Preemption laws remove right to sue those responsible

In considering the Bush administration’s last minute regulations, examining the the efforts at pre-empting lawsuits in state courts, MSNBC with Keith Olberman (12/16, 8:32 PM EST) reported that in “the little of one month remaining in the administration, the American Association for Justice, a group representing America’s trial lawyers, have identified a dozen rules published for public comment, which Mr. Bush has not pushed through,” which would preempt state law. For instance, “women who are pregnant or breastfeeding may want to check out page 3,831 of this year’s federal register which proposes new rules for drug warning that is apply to women in your condition, but would also preempt state laws giving Americans the right to ask a jury to hold drug companies responsible for their labeling.” Also, “there is similar language in proposed FDA regulations on labels for over the counter drugs” such as “calcium pills and sunscreen. And then [there are] the proposed regulations from the national highway safety transportation which includes language embedded on everything from rearview mirrors, to brake hoses, to motorcycle brakes, to motorcycle helmets.” And the “rules on electric hybrids” is “a proposition that the AAJ said is so broad it preempts your right to sue for about anything. Even if you ended up with an electric hybrid pinto.”