Over the last few weeks, abysmal U.S. economic data has been released. The Consumer Price Index showed inflation increased 8.3% in August. Food prices alone went up from 11.4% compared to a year ago—their largest rise since 1979. The stock market had its worst day of the year this week, and the Federal Reserve acted once again to raise interest rates. American families are feeling these price increases at home, and they want policymakers to pay attention.
NetChoice released polling earlier this month with Echelon Insights, which found similar results. According to likely voters, they are extremely concerned about soaring prices. Nearly two thirds of respondents said the country is headed down the wrong track, and they want lawmakers focused on the economy.
It therefore comes as a surprise that the Biden administration and Democrats in Congress are focused on policies like tech regulation, which will only further inflict economic pain on Americans. Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed a package that included an estimated $1.4 billion in new taxes to increase funding for the FTC and DOJ, which are run by radical progressives. And Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) has introduced two bills that would negatively affect inflation, jobs, U.S. national security and American global competitiveness.
In a recent report from the Committee to Unleash Prosperity, economists Stephen Moore and Matthew Rees detailed 12 tragic flaws with S. 2992, “The American Innovation and Choice Online Act.” According to Rees and Moore, “The price of everything from computer software, to making online purchases, to cell phones, to accessing social media platforms, to internet communications have fallen almost continuously over the past three decades.” If S. 2992 is passed, this trend will take a dramatic turn for the worse.
The nonpartisan, widely respected Congressional Research Service echoed similar concerns in its own report, noting that the bill’s vague and open-ended language will be challenging for regulators and that its interoperability provision “may create privacy concerns and data-security risks.”
The other bill, the Open App Markets Act (S. 2710), would force app stores to host apps and payment services. It would threaten the privacy of Americans online and take away the important security tools upon which we rely daily.
Additionally, progressives at the Federal Trade Commission have been spending massive agency resources on attempting unfounded cases and undermining the consumer welfare standard.
89% of Americans want Congress to focus on inflation rather than breaking up our world-leading tech companies. As the country looks ahead to the end of 2022, policymakers should be putting American interests first—especially our finances.