchdog for Internet users under a little-known provision in financial overhaul legislation that would expand the agency’s ability to create rules.
...
The version of regulatory overhaul legislation passed by the House would allow the FTC to issue rules on a fast track and permit the agency to impose civil penalties on [internet service providers] that hurt consumers.^[1]

Reason One:  Instead of forthrightly passing regulations that might be unpopular, “enabling” their implementation by unelected agencies.

Reason Two:  Burying the “enabling” in unrelated legislation, in hope no one will notice.

And then there’s this:

Remember all that scorn in Congress about evil shortsellers betting against America and bringing the country down?

Well, it turns out Congress-people did it, too.  And they used derivatives to do it, which they now say they abhor.

Via Instapundit, who quotes reader George Poletes:

A member of Congress purchasing bearish exchange-traded funds is analogous to a professional baseball [player] betting against his own team.

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Posted by: Old Grouch in In Passing at 16:19:51 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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