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  • The Push For the Consumer Financial Protection Agency and the Push-Back From the US Chamber of Commerce

    The White House is pushing Congress to create a Consumer Financial Protection Agency . The creation of the new agency would be part of the Obama administration's larger package of financial regulatory reforms. And Austan Goolsbee of the president's Council of Economic Advisors says the new regulations will "re-establish rules of the road" as they apply to consumers: The US Chamber of Commerce has been leading the charge against the creation of the CFPA. The Chamber's David Hirschmann called it "an unnecessary big government solution," last month, after a revised version of the the CFPA proposal was announced. Click here to read the Chamber of Commerce's list of objections to the CFPA. The battle lines look familiar to University of South Carolina professor of history Lawrence Glickman . In a guest post at Baseline Scenario , Glickman, author of Buying Power: A History of Consumer Activism in America , sees the roots of today's opposition to the CFPA in the push against the creation of a Consumer Protection Agency in the 60s and 70s. Read Consumer Protection Redux: The Lessons of History here .

  • President Obama Explaines Plan to Close Offshore Tax Loopholes

    President Obama and Treasury Secretary Geithner pushed their proposal to end offshore tax havens for US corportations yesterday. If adopted, the shift in tax law would would take effect in 2011. And at the moment, that's a big if, as it appears the Democratic leadership in Congress is not fully on board with the plan--at least not yet . The US Chamber of Commerce also stressed their opposition to the plan, saying it will cost the US jobs at a time the country can not afford to lose any more. And U.S. Chamber of Commerce Chief Economist Dr. Marty Regalia took issue with the portrayal of "tax havens," saying "deferral has been mischaracterized as a ‘tax break’ but is actually a vital mechanism providing relief for American businesses from double taxation."