An Agenda for the Obama and Bush Meeting

Washington, D.C., November 10, 2008—Since the President and President-elect start spending quality Oval Office time together today, and since the incoming administration’s advisors can’t settle on either pushing a “Big Bang” agenda or something more incremental, we at CEI are more than happy to help. While they’re busy trying to lower expectations for a 100-Day agenda, we prefer to raise them – but in the direction of freedom rather than yet more central planning from Washington.

Given the vast scope of the Federal government now, any conceivable agenda from any president barely scratches the surface of the thorough unshackling of American enterprise that needs to be done.

Below is the outline for our previous edition of our agenda for Congress: This Liberal Congress Went to Market? A Bipartisan Agenda for Congress.

Just about all of it’s still more than relevant, since economic liberalization hasn’t exactly been a concern of Washington lately; yet no task is more important given not just the Bailout to Nowhere, but a Bailout on Wheels besides. Enjoy, and watch this space – and our home page – for the new edition, coming soon.

This Liberal Congress Went to Market?

Securing the Economy, Protecting the Environment, Improving Health and Safety

Securing the Economy
Rein in the $1 Trillion Regulatory State
Reform U.S. Agriculture Programs
Roll Back Overly Aggressive Sarbanes-Oxley Accounting Rules
Make Stock Options Available to More Workers
Recognize the Value of Hedge Funds and Private Equity for Entrepreneurs and Shareholders
Encourage Innovation in Credit Availability
Facilitate Further Telecommunications Reform
Improve Access to Affordable Energy
Allow American Workers to Work Without Labor Regulation
Avoid Extension of Antitrust Regulation into New Competitive Realms
Avoid Privacy Regulation that Worsens Personal Security
Forge a Bipartisan Alliance Against Corporate Welfare
Liberalize Insurance Markets
Keep Government’s Hands off the Net and E-Commerce
Clarify the Role of Not-So-Intellectual Property in the Economy
Define Corporate Social Responsibility
Protect and Enhance Federalism
Protect Free Speech by Rejecting Content Regulation
Promote Globalization’s Benefits by Further Liberalizing Trade
Counteract Politicization of Federal Science Policy
Resist New Burdens on the Transportation Sector
Facilitate Electricity Competition

Protecting the Environment
Restore the Constitutional Right to Property
Embrace Private Conservation of Land and Natural Resources
Protect Endangered Species
Clarify the Role of Invasive Species
Develop New Approaches to Preserve Ocean Resources
Recognize the Risks of Global Warming Policies
Trash Counterproductive Waste Disposal Policies
Recognize the Elitist Nature of “Anti-Sprawl” Measures
Resist the Urge to Play the Fuel Economy Mandate Game
Rethink Water Rights Policies
Reform Wetlands Policies

Improving Health and Safety
Reject the Precautionary Principle, a Threat to Scientific Progress
Recognize the Deadly Effects of Over-regulating Medicines and Medical Devices
Purify Federal Water Policies
Enhance Auto Safety
Improve Food Safety and Labeling
Securing the Future of Food Biotechnology
Resist Over-Caution on Nanotechnology and Other Frontier Sciences
Enhance the Homeland Security Role of Critical Infrastructure and Cybersecurity

CEI is a non-profit, non-partisan public policy group dedicated to the principles of free enterprise and limited government.  For more information about CEI, please visit our website at www.cei.org.