On October 30, 1984, President Ronald Reagan signed the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, fundamentally deregulating the cable television industry and setting the stage for massive media consolidation. Written and championed by conservative Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, the act amended …
Ronald ReaganBarry GoldwaterFederal Communications Commission (FCC)Cable industrymedia-deregulationcorporate-consolidationregulatory-capturereagan-administrationmedia-infrastructure
President Reagan signs the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act, known as Hatch-Waxman, which ostensibly balances pharmaceutical innovation incentives with generic competition but creates loopholes that brand-name manufacturers exploit to extend monopoly pricing for decades. The …
Orrin HatchHenry WaxmanRonald ReaganPharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of Americahealthcarepharmaceutical-industryregulatory-capturepatent-abuselobbying
Charles Keating, through American Continental Corporation, purchases Lincoln Savings and Loan for $51 million. Exploiting the deregulated environment created by Garn-St Germain, Keating rapidly expands Lincoln’s assets from $1.1 billion to $5.5 billion over four years through high-risk real …
Charles KeatingAmerican Continental CorporationLincoln Savings and LoanKeating Five SenatorsFederal Home Loan Bank Boardcharles-keatinglincoln-savingsfraudkeating-fiveregulatory-capture+1 more
A federal jury convicts EPA official Rita Lavelle of perjury for lying to Congress about her handling of the $1.6 billion Superfund toxic waste cleanup program. Lavelle, who headed the Superfund division, is found guilty on four of five felony counts for false testimony regarding her knowledge that …
Rita LavelleEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA)Aerojet-General CorporationRonald ReaganCongressepaperjurysuperfundconflict-of-interestregulatory-capture+1 more
Interior Secretary James Watt announces his resignation after describing a department panel as having “a black, a woman, two Jews and a cripple,” mocking affirmative action. Watt resigns within three weeks of the September comments amid bipartisan condemnation. His controversial 33-month …
James WattRonald ReaganDepartment of InteriorBeach Boysinterior-departmentenvironmental-deregulationracismregulatory-capturepublic-lands
South Dakota became the first U.S. state to abolish the common-law Rule Against Perpetuities, ending centuries of legal precedent designed to prevent families from holding wealth in trusts forever. The legislature enacted SDCL Section 43-5-8 declaring “The common-law rule against perpetuities …
South Dakota Legislaturetax-evasionwealth-concentrationregulatory-captureinstitutional-capturefinancial-secrecy
The Social Security Amendments of 1983 establish Medicare’s Prospective Payment System (PPS), fundamentally transforming hospital economics by replacing cost-based reimbursement with fixed payments based on Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs). Under the new system, hospitals receive a …
Ronald ReaganRichard SchweikerAmerican Hospital AssociationFederation of American Hospitalshealthcaremedicareregulatory-capturehospital-industrycost-shifting
Anne Gorsuch Burford resigns as EPA Administrator after becoming the first cabinet-level official in American history held in contempt of Congress. Gorsuch had refused to turn over Superfund records related to a $1.6 billion hazardous waste cleanup program, citing executive privilege on …
Anne Gorsuch BurfordRonald ReaganCongressEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA)Neil Gorsuchepaenvironmental-deregulationregulatory-capturecontempt-of-congresssuperfund+1 more
President Reagan signs the Garn-St Germain Depository Institutions Act in the Rose Garden, calling it “the most important legislation for financial institutions in the last 50 years.” The Act removes Depression-era constraints on thrift asset holdings, allows S&Ls to make high-risk …
Ronald ReaganJake Garn (R-UT)Fernand St Germain (D-RI)Chuck SchumerSteny Hoyer+2 morederegulationthrift-industryregulatory-capturereagan-administrations&l-crisis+1 more
Reagan’s Antitrust Chief William Baxter released the Department of Justice’s 1982 Merger Guidelines, fundamentally transforming how the federal government evaluated mergers and effectively repealing Congressional antitrust statutes through administrative policy. The FTC simultaneously …
William F. BaxterDepartment of JusticeFederal Trade CommissionRonald Reaganantitrustregulatory-capturechicago-schoolmerger-guidelinescorporate-power+1 more
President Ronald Reagan appointed Robert Bork to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on February 9, 1982, elevating the author of “The Antitrust Paradox” to the federal bench widely considered the nation’s second-most important court. Bork’s …
