“Such a requirement should be implemented without miles of bureaucratic red tape,” said Pawlenty in released comments. “The DOL rule will lead to fewer retirement savings choices for many Americans and we are encouraged the DOL is proposing to delay this rule.”
Thomas Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, also supported the DOL’s proposal, arguing that his organization’s opposition to the fiduciary rule is about ensuring consumer choice and access to retirement strategies.
“We commend the Department of Labor for its swift action to protect retirement savers,” said Donohue in released comments."Our goal is to strengthen our nation’s retirement system so it meets the retirement needs of small business owners, employees, and retirement savers.”
Scott MacKillop, CEO of Denver-based First Ascent Asset Management, believes that the claims of the rule’s opponents, like the DOL’s latest proposal, are actually about killing a regulation that would protect everyday consumers.
“This is just another step toward burying a rule that was designed to provide basic fiduciary protection for retirement plan participants,” MacKillop said in emailed comments. “The truly reprehensible part of this action is that the rule’s opponents are cloaking themselves in pro-consumer rhetoric while gutting a bill designed to protect hardworking Americans from predatory sales practices. While claiming to act in the interests of investors, the anti-rule forces are dancing to Wall Street’s tune and protecting the profits of the financial services industry. They should be ashamed.”