Financial Transparency Coalition

Last May, President Obama delivered his widely viewed “Arab Spring” speech, in which the President made a clear link between combating corruption, the stability of nations and human dignity. Unfortunately, proposed amendments to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, an affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, go against the current global trend, and threaten to undermine America’s role as a global leader against corruption. I attended a FCPA briefing on Capitol Hill on September 16th for a new report, “Busting Bribery: Sustaining the Global Momentum of the Foreign Corrupt Practices...

Raymond W. Baker, the director of Task Force member Global Financial Integrity, has written a letter to Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R - WI) warning him against introducing legislation to weaken the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The letter, which has received coverage from The Wall Street Journal and Just Anti-Corruption suggests there will be political ramifications to for the Congressman should he follow through with his promise to introduce legislation to ammend the nation's flagship anti-corruption law. Just Anti-Corruption (subscription required) reports:

WASHINGTON (IPS) – Changes to a key anti-bribery law that applies to international commerce, proposed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, could have disastrous consequences, hurting multinational firms, human rights, and the U.S.'s place of respect as an early adopter of the legislation, opponents to the changes argued here Friday.

Have you ever heard someone really intelligent say something really wrong? I certainly have. It happens all the time. Smart people aren’t always right. Well, apparently, that’s also true of publications. The Economist, which self-identifies as a magazine for the highly intelligent, has (with perhaps a touch of good humor) claimed in its advertisements that it “makes white collars brighter” and called itself the “leaders digest.” While I don’t agree with many of its convictions, I more often than not respect its point of view. At the very least, I believe its articles are well-researched, carefully considered, and supported by...