Obama on Overregulation: Less than Meets the Eye

James Gattuso / January 18, 2011

There’s a new regulatory skeptic in town, and his name is Barack Obama. At least that’s the image the President tried to paint today in a bylined opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal. The message was clear: Forget the War on Business. That’s so 2010. Say hello to the War on Regulation.

But is Obama really a born-again regulatory reformer? That, of course, would be good news. After breaking records over the last year in terms of new regulations imposed, a reassessment would be welcome. In his op-ed, the President conceded that sometimes “rules have gotten out of balance, placing unreasonable burdens on business—burdens that have had a chilling effect on growth and jobs. … We’re also getting rid of absurd and unnecessary paperwork requirements,” he pledged, and will be looking at ways to “avoid excessive, inconsistent and redundant regulation.” (more…)