Recently the FTC as well as the DOJ have initiated consultations with foreign countries that amount to requesting their input on how to enforce American Law. (https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2021/05/multilateral-pharmaceutical-merger-task-force-seeks-public-input ) I find this trend extremely disturbing, not only because it demonstrates so little regard for the notion of the “consent of the governed”, but also because it may raise issues with the separation of powers. This is government overreach defined. When a federal body seeks the advice of a foreign government on how to regulate Americans it should clearly indicate the source(s) of where it has been granted such authority, and if it cannot do so, it should refrain from operating in this manner which affords citizens and our interests no accountability to the parties it has speciously allowed to regulate us.
If the US wants treaty authority in a discrete area of law, so as to enforce same against Americans, it needs to follow the appropriate procedures. I am not a citizen of the EU and do not have significant ties there. I do like to visit some EU countries. This alone is the sum of my involvement with the EU, yet somehow, they seem to have been awarded input over FTC enforcement. The FTC and DOJ need to clarify their intentions to the American people.
What’s next? Will these foreign countries tax us as well? I love visiting Canada and even have family there. This is not enough for me to vote in a Canadian election. There is an appropriate forum for multilateral decision-making that may directly affect United States interests and conservation of these important boundaries, procedures and frameworks matters.
Bibliography:
Nation III, George A. “We The People: The Consent of the Governed in the 21st Century: The People’s Unalienable Right To Make Law” accessed May 13, 2021 at: https://drexel.edu/~/media/Files/law/law%20review/spring_2012/Nation.ashx
