election reaction & thoughts on "it's too risky in an election year!"

Summary

Louis Rossmann discusses advocating for consumer rights in Texas. He says his nonprofit, the Fulu Foundation, works to restore ownership rights and reform laws such as Section 1201 of the DMCA, which he argues can prevent people from repairing devices they own.

Rossmann recounts that a staff member in a local senator’s office described the issue as “too risky” to address during an election year. Reflecting on the election results, he argues that avoiding issues and failing to engage with voters may pose a greater political risk than supporting widely popular consumer protections. He does not claim that taking a different position would have changed any candidate’s result; he presents the elections as an illustration of the broader point.

He congratulates James Talarico and says his organization hopes to work with Talarico and his colleagues on measures such as “click to cancel” rules and copyright reform. These could make it easier to cancel unwanted services and protect people from legal penalties for sharing repair advice. Rossmann acknowledges that other issues may be more urgent, but argues that consumer rights have broad public support.

People Mentioned

• Presenter: Louis Rossmann
• Potential collaborators: Kevin; James Talarico and his colleagues (as prospective policy partners)