While no one can blame the US for perpetrating legislative overreach as long as it gets away with it the oppressive
FATCA legislation would never have happened if the (unelected) bureaucrats in the EU would have taken sufficient time off dining at taxpayer's expense in the expensive restaurants offered by Brussels. A discreet threat of the imposition of a countervailing duty on the activities of US financial institutions in the EU should have put a stop on this legislation at an early stage. Would the US really have pushed the button and chosen the nuclear option of total financial war with the EU? I doubt it. Unfortunately the senior brass in the financial sector here in Europe has also missed an opportunity to push against this unnecessary regulatory burden which leads to the conclusion that only a reform of democratic structures in the EU and its member countries can lead to a better defence of civil liberties. See
www.dirdem.org if you want to support me on this.
