How Lobbyists Are Weakening the U.S.

Much has been written about the destructive effect of lobbying activity on American society, politics and economy. But there is an even greater dimension to the problem. The aggressive push of U.S. companies to deregulate — combined with the lax enforcement of existing norms and guidelines on the part of the government — is undermining one of the key pillars in U.S. economic competitiveness.

It is painful to watch a nation, which in the recent past made much noise about concepts such as transparency, disclosure and accountability, stand by as federal officials enable and tolerate the behavior of companies as they deliberately avoid — or even directly and systematically violate — regulations.

As soon as something “bad” happens — do we need to mention the oil company BP? — you can be sure that members of the U.S. Congress will protest just as quickly as litigation attorneys file class-action law suits. Neither of these two reactions is an especially intelligent approach for leading a complex, modern civilization. The self-righteous manner in which the U.S. Congress pretends to be outraged is rather presumptuous, since it was this institution that bent over backwards to relax any regulations that companies might view as an impediment.

Leaving aside the financial concerns, this trend is particularly pronounced in the environmental sector — from water treatment and emissions standards to efficient fuel use and production of mineral resources. Completely overlooked in all the rhetoric is the devastating effect this tacit tolerance by policy makers ultimately has on science and technology — and on the benefits of these disciplines for the whole of society.

U.S. corporations keep hearing the promises of politicians to loosen all rigid and restrictive policies — promises that were undoubtedly influenced by enticing corporate donations. Under these circumstances, it is only “reasonable” to use internal corporate resources in a way that takes optimal advantage of the political system.

The alternative would be to work hard to meet the strict requirements and regulations. But this is not the best option. For it is still cheaper to operate through “the Washington office” and lobby successfully for looser standards than to invest a great deal of time and money and deploy teams of managers and researchers to meet the requirements. In other words, the message from the politicians and business leaders is that a science-based approach is not really necessary to drive the U.S. economy. This mantra ultimately leads to the weakening of science.

This situation prevails even today in Washington. And it may well be largely responsible for the fact that science and technology in the U.S. society is continuously losing prestige — and this, in turn, is directly related to America’s loss of competitiveness. Other factors play a role, such the fact that scientists earn less than lawyers and investment bankers and that in the last two decades higher education in science and technology has shifted to foreign students.

But the fish rots from the head. And here is where the effects of lobbying and deregulation — Washington’s preferred modus operandi — come into play.

Maybe Republicans are patting one another on the back because they have managed to block all attempts to enhance regulatory requirements in virtually all federal agencies — from the Environmental Protection Agency through the Food and Drug Administration to Pentagon procurement procedures. And the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is no doubt pleased that it helped to “liberate” U.S. companies from the yoke of regulation, as if this represented some kind of second struggle against communism. But for the U.S. the tragedy is that companies will no longer focus on adhering to stringent guidelines and thus reap the rewards from being the global leader in technology.

Anyone who doubts the benefits of strict regulation needs only to look to Europe and Japan. The economies of these regions do have their problems, but despite state-sanctioned strict regulations, European and Japanese companies are able to succeed against their U.S. competitors.

The fact that leading U.S. companies like General Electric Co. are building up their staff for research and development (R & D) in Europe — which is hardly a cheaper location than the U.S. — is likely indicative of much more than the mere globalization of R & D. It simply underscores the fact that companies recognize that it can be a competitive advantage to set up shop in a highly regulated region.

The result of all the lobbying and the willingness of Congress to comply with the lobbyists is that U.S. companies have lost valuable time and influence in many environmental technologies. Unfortunately, for the economic future of America this perverse logic does not just apply to climate change.