Robert BorkRonald ReaganDC Circuit Court of AppealsFederalist SocietyDepartment of Justice Antitrust Division+1 morejudicial-captureantitrust-abandonmentchicago-schoolfederalist-societyconservative-movement+3 more
President Ronald Reagan appointed Stanford Law Professor William F. Baxter as Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division, marking the formal beginning of antitrust enforcement collapse and the operationalization of Chicago School ideology throughout the federal government. Baxter, a …
Ronald ReaganWilliam F. BaxterDepartment of JusticeStanford Law SchoolSenator Howard Metzenbaumantitrustregulatory-capturechicago-schoolreagan-administrationenforcement-collapse+1 more
President Reagan appoints James Watt, former president of Mountain States Legal Foundation (funded by Coors and oil companies), as Interior Secretary. Watt immediately opens federal lands to mining and drilling, reverses environmental protections, and staffs the department with industry executives. …
Ronald ReaganJames WattMountain States Legal FoundationCoors CompanyOil Industryreagan-eraregulatory-capturederegulationinterior-departmentoil-industry
Ronald Reagan’s inauguration marked the beginning of the most consequential transformation in American antitrust policy since the Sherman Act of 1890—an eight-year systematic dismantlement of competition enforcement that would enable four decades of corporate consolidation and monopolization. …
Ronald ReaganWilliam F. BaxterDouglas GinsburgRobert BorkFrank Easterbrook+3 moreantitrustregulatory-capturechicago-schoolreagan-administrationenforcement-collapse+2 more
On December 11, 1980, President Jimmy Carter signed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as Superfund. While the law represented a landmark response to Love Canal and thousands of toxic waste sites nationwide, industry lobbying had …
Jimmy CarterChemical Manufacturers AssociationAmerican Petroleum InstituteU.S. Chamber of CommerceInsurance industry lobbyistsenvironmentalsuperfundtoxic-wasteregulatory-capturecorporate-lobbying+1 more
After six cloture attempts fail to break a Senate filibuster, the Labor Law Reform Act of 1978 dies on June 22, marking the most significant corporate lobbying victory since Taft-Hartley and demonstrating that even with Democratic supermajorities and a Democratic president, business interests can …
Business RoundtableU.S. Chamber of CommerceNational Association of ManufacturersAFL-CIOU.S. Senate+1 morelaborlabor-lawfilibustercorporate-lobbyingbusiness-roundtable+1 more
Senior Exxon scientist James Black delivered a sobering message to company executives about carbon dioxide warming the planet, marking the beginning of documented internal knowledge at Exxon about climate change risks. Internal research from 1977-1982 created remarkably accurate climate models …
James BlackRoger CohenExxonMobilExxon CorporationHarvard Climate Research Teamclimate-denialregulatory-capturefossil-fuelscorporate-knowledgeenvironmental-capture+1 more
Edwin J. Feulner Jr., co-founder of the Heritage Foundation in 1973, assumed the presidency of the conservative think tank in 1977, beginning what would become a transformative 36-year tenure that built Heritage from a modest Capitol Hill operation with 9 staff members into the preeminent …
Edwin FeulnerHeritage FoundationPaul WeyrichRichard ScaifeJoseph Coors+3 moreheritage-foundationconservative-movementthink-tank-influenceinstitutional-capturedark-money+4 more
On December 28, 1973, President Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act (ESA) into law after it passed the Senate 92-0 and the House 355-4. The near-unanimous votes masked deep industry opposition that would fuel decades of efforts to weaken the law through administrative action, litigation, and …
Richard NixonAmerican Mining CongressNational Forest Products AssociationAmerican Farm Bureau FederationWestern States Petroleum Association+1 moreenvironmentalendangered-species-actregulatory-capturecorporate-lobbyingwildlife
David Rockefeller, chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank, founded the Trilateral Commission in July 1973 as a private organization to foster cooperation between the United States, Western Europe, and Japan. The initiative was led by Rockefeller and Zbigniew Brzezinski, who became the commission’s …
David RockefellerZbigniew BrzezinskiJimmy CarterChase Manhattan BankTrilateral Commissionregulatory-capturecorporate-influenceinternational-coordinationbanking-networksglobal-governance
On October 18, 1972, Congress overrode President Nixon’s veto of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments, known as the Clean Water Act. The overwhelming bipartisan override (52-12 in the Senate, 247-23 in the House) represented a rare defeat for industrial polluters who had lobbied …
Richard NixonEdmund MuskieAmerican Petroleum InstituteChemical Manufacturers AssociationNational Association of Manufacturers+1 moreenvironmentalclean-water-actregulatory-capturecorporate-lobbyingpollution+1 more
