Regulatory Action Center Review – October 21, 2020

Welcome to the new and improved Regulatory Action Center (RAC) Review! RAC proudly keeps you up to date on what we’re up to and what we’re keeping our eyes on here in the swamp. We offer resources for you to get involved in the rulemaking process to hold unelected bureaucrats accountable and occasionally offer praise in the event they have a good impulse. We will also highlight the incredible work our activists have done to advance the principles of smaller government, lower taxes, free markets, personal liberty, and the rule of law. For more ways to get involved and stay informed, check the links at the bottom of this post.

RACtivists by the Numbers

RACtivists submitted 1,346 comments to the Department of Energy on their proposal to create a new class of more efficient clothes washers and dryers. These accounted for all but 43 of the total comments submitted to that docket.

RACWashers

Four Things to Know

1) Trump Appointee of the Week: Andrew Wheeler

Welcome to FreedomWorks’ latest blog series, Trump Appointee of the Week! From now until Election Day, we will highlight one of President Trump’s political appointees and their accomplishments. Check back every other week for the next edition and let us know who you want to see named the next Trump Appointee of the Week! FreedomWorks is proud to announce that its latest Trump Appointee of the Week is EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler. Wheeler was elevated to acting Administrator upon the resignation of Scott Pruitt in July 2018. He was nominated by President Trump to be permanent administrator of the EPA in November of that same year and confirmed in February 2019.

More resources:

Read the blog: HERE

Read the FreedomWorks Issue Brief: HERE

2) DOJ Brings Antitrust Suit Against Google

The Department of Justice filed an antitrust suit against Google on Tuesday, alleging that the tech giant has used its dominance in the search business to become a "monopoly gatekeeper" of the internet. This fundamentally misunderstands what a “monopoly” is and will bring harm to both consumers and the free market if allowed to succeed.

More resources on this:

Read FreedomWorks op-ed on government absurdity on this issue: HERE

Read FreedomWorks warning on antitrust: HERE

3) Mythbusting on DoD’s 5G Nationalization Plan

The race to roll out the fifth generation (5G) of mobile technology has been raging for quite some time. As with just about everything, America is playing and is playing to win. The good news is that we’re doing rather well. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has freed up more spectrum for private use and innovation than ever before. Speeds are up and prices are down. The bad news, however, is that the U.S. seems intent on emulating the Chinese wholesale model, essentially creating a nationalized framework (whether proponents label it as such or not). People who should know better, like former Speaker Newt Gingrich, have derided the “laissez-faire tendencies” of the current market. However, it is the very same light touch framework that allowed the internet to thrive in the first place that will let it succeed into the future.

More resources on this:

Read the FreedomWorks fact check: HERE

4) Beware the Regulatory Crackdown on Big Tech

Legislators ought to incentivize entrepreneurs to innovate, and stay out of the way. It is true, as Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis famously wrote, “If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence.” But not in the way some Republicans calling for regulating social-media platforms mean it. They are sacrificing the bedrock conservative principle of property rights — Twitter and Facebook’s platforms are privately owned — for short-term political gains and this will be to the detriment of the Internet and its future users.

More resources on this:

Op-ed from our friends at CEI: HERE

Op-ed on why Big Tech skepticism hurts the people: HERE

RAC Resources

You can always find all RAC content (blogs, updates, press releases, and comment campaigns) HERE.

You can always sign up to become an elite RACtivist, if you haven’t already, HERE.

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