Op-Ed: Be Smart, Say “No” to Corporate Immunity
By Bryan Smith • August 10, 2024The following Op-Ed was submitted by Bryan Smith. Op-Eds do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of those at the Idaho Dispatch.
I read Senator Mark Harris’ recent article that read more like a propaganda piece than an opinion piece. The theme of his article was that unless the Idaho legislature provides Bayer, the manufacturer of Roundup, with immunity, civilization as we know it will collapse. Until I read Senator Harris’ article, I never knew that without giving Bayer immunity for harm Roundup might cause Idahoans, we “jeopardize Idaho jobs, our food security and our national security.” Wow! No wonder Senator Harris says, “The stakes are high.” I mean who knew Roundup is essential to the national security of the United States.
Senator Harris says we must give Bayer immunity for harm Roundup might do to Idahoans so “we can ensure a prosperous future for Idaho” and “defend our economy and our way of life from those who seek to undermine them.” Luckily for us, Senator Harris identifies these “bad guys” who seek to destroy everything.
AdvertisementIt turns out they’re the same boogeymen bad guys paid corporate spokesmen always point to when they want a special favor from government. It’s those “elitist trial lawyers” and “extremist environmental groups” who Senator Harris says, “have put hundreds of jobs in my district at risk” by spearheading what he calls “endless litigation” and “frivolous lawsuits.”
The problem is that Senator Harris can’t identify even one lawsuit in Idaho involving Roundup let alone “endless litigation.” Even so, Senator Harris says, “we must act now to protect Idahoans from extremist agendas that threaten our economy and communities” by closing what he calls “legal loopholes” and replacing them with “common-sense laws.” Note: “common-sense laws” is code for “Bayer immunity.”
The truth is that no “legal loopholes” exist that threaten Idaho’s economy, our way of life, or the national security of the United States. Senator Harris is using inflammatory rhetoric to scare people and to play to their biases so that he can pass a bill to give his constituent chemical company Bayer immunity from harm Roundup might cause Idahoans.
AdvertisementAlthough Senator Harris claims the EPA deems Roundup “safe,” I don’t trust government agencies especially when they get their information from manufacturers. Look, neither I nor you know if Roundup causes harm to people. But what we do know is that corporations have a long history of manufacturing products that harm people and then lying about their harmful effects.
You might have seen the movie “Dark Waters,” the true story of one lawyer’s twenty-year battle against chemical giant DuPont who poisoned the drinking water of an innocent community and lied for years about the harm it caused before paying $4 billion to pay for damages DuPont caused and lives it destroyed. You might also know that big pharma has paid billions of dollars in fines over the years for a variety of legal claims including fraud, illegal kickback schemes, and lying to the FDA by downplaying or omitting risks, exaggerating benefits, misrepresenting study data, failing to present a fair balance of risks and benefits, omitting importing facts, etc.
Chemical giant Monsanto first developed Roundup in the 1970s, and pharmaceutical company Bayer bought Monsanto in 2018. This might be the first marriage in modern history between a giant chemical company and a giant pharmaceutical company to create a new breed of behemoth known as “colossal chem-pharma.” What could possibly go wrong?
AdvertisementIdaho law already strikes the appropriate balance that allows companies to manufacture products while protecting Idahoans from damages those products might cause. We must be smarter than to create an “immunity loophole” for a single “colossal chem-pharma” company that it could use to insulate itself from liability against otherwise valid and compelling claims by innocent Idahoans.
Bryan Smith is a trial attorney and serves as the Idaho Republican National Committeeman.
Tags: Bayer, Bryan Smith, EPA, Immunity, Mark Harris, Monsanto, Roundup
3 thoughts on “Op-Ed: Be Smart, Say “No” to Corporate Immunity”
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I’m appalled that we continue having to fight companies that want immunity from the harms they cause citizens — pesticides, drugs, “vaccines,” cloud seeding and more. Where there is risk — and there IS risk — there must be liability.
Before House Bill 653 was abruptly removed from the House Business Committee agenda, we wrote letters such as the following…
VOTE NO ON House Bill 653 Pesticides, warning labels: https://legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/2024/legislation/H0653/
H653 is a resubmission of failed Senate S1245. This murkily written bill would exempt pesticide producers from liability under any “provision or doctrine of state law, including without limitation state tort law or relevant common law” as long as they were in compliance with federal EPA regulations.
