John Kennedy is on the job.
Fox Business headlines this about the famously folksy and decidedly sharp Louisiana Senator: https://www.foxbusiness.com/
Republican Sen John Kennedy leads legislators against SEC list of private investor info
Estimated CAT operating costs have ballooned from $51 million to $223 million
FB reports this telling tale:
“Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., is leading a bipartisan team of lawmakers to stop the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from finishing a database that contains the private information of investors, calling it a violation of the Fourth Amendment.
The Consolidated Auto Trail, or CAT, was originally proposed in 2010 to help regulators track order and trading activity throughout U.S. markets on equities and options. The database will list all the financial holdings and personal information of investors, including their name, phone number, address, brokerage accounts, birthdate and Social Security number.
Collecting and storing personal data in the CAT serves no regulatory purpose. It’s unconstitutional, and it puts about 158 million Americans at risk,” Kennedy told FOX Business. “Since the SEC seems set on ignoring the Fourth Amendment, I’ve introduced a bill that would stop the SEC from requiring brokers to give investors’ personal information to the CAT.”
…’Bureaucrats are known for overreach, and a new Republican bill will protect the American people from this invasion of privacy,’ ASA chief executive Chris Iacovella said in a recent interview with FOX Business. ‘Democrats think the SEC needs this information to stop insider trading, which is untrue, as the commission brings an average of 100 cases per year under the current system. Additionally, some Democrats strongly support a surveillance state.’
Joining the ASA and Kennedy’s fight against the SEC’s CAT list are legislators from both the House and Senate, including Republican Sens. Michael Rounds of South Dakota; Jerry Moran of Kansas; David Daines of Montana; John Boozman and Tom Cotton of Arkansas; and Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, as well as Rep. Loudermilk.
Attorneys general from Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, South Carolina, Utah and West Virginia have also taken a stance alongside Kennedy, the ASA confirmed.”
Catch that quote above? This one: “Additionally, some Democrats strongly support a surveillance state.”
Which is another way of saying that while the calendar says this is 2023, in reality there are those who yearn to make it Orwell’s 1984. With the government knowing every last personal and professional detail of your life.
A simple look at history reveals that there are always those in America or any other society for whom control over others is the be-all-and-end-all of human existence.
In this case, Senator Kennedy is on to them. But one can be certain that the central idea behind this gem – control of the lives of American citizens – is alive and well.