Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise in support of the Truth in Settlements Act. This bipartisan legislation, which I introduced earlier today with my colleague from Oklahoma Senator Lankford, the Presiding Officer, will help the public hold Federal agencies accountable for settlements they make with corporate wrongdoers. When companies break the law, Federal enforcement agencies are responsible for holding them accountable. In nearly every instance, agencies choose to resolve cases through settlements rather than a public trial. They defend this practice by arguing that settlements are in the best interest of the American people. That sounds good, but their actions paint a very different picture. If agencies were truly confident that these settlements were good deals for the public, they would be willing to publicly disclose all of the key details of those agreements. Instead, time after time, agencies do the opposite, hiding critical details about their settlements in the fine print--or worse, hiding them entirely from public view. Consider that copies of these agreements or even basic facts about them are not easily accessible online. Many agencies regularly deem agreements confidential without any public explanation of why the public cannot see what has been done in their name.…”