IF YOU LIKE the Karl Rove-inspired attack on John Kerry's . . .

[TaleWgnDg]

ROBERT KUTTNER, Boston Globe Newspaper, op-ed
Now, smearing the trial lawyers
By Robert Kuttner | August 25, 2004

IF YOU LIKE the Karl Rove-inspired attack on John Kerry's Swift Boat service, you're going to love the US Chamber of Commerce's coming assault on John Edwards.

Like the rightwing vets smearing Kerry's Vietnam record. . . . The core of (U.S. Chamber of Commerce's) attack will be that Edwards is (gasp) a trial lawyer. For decades, "trial lawyer" has been used in Republican speeches as an epithet. Business executives applaud in appreciation -- and everyone else scratches his head. What's so terrible about trial lawyers? Are they worse than, say, corporate lawyers?

The attack on trial lawyers as ambulance chasers and cost inflators invites exploration. The corporate elite and the GOP have three grudges against "trial lawyers." First, damage awards cost business money when they uncover corporate practices that swindle, maim, or kill ordinary citizens . . .

<snip>

(Second,) And as champions of the little guy, trial lawyers are among the few well-heeled professionals who donate more money to Democrats than Republicans. . . .

<snip>

(Third,) It further galls the right(wing) that some small fraction of trial lawyers actually get rich by helping injured people to collect. Notice that when some business mogul becomes a billionaire, the right(wing) insists that he earned that money by bettering mankind. But when a talented personal injury lawyer prospers by helping an injury victim, he's a parasitic shyster.

So the business lobbies and the Republicans have been promoting what they call "tort reform." The idea is to make it harder for ordinary people to recover damages and to limit the amount they can collect. But what of the substance of the right(wing)'s case? Isn't there a real problem here?

Not really. For starters, the right(wing) can blame itself. As more of the economy becomes deregulated, the common-law remedy of going to court is often all that allows victims any redress. The right(wing)'s war on health, safety, financial, and environmental regulation is substantially responsible for the litigation they now oppose as well. . . .

(Robert Kuttner is co-editor of The American Prospect. His column appears regularly in the Boston Globe Newspaper online and hard copy, op-ed.)
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2004/08/25/now_smearing_the_trial_lawyers/ (as last visited August 25, 2004, 9:20 PM EDT)

[LoZoccolo]

1. Anti-Edwards = pro-disembowlment of children.

The defining case in Edwards' legal career wrapped up that same year. In 1993, a five-year-old girl named Valerie Lakey had been playing in a Wake County, N.C., wading pool when she became caught in an uncovered drain so forcefully that the suction pulled out most of her intestines. She survived but for the rest of her life will need to be hooked up to feeding tubes for 12 hours each night. Edwards filed suit on the Lakeys' behalf against Sta-Rite Industries, the Wisconsin corporation that manufactured the drain. Attorneys describe his handling of the case as a virtuoso example of a trial layer bringing a negligent corporation to heel.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2001/0110.green.html

Why do they want to hurt little children?

[TaleWgnDg]

3. that's what so-called "tort reform" is all about . . .

shutting down people's right to go to court and sue those who have injured them. Whether its M.D.s or corporations . . . they are out to not allow people to sue them anymore. And John Edwards is their next target . . . Edwards is going to be smeared from here to hell and back.

[classof56]

2. Good post. Thanks for the link, TWD!

The R's really HATE being nailed on this stuff, don't they? Thank goodness for the purveyors of truth that are still among us. Long may they wave!

Bush MUST GO!!!

[TaleWgnDg]

4. yup, very true, and you're welcome.

[Inland]

5. For big business, against regular people it injures.

Not exactly man bites dog news, is it?

[TaleWgnDg]

6. yes, how true . . .

not exactly dog-bite cases. These are the large cases with large injuries . . . corporations hate these cases, M.D.s hate these cases. Off the top of my head, I recall the stat that it's 5% of the M.D.s that cause 100% of the patient injuries and their state Boards don't enforce sanctions well enough to police them.

[swag]

7. Keep their heads ringin' - 202-463-5600 (Chamber Public Affairs)

US Chamber of Commerce, Congressional & Public Affairs

U.S. Chamber of Commerce
1615 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20062-2000

Regional Offices

http://www.uschamber.com/about/contact/regional.htm

Board of Directors

http://www.uschamber.com/about/board/all.htm

News Release:

CONTACTS: Linda Rozett/Eric Wohlschlegel
[phone] / 888-249-NEWS

Tuesday, August 24, 2004

U.S. Chamber Enters Political Debate for Next White House
Calls Legal System Abuses too Important to Ignore

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Chamber of Commerce announced it would participate in two new political initiatives to educate voters about the devastating impact of a runaway legal system on the American way of life – during this fall’s presidential campaign.

“We cannot ignore what may prove to be a make-or-break election for legal reform at the national level,” said Thomas Donohue, Chamber President and CEO. “When voters go to the polls, they need to know lawsuit abuse destroys jobs, drives doctors out of business and forces companies into bankruptcy. The extraordinary circumstances surrounding this election have compelled us to support two important new initiatives.”

The Chamber is joining others in supporting a new 527 Group called The November Fund, which aims to raise public awareness about lawsuit abuse. The group is co-chaired by Craig Fuller, former chief-of-staff to Vice President Bush, and Bill Brock, former Senator and Republican National Committee Chair.

This team has identified seven battleground states where there is the greatest potential to effectively educate voters through a concerted program of TV, radio and print advertising and direct mail, an Internet campaign, and earned media discussing the truth about trial lawyers.

“The impact of the trial bar’s influence on the legal, legislative, regulatory and economic decisions of an administration is impossible to calculate,” said Donohue.

In addition, while maintaining its policy of not issuing endorsements in presidential elections, the Chamber will run a voter education program in 6-10 key states, stressing legal reform issues with its federation members. The program will highlight the growing political influence of the trial bar and remind the business community of the dangers of having this group closely aligned with the White House.

These initiatives add to an already aggressive political program. The Chamber endorses pro-business Senate and House candidates of both parties and is mobilizing the business vote through a Web-based voter registration, education and get-out-the-vote program called VoteforBusiness.com. The U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform supports voter education efforts in state Supreme Court and attorney general races that have begun to fundamentally change the legal environment for business.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organizations of every size, sector and region.

# # #

04-116

http://www.uschamber.com/press/releases/2004/august/04-116.htm