Missing facts aren’t missing after all

In my recent column “Corporations run amok,” I described what I see far too often as a consumer rights attorney: banks and corporations taking advantage of our community because politicians in Washington prefer their biggest donors over regular Americans. It’s my firsthand experience in this area that shapes my views on the types of policies we need — those that favor people over corporations.

A recent Signal contributor called my column “partisan.” To me, this shouldn’t be a partisan issue — I’d think just about everyone, regardless of political party, would agree that we shouldn’t stack the deck over and over again in favor of big corporations and billionaires. But Republicans in Congress continue to do just that, including through their recent vote to take away consumers’ right to bring a class action lawsuit when they’ve been wronged, as I discussed in my column.

That Signal contributor also claimed I “left out facts” because I didn’t mention that the “Consumer Financial Protections Bureau promulgated this rule, not your elected representatives.”

He is correct that the Consumer Financial Protections Bureau is a government agency specifically tasked with making sure banks, lenders, and other financial corporations treat consumers fairly. In this case, the bureau tried to protect all of us by issuing a rule to prohibit financial corporations from taking away our right to sue them as a group.

Unfortunately, we won’t see the benefits of that protection because Representative Steve Knight and other Republicans in Congress actually voted to block that protection from ever taking effect — once again standing on the side of banks and other corporations, instead of the people. Those are the facts.

The contributor is also correct that I have first-hand experience as a lawyer suing banks, insurance companies, and corporations on behalf of consumers. I’m proud to have spent my career doing just that.

It’s unfortunate that we see time and time again politicians looking out for corporate interests ahead of everything else. That’s wrong, and that’s why I’m running for office — we need representatives who will stand with our community. Banks and insurance companies don’t need more Washington politicians on their side. Bryan Caforio

Santa Clarita