Agha Hasan Abedi established the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) in Luxembourg, creating an international bank with initial capital from Bank of America and Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. BCCI rapidly expanded to become the seventh-largest private bank in the world before being …
Agha Hasan AbediSheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al NahyanBank of Americabankingfinancial-crimeinternational-bankingmoney-launderingregulatory-capture
The Oregon Legislature passes and Governor Tom McCall signs the Oregon Forest Practices Act, the nation’s first comprehensive forest management legislation, which becomes effective in 1972. While portrayed as environmental protection, the Act represents a sophisticated regulatory capture …
Oregon LegislatureTom McCallOregon timber industryOregon Department of Forestryregulatory-captureenvironmental-destructiontimber-industryself-regulationinstitutional-corruption
On November 30, 1965, attorney Ralph Nader published “Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-In Dangers of the American Automobile,” a meticulously researched indictment of the auto industry’s prioritization of styling and profits over passenger safety. The book documented how …
Ralph NaderGeneral MotorsFord Motor CompanyChrysler CorporationAmerican Automobile Manufacturers Associationconsumer-protectioncorporate-disinformationautomotive-industryregulatory-capture
On September 27, 1962, Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring” was published, documenting the devastating environmental and health effects of synthetic pesticides, particularly DDT. The book meticulously detailed how chemical pesticides were poisoning ecosystems, killing wildlife, and …
Rachel CarsonMonsantoAmerican CyanamidVelsicol Chemical CorporationNational Agricultural Chemicals Associationenvironmental-regulationcorporate-disinformationregulatory-capturechemical-industrypublic-health
The House Armed Services Special Investigations Subcommittee, led by Rep. F. Edward Hebert (D-La.), released a shocking report documenting the extent of the defense industry revolving door. After questioning 75 witnesses over 25 days in mid-1959, the subcommittee found that more than 1,400 retired …
F. Edward HebertHouse Armed Services CommitteeGeneral DynamicsFrank Pacerevolving-doordefense-contractorscongressional-investigationmilitary-industrial-complexregulatory-capture
The House Armed Services Committee exonerates Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson and Air Force Secretary Stuart Symington of corruption charges related to the B-36 bomber contract, despite Johnson’s recent service on Convair Corporation’s board of directors. An anonymous document …
Louis JohnsonConvair CorporationHouse Armed Services CommitteeCarl VinsonStuart Symington+1 moremilitary-industrial-complexrevolving-doorconflict-of-interestdefense-contractssystematic-corruption+1 more
President Harry Truman signs the Atomic Energy Act of 1946 on August 1, establishing the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) to control the development and production of nuclear weapons and to develop nuclear power. The act creates unprecedented peacetime secrecy powers and establishes the framework for …
CongressHarry TrumanBrien McMahonAtomic Energy CommissionDavid Lilienthal+2 morenational-security-stateregulatory-capturesecrecynuclear-industrymilitary-industrial-complex+1 more
Congress passes the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) on June 11, 1946, establishing uniform procedures for federal agency rulemaking and adjudication. While ostensibly designed to ensure fairness and public participation, the APA creates structural opportunities for well-resourced interests to …
CongressHarry TrumanAmerican Bar AssociationBusiness interestsFederal agenciesregulatory-captureadministrative-lawcorporate-influencederegulation-frameworkinstitutional-design
Congress passes the Renegotiation Act on April 28, 1942, establishing a process to recapture “excessive profits” from war contractors. While presented as a check on war profiteering, the act’s weak enforcement mechanisms and industry-friendly implementation allow most excessive …
Senate hearings expose Standard Oil of New Jersey’s secret cartel agreements with IG Farben, the German chemical conglomerate that produces Zyklon B for Nazi concentration camps and uses slave labor from Auschwitz. Senator Harry Truman’s investigative committee reveals that Standard Oil …
Standard Oil of New JerseyIG FarbenHarry TrumanThurman ArnoldWalter Teagle+1 morecorporate-treasonwar-profiteeringcartelregulatory-captureantitrust-evasion+1 more
Congress passes the Excess Profits Tax Act on October 8, 1940, establishing graduated taxes on corporate profits exceeding pre-war averages. While ostensibly designed to prevent war profiteering and ensure shared sacrifice, the legislation contains numerous loopholes secured through corporate …
