In particular, California pushes a lot of proactive vehicle safety measures. There are many states which wouldn't require these measures, but California is a big enough market that many manufactures simply implement them nationally.
"stories about pink-goo as a food source"
This is a non-story. The EU didn't ban pink goo (aka LFTB), they simply require that citric acid is used for sterilization rather than ammonia gas.
Furthermore - there's nothing at all wrong with eating all parts of an animal, as long as it's safe. What country do you know of that doesn't eat tripe?
California is not the US (and frankly much of the US balks at California attempts to push things from gas mileage standards to any environmental quality standard to privacy, etc), and since the tail end of the Reagan years the US has largely given up its affirmative regulatory concerns to the EU. We're great at providing space for for-profit middlemen, but categorically mediocre or worse on preventative concerns.
* https://www.safeopedia.com/2/4270/ehs/comparing-eu-health-sa... * https://www.theregreview.org/2013/01/01/01-oxholm-ppr-vogel/ * https://info.orrsafety.com/safety-hub/usa-vs-europe-biggest-... * https://www.fooddocs.com/post/food-safety-standards * https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/fund-reports/2...
"The FDA historically developed as a consumer protection agency, whereas the regulations from the European Commission arose out of a need to harmonize inter-state commercial interests while preserving national “autonomy.” Thus, whereas the FDA has the advantages of centralization and common rules, the European Union regulates medical drug and device approvals through a network of centralized and decentralized agencies throughout its member states." - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452302X1...
Congrats, you cherry picked the outlier. And I'd argue based on the fact that we actually allow endless Pharma advertising and doctor lobbying, and the EU generally forbids it, that we still come up short comparatively.
And it seems you agree, so we're done.
We laugh at the regulatory frameworks of places like Europe and Japan, yet they consistently get fewer food recalls, or stories about pink-goo as a food source, let alone the disparity in what they will allow in their food supply.
We nearly had a civil uprising about mandating seat belts. Elsewhere? Some griping and little else. Etc.