Good News: The Biden Administration Expands Efforts for Corporate Accountability
Good News: The Biden Administration Expands Efforts for Corporate Accountability
There’s so much disheartening news out there, the good news often gets drowned out. Since the Democratic National Convention is opening today, I thought it would be a great time to bring some of the Biden Administration’s efforts front and center.
President Joe Biden’s economic policy has been centered around reining in corporate power and giving agency back to consumers. A key component of this policy has been empowering federal agencies to create administrative rules that protect consumers from financial exploitation.
The only roadblock is the billionaires and dark money groups that are funding lawsuits brought by corporate interests seeking to defang the administrative state. But the Biden administration is not backing down. It is still fighting for the American people and this record of defiance against corporate bullying is worthy of attention, especially since Vice President Kamala Harris will build on President Biden’s policies.
It’s also important to shed light on the consequences MAGA figures continue to face. The actions of lawyers, wealthy businessmen, and others to serve Donald Trump’s corrupt and illegal interests are still in the find out phase. Updates from the most famous of Trump’s inner circle grab headlines, but there are still figures who participated in Trump’s multi-state scheme to overturn the 2020 election results—and some who continue to subvert the will of voters—who deserve more scrutiny.
Beyond their egregious behavior on behalf of a convicted felon who attempted a coup on the United States, these individuals underscore how some willingly abused their positions of power within their own professions.
For lawyers like Kenneth Chesebro, Jenna Ellis, and Stephanie Lambert and former and current judges, their actions further sow distrust in the legal system charged with upholding U.S. democracy and the laws Americans trust are being enacted and enforced in good faith (mostly).
These individuals have erased all pretense that those in the legal field are acting in good faith. This is why it’s more important than ever to hold them all accountable by using the full force of the law. These stories are equally as important as the comeuppance of the biggest players in Trump’s inner circle.
So, here’s some good news to start off the week. And one update that underscores why President Biden’s fight against unchecked corporate power, as well as an ongoing coup by Donald Trump, deserves more spotlight.
Update: Michigan lawyer removed from representing election conspiracy theorist for leaking discovery documents
On Tuesday, a Michigan lawyer who faces multiple felony charges in 2 separate cases for election tampering was disqualified from representing Overstock founder Patrick Byrne in the defamation case against him. Attorneys for Dominion Voting Systems filed a motion to have Stephanie Lambert removed from the case after she leaked case documents to Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf in violation of court orders. Leaf, who is running for re-election, then posted the documents on social media.
In a 62-page opinion, U.S. District Court Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya wrote that Dominion’s request was necessary, finding that Lambert “deliberately violated multiple court rules and orders and continues to do so despite having had ample warning of the consequences.” She added that Lambert’s “repeated misconduct raises the serious concern that she became involved in this litigation for the sheer purpose of gaining access to and publicly sharing Dominion’s protected discovery.” Upadhyaya also wrote that Lambert has repeatedly shown she “has no regard for orders or her obligations as an attorney” and concluded that this is “the rare case in which disqualification is warranted.”
Biden Administration announced the lower price points for the first 10 prescription medications under Medicare
Last Thursday, the Biden administration announced the first batch of lower prices for 10 prescription medications covered by Medicare. The negotiated prices were finalized after months of negotiations with drug manufacturers and will reduce the cost of prescriptions by 38% - 79% for 67M Medicare recipients. This is all possible because of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act—before the law was passed, the federal government was prohibited from negotiating with pharmaceutical companies. Medicare spent $50B on prescription medications in 2023; beginning in 2026, taxpayers will save $6B and medicare recipients will save as much as $1.5B in out-of-pocket costs on needed medications. Next year, the Department of Health and Human Services will select an additional 15 costly medications.
The Biden administration expands efforts to rein in unchecked corporate exploitation
Last Monday, the White House released a multi-agency regulatory initiative to rein in business practices for subscription models, online health claims, online reviews, and airline refunds. The new rule called “Time is Money” will ensure corporations make it easy for customers to cancel subscriptions, request refunds, submit health care and insurance forms online, and access quality customer service and transparent online reviews. The Biden administration’s proposal calls on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Department of Education (DOE), Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Department of Transportation (DOT), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to issue new rules that will enforce compliance. It has also created a Time Is Money web portal for public feedback so federal agencies can take further action as needed to protect customers.
FTC unanimously votes to ban fake product reviews and manufactured social media follower counts
Last Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission unanimously voted to approve the agency’s final rule that will ban marketers from using fake reviews and other misleading practices to promote their products and services. The new rule will go into effect 60 days after it’s published in the Federal Register, which will likely be in mid-October. It also gives the FTC the power to monitor company practices to ensure the fake review ban is enforced. In addition to banning reviews created by artificial intelligence, companies will be prohibited from paying for positive or negative product reviews, as well as for bots to inflate social media follower counts. For each violation of the rule, a company will be issued a fine, which could add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
A second Republican federal judge blocks FTC ban on non-compete agreements
Last Thursday, U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan blocked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from enforcing the agency’s new rule that prohibits non-compete agreements. The court order only applies to the multi-billion dollar real estate developer Properties of the Villages pending the outcome of the company’s lawsuit against the FTC. Judge Corrigan, who was appointed by George W. Bush, is the second federal judge to rule the non-compete ban is likely invalid as 3 lawsuits against the agency rule—all backed by the ultra wealthy—unfold in the courts. At a hearing last week, he stated that the agency rule raised a question of “extraordinary economic and political significance” because Congress did not grant the FTC the authority to address the issue. He cited the "major questions doctrine," a fringe legal theory embraced by Federalist Society lawyers and judges, which they use to challenge policies they don’t like. The doctrine raises the bar for federal agencies, stating that Congress must give explicit permission for issuing rules that have broad societal impacts.