This bad bill will benefit agricultural-pharmaceutical companies such as Bayer/Monsanto/P4 and recipients of their financial support — who are sure to love release from any product liability — just as vaccine manufacturers have enjoyed for decades, with devastating results and no financial compensation for harms.
S1245 was strongly opposed by Idaho Freedom Foundation, Health Freedom Idaho, Sen. Brian Lenney, two others on the Senate Commerce & Human Resources Committee, and anyone else who understands that federal and state agencies have been fully captured by the power and money of corporate interests.
We can no longer believe “safe and effective,” “trust the science,” and “thoroughly tested” mantras from FDA, EPA, CDC, and other federal bureaucracies that have absolutely terrible track records. After all, these captured agencies approved Monsanto’s Roundup and Dicamba pesticides. Dicamba lost its 2017 approval recently. Roundup has long been under fire and fined for its dangerous ingredient glyphosate. The evidence against Monsanto’s pesticides becomes apparent after REAL science (not EPA science) has proven their dangers time and time again. Are we really going to trust the word of the three-letter agencies and their corporate partners Bayer/Monsanto/P4 with our health and the health of our farmers, plants, animals, soils, air, and waterways?
Idaho should NEVER again subordinate its state laws to federal agencies. When states abdicate their power to federal agencies, they give up their sovereignty and sell out their citizens. Idaho needs to think, speak, and legislate for itself!
Farmers can find safe alternative pesticides with honest labels. Please, kill this terrible bill before it hurts or kills citizens who will have no financial recourse or liability from the manufacturers for any injuries or deaths their products cause.
References:
Idaho Dispatch: https://idahodispatch.com/failed-senate-bill-on-pesticide-labeling-and-liability-to-be-heard-in-house-committee/.
Idaho Freedom Foundation (IFF) description of S1245 (rating -2): https://idahofreedom.org/senate-bill-1245-pesticides-warning-labels/
IACI Leadership: https://ballotpedia.org/Idaho_Association_of_Commerce_and_Industry
Children’s Health Defense – Dicamba: https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/monsanto-dicamba-pesticide-revoke-approval/
Children’s Health Defense – Roundup: https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/bayer-roundup-39-5-million-misleading-advertising/
“Chevron Deference” (thankfully shut down by SCOTUS this year): https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/chevron-deference-and-the-administrative
Idaho absolutely should not be giving Big Pharma, like Bayer, a free pass from lawsuits. Here’s the deal:
Let’s talk about antibiotics. Sure, they kill harmful bacteria, but they also take down the good stuff in our gut. That might not sound like a big deal, but it can throw our whole system out of whack. So, why should Bayer get a free pass when their products could potentially, allegedly mess up our health like that?
Then there’s glyphosate. It’s a “chelating agent”—meaning it grabs onto essential minerals in our bodies and doesn’t let go. Think about it: that’s great for killing weeds, but for us? It’s like having a thief in the body that leeches minerals from the body FOREVER.
And don’t even get me started on “forever chemicals.”
Glyphosate isn’t just passing through; it sticks around, wrecking everything from our cells to our DNA. This stuff is a cancer risk waiting to happen, and we’re supposed to sit back and let Bayer off the hook?
During the COVID crisis we were told to “trust the science” and believe everything was “safe & effective.” These phrases got thrown around to justify anything and everything the government wanted. Now, they want to give Bayer the same kind of legal shield vaccines got in 1988?! Is THAT what Idahoans want their legislature to do? To shiled and protect Big Pharma?
And who’s science are we trusting anyway?
The EPA says glyphosate isn’t “likely” to cause cancer, but the University of Washington found a 41% increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The International Agency for Research on Cancer called it “probably carcinogenic.”
With “science” all over the place, how can we just hand Bayer a get-out-of-jail-free card?
Real people are allegedly suffering because of these products.
Ag workers, farmers—they’re on the front lines, and they’re paying the price with their health. Are we seriously going to say that it’s okay to trade crops for cancer?
To sacrifice the future just to pad Bayer’s pockets right now?
When Idahoans voted, I bet they didn’t have “give lifetime immunity to Big Pharma” on their bingo cards. It’s crucial to keep these corporations accountable. Bayer doesn’t need another hall pass. They need to be held responsible for what their products allegedly do to people.
Idaho should focus on decisions that protect its citizens, not let Big Pharma off the hook. It’s time to stop bending over backward for corporations and start looking out for the real people who live here.
We need Chad Christensen back in that seat.