Shocker: Trump's Consumer Product "Safety" Commission Isn't About "Safety"

Today's Washington Post has an exposé on how Republicans on the Consumer Product Safety Commission sank a recall for a brand of baby jogging stroller made by Britax that had an unfortunate habit of having its front wheel fall off.  Chalk up another win for E. coli conservatives:

The untold story of the Britax case shows how changes in the safety agency’s leadership under President Trump influenced the handling of a product that the commission believed had injured consumers. The case was even more striking because it unfolded as Republicans assumed day-to-day control of the agency, eventually earning a majority on the agency’s oversight commission for the first time in more than a decade.

According to a review of documents by The Washington Post and interviews with eight current and former senior agency officials, the agency’s Republican chairwoman kept Democratic commissioners in the dark about the stroller investigation and then helped end the case in court. Some spoke on the condition of anonymity because of agency rules against discussing cases.

These events occurred with little notice amid other, higher-profile deregulatory moves by the Trump administration. But consumer advocates said changes at the Consumer Product Safety Commission could be a worrisome sign of regulators pulling back at an agency that oversees safety in 15,000 everyday products, from toys and dressers to lawn mowers and table saws.  (our emphasis)

The Republican chairwoman behind this is quite the fox in the CPSC chickencoop:

Ann Marie Buerkle, a Republican, was named acting chairwoman in February 2017. Trump has nominated her to take on the role permanently. 

Buerkle, who has served on the commission since 2013, was the only commissioner to oppose proposed portable-generator rules aimed at reducing carbon monoxide poisoning in 2016. She was again the lone vote that year against a then-record $15.45 million penalty for a company accused of making humidifiers prone to catching fire. [snip]

In Buerkle’s first two years as chairwoman, the number of companies fined for misconduct declined to five in 2017-2018 from 12 in 2015-2016. Public voluntary recalls fell about 13 percent during the same period, resulting in approximately 80 fewer recalls, according to agency data. Last year, the number of public recalls fell to its lowest level in a decade, consumer advocates say.  (our emphasis)

So, the bottom line, after the Commission's professional compliance staff unanimously went on record calling for a safety recall, and after the pre- election Democratic majority Commission filed a lawsuit to force Britax to recall its defective strollers, the post- election Republican majority led by Buerkle [spoiler alert!] deliberately sank the Commission's case against Britax.

Beyond the anti- consumer decision at hand, this also sends a clear message to businesses that they can get away with pretty much anything, consumers be damned.  And that's precisely the outcome E. coli conservatives want.

(Photo:  Front wheel on the Britax jogger stroller, not the big wheel execs Republicans care about;  Dustin Franz for the Washington Post)