CongressFranklin D. RooseveltTreasury DepartmentNational Association of ManufacturersU.S. Chamber of Commercewar-profiteeringtax-policycorporate-influenceregulatory-captureloopholes
Congress passed the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA), co-sponsored by Senator Joseph T. Robinson (D-AR) and Representative Wright Patman (D-TX), prohibiting anticompetitive price discrimination by producers. The law responded to the growing power of chain stores like the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea …
U.S. CongressSenator Joseph T. RobinsonRepresentative Wright PatmanFederal Trade Commissionantitrustregulatory-captureprice-discriminationcorporate-powersmall-business
President Roosevelt appoints Joseph P. Kennedy, a wealthy Wall Street speculator known for stock manipulation and insider trading, as the first chairman of the newly-created Securities and Exchange Commission on July 2, 1934. The appointment shocks New Deal reformers and delights Wall Street, …
Franklin D. RooseveltJoseph P. KennedySecurities and Exchange Commission (SEC)Wall Streetregulatory-capturenew-dealsecfinancial-regulationrevolving-door
President Roosevelt signs the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) on June 16, 1933, creating the National Recovery Administration (NRA) to oversee the development of industry-wide “codes of fair competition” establishing minimum wages, maximum hours, collective bargaining rights, and …
Franklin D. RooseveltHugh JohnsonU.S. CongressNational Recovery AdministrationU.S. Chamber of Commerce+2 morenew-dealcorporate-captureregulatory-capturelabor-rightsindustrial-policy
President Calvin Coolidge signs the McFadden Act, one of the most contested pieces of banking legislation in U.S. history, which recharters the twelve Federal Reserve District Banks into perpetuity but prohibits interstate branch banking for national banks. Named after Representative Louis Thomas …
Louis Thomas McFaddenCalvin CoolidgeU.S. CongressFederal Reservefinancial-deregulationbankingregulatory-capture
Interior Secretary Albert Fall secretly granted Harry Sinclair’s Mammoth Oil Company exclusive rights to extract oil and gas from the Teapot Dome naval petroleum reserve in Wyoming for 20 years, without competitive bidding. Fall locked the contract in his desk and instructed staff to tell no …
Albert FallHarry Sinclairpolitical-corruptionresource-extractionsystematic-corruptionregulatory-capture
The holding company structure proliferates across American industry during the 1920s, enabling unprecedented corporate consolidation while evading antitrust enforcement and state regulation. Delaware’s permissive incorporation laws, offering minimal oversight and maximum management discretion, …
Samuel InsullJ.P. MorganVan Sweringen BrothersDelaware Corporation Commissioncorporate-consolidationregulatory-capturefinancial-manipulationantitrust-evasionholding-companies
President Warren G. Harding signed Executive Order 3474 transferring control of naval petroleum reserves at Teapot Dome, Wyoming, and Elk Hills and Buena Vista in California from the Navy Department to the Department of the Interior under Secretary Albert Fall. This transfer removed the reserves …
Warren G. HardingAlbert FallEdwin Denbyinstitutional-captureexecutive-corruptionresource-extractionregulatory-capture
President Woodrow Wilson signs the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, commonly known as the Jones Act after its sponsor Senator Wesley Jones of Washington, mandating that all goods shipped between U.S. ports must be transported on ships that are American-built, American-owned, and American-crewed. The law …
On March 25, 1911, a fire—likely sparked by a discarded cigarette—swept through the Triangle Waist Company factory on the eighth, ninth, and tenth floors of the Asch Building in New York City, killing 146 workers, mostly teenage Italian and Jewish immigrant girls. The victims died not from the fire …
On the morning of Saturday, November 2, 1907, during the Panic of 1907 financial crisis, J.P. Morgan convened a meeting at his library proposing that U.S. Steel—which already controlled 60% of the steel market—purchase stock in the insolvent brokerage firm Moore & Schley, which had borrowed …
Theodore RooseveltJ.P. MorganElbert H. GaryHenry Clay FrickU.S. Steel Corporation+2 moreantitrustcorporate-powerfinancial-crisisprogressive-eraregulatory-capture
By the end of the 1890s, the Standard Oil Trust controls the refining of 90 to 95 percent of all oil produced in the United States, representing the most complete industrial monopoly in American history achieved through systematic elimination of competitors, strategic mergers, and exploitation of …
John D. RockefellerStandard Oil TrustRailroad corporationsCompeting refineriesState regulatorsgilded-agemonopoly-powercorporate-powercorruptionanticompetitive-practices+1 more