The President's top economic adviser, Larry Summers, excoriated the Chamber of Commerce last week for their misleading ad campaign against the Consumer Financial Protection Agency:“To suggest that this is about the corner grocery store, when that is not what this legislation says or what we support, is in many ways similar to the ‘death panel’ charges,’’ Summers, director of the White House’s National Economic Council, said in an interview.I noted this trend two weeks ago:
Business interests oppose the plan, mainly because it would curtail highly profitable practices, like sub-prime loans. But that's not what they say publicly. The Chamber of Commerce, the business community's umbrella group in Washington, recently organized a conference call coordinating some 200 representatives of groups who oppose the legislation. The call doesn't mention any of the serious problems that led to the financial crisis or why consumer regulation is important. Instead, it follows a "death panel" approach to political discussion: Scare the hell out of everyone.
-- Tim Fernholz
