Obama thinks you're too stupid

to mange your own retirement… Today the House of Representatives is considering HR 1090, the Retail Investor Protection Act. This legislation blocks the Department of Labor’s “fiduciary rule.” The rule imposes a one-size-fits all “best interest” standard on investment products. Under this rule, if you wanted to say, invest in gold, real estate, or other nontraditional assets, you could be out of luck if the Department of Labor bureaucrats decide those investments are not in your best interests. The Labor Department justifies this rule on the grounds that most Americans “cannot prudently manage retirement assets on their own.”  Yes, they actually said that. Some experts say that this rule will make it impossible for brokers to serve clients with under $50,000 in assets. Thus, this rule will make it impossible for many middle-and-working-class Americans to save for retirement. Since most retirement plans enable individuals to save money tax-free, this rule also amounts to a massive (and hidden) tax hike. This paternalistic, harmful rule is so offensive that opposition to it crosses party and ideological lines. Ninety-six House Democrats wrote to the Labor Department expressing concerns about the rule’s impact and the Brookings Institute and the Progressive Policy Institute, two center-left think tanks have also expressed opposition to the rule. Campaign for Liberty members who oppose government paternalism that hurts those it purports to help should contact their Representatives and tell them to vote yes on HR  1090. Here and below is a coalition letter Campaign for Liberty signed on this issue:

October 22, 2015 Dear Speaker Boehner and Majority Leader McConnell: We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, represent millions of Americans in defense of free markets and constitutional liberties. As such, we believe Congress must exercise its power of the purse granted by the Constitution to halt the Obama administration’s executive overreach. This is particularly true when such action by the administration has attracted bipartisan opposition owing to the massive negative effects it would have on Americans’ retirement savings. We urge you to freeze funding in any spending bill for the Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposed fiduciary rule until the DOL withdraws such rule. Under the fiduciary rule, the DOL claims authority never granted by Congress to greatly restrict investment choices for 401(k)s, individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and other saving vehicles. In the proposed regulation, referred to by many as “Obamacare for your IRA,” the DOL doesn’t even bother to hide its contempt for the intelligence of American savers. It says most Americans can’t “prudently manage retirement assets on their own.” Based on this paternalism, the administration mandates that investment professionals — even if they are serving self-directed investors – must adhere to the government’s one-size-fits-all definition of “best interest” for the investment products they offer. The rule leaves no room for individual savers to decide what their own “best interests” are. Ninety-six House Democrats recently wrote the DOL expressing concern that the fiduciary rule could limit access to retirement planning for poor and middle-class Americans. Center-left economists from the Brookings Institution and Progressive Policy Institute have concluded that the rule would cause many Americans to lose their current brokers and could cost savers $80 billion over the next decade. Put simply, the rule would make it much more difficult for individuals to open and maintain an IRA, and for companies to offer 401(k)s. As leading experts say, many brokers will stop serving households with less than $50,000 in assets. The restrictions, therefore, amount to a higher tax burden on Americans by making it harder for the vehicles for retirement saving designed by Congress to lower that burden. IRA holders could also lose their ability to invest in gold, real estate and other nontraditional assets if DOL bureaucrats deem these choices to be not in their ”best interests.” We believe the federal government should vigorously prosecute actual fraud by financial professionals, but otherwise leave savers free to seek guidance and make investment choices they deem in their own best interests, taking account of their own individual circumstances and preferences. We urge Congress to do everything it can, in spending bills and otherwise, to defeat the DOL’s destructive fiduciary rule. Sincerely, Gregory Conko, Executive Director, Competitive Enterprise Institute Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform Carrie Lukas, Managing Director, Independent Women’s Forum Heather Higgins, President & CEO, Independent Women’s Voice Phil Kerpen, President, American Commitment Coley Jackson, President, Americans for Competitive Enterprise Brent Gardner, Vice President of Government Affairs, Americans for Prosperity Dan Weber, CEO, Association of Mature American Citizens Richard and Susan Falknor, Publishers, Blue Ridge Forum Norman Singleton, Senior Vice President, Campaign for Liberty Linwood Bragan, Executive Director, CapStand Council for Policy and Ethics Andrew Quinlan, President, Center for Freedom and Prosperity Timothy Lee, Senior Vice President, Center for Individual Freedom Star Parker, President, Center for Urban Renewal and Education Wayne Brough, Chief Economist & Vice President for Research, FreedomWorks Foundation George Landrith, President, Frontiers of Freedom Andresen Blom, Executive Director, Grassroot Hawaii Action, Inc Andrew Langer, President, Institute for Liberty Seton Motley, President, Less Government Gregory T. Angelo, President, Log Cabin Republicans Dee Hodges, President, Maryland Taxpayers Association Amy Ridenour, President , National Center for Public Policy Research Pamela Villarreal, Senior Fellow, National Center for Policy Analysis Willes K. Lee, Executive Vice President, National Federation of Republican Assemblies Lewis Uhler, President, National Tax Limitation Committee Pete Sepp, President, National Taxpayers Union Dave Wallace, Founder, Restore America’s Mission Matthew Kandrach, Vice President, 60 Plus Association Karen Kerrigan, President & CEO, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council David Williams, President, Taxpayers Protection Alliance J enny Beth Martin, CEO & Co -Founder, Tea Party Patriots Lisa Miller, Founder, Tea Party WDC Kevin L. Kearns, President, U.S. Business and Industry Council