A bold precedent has been set by our not-soon-enough-to-be-out-of-office-Corruptor in chief, also known as spineless Barry Obama. No, it's not "the Russians did it" which actually was initially promoted by Medusa, although Obomber has strongly taken up that battle cry with as much vengeance and malcontent as he can muster. No, the Spineless One, who will vanish from the scene in a vast amount of citizen relief (even though Der Trumpf will take over), initiated the famous phrase, when discussing his inaction on DAPL: "let's see how things play out."

This mantra has gained so much credibility that even octogenarian D. Feinstein (CA) has taken up the refrain, which I am sure other spineless Dems will adopt as their own mantra. Though she didn't quite word this exactly as the Great Pretender, the meaning comes across as the same.

In response to my emailing DiFi of my disapproval of allowing Bayer (maker of permanent sedatives during WW2) and Monsanto (now ensuring species extinction of bees) to merge, I received this attempted propitiation of my request as follows:

Thank you for sharing your views regarding industry consolidation amongst major chemical companies and pesticide manufacturers. Your correspondence informs my work in the Senate, and I welcome the opportunity to respond to you personally.

Several mergers between major pesticide and agrochemical companies have been proposed in recent years, involving both American and foreign-based firms. I understand you believe that these mergers may reduce competition, limit product choices for farmers and consumers, or undermine public health and environmental protections.

Under current law, proposed mergers or similar transactions may require approval from federal regulators like the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. In such cases, federal regulators determine if the proposed merger, acquisition, or transaction would involve sizeable domestic market share or otherwise significantly affect American commerce.

In addition, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) reviews certain proposed acquisitions of U.S.-based assets or sales of American companies to foreign buyers. The CFIUS is comprised of representatives from sixteen federal agencies, including the U.S. Departments of Defense, State, Commerce, and Homeland Security. Since its establishment by presidential order in 1975, the CFIUS has historically reviewed transactions with national security implications for key American industries such as energy, communications, technology, and defense. The CFIUS is authorized to block acquisitions found to pose significant threats to national security or critical infrastructure.

In December 2015, Michigan-based Dow Chemical and Delaware-based DuPont proposed merging the two companies. In May 2016, Germany-based Bayer A.G. proposed a takeover bid for the Monsanto Company, which is headquartered in Missouri. Given the size of the companies involved, federal regulators are very likely to review these transactions. I expect that the FTC, Justice Department, and other regulators will appropriately scrutinize any final merger or acquisition to ensure that it comports with federal antitrust law. I also expect that the CFIUS will take all appropriate actions to ensure that any foreign acquisitions do not compromise national security or other critical American interests.

On September 20, 2016, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing to examine potential antitrust issues and the consequences of further consolidation within the American seed and agrochemical industries. You may be interested to know that the CEOs for the Dow Chemical and DuPont companies testified at this hearing. Corporate leadership from the Bayer and Monsanto companies also testified. To watch the full committee hearing or review transcripts of witness testimony, you may wish to visit: http://bit.ly/2cimt5n.

As of January 3, 2017, I am the top-ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction over antitrust issues in the Senate. As such, please know that I appreciate learning of your views. I will keep your comments in mind as my staff and I continue tracking these proposed transactions closely.

Again, thank you for taking the time to write. I hope you will continue to keep me informed on issues of importance to you. Rest assured, I plan to closely monitor these proposed mergers and their review by the federal government. If you have any additional questions or comments, please feel free to contact my Washington, D.C., office at (202) 224-3841 or visit my website at http://feinstein.senate.gov. ; Best
regards.

Translation: "Let's see how this plays out".