Trump’s FTC pick expected to stay tough on Big Tech but relax on mergers

[Simone Del Rosario]

President-elect Donald Trump has picked his competition cop. 

He’s appointing Andrew Ferguson to be the next Federal Trade Commission chair, replacing antitrust firebrand Lina Khan.

Expect him to unwind much of Khan’s short legacy when it comes to opposing mergers. But both share distrust for Big Tech, albeit for different reasons. 

In a post, Ferguson wrote, “…we will end Big Tech’s vendetta against competition and free speech.”

Trump posted, “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country … [he] will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.”

Ferguson is already an FTC commissioner. He was sworn in earlier this year. That means he does not need to be confirmed to the chair.

Before his time at the FTC, he was solicitor general in Virginia, a congressional aide, an antitrust litigator, and once clerked for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. 

To fill Ferguson’s commissioner seat, Trump’s pick is Mark Meador, a former Senate antitrust aide. That’ll give Trump the conservative majority he’s looking for at the FTC and push Lina Khan out the door. 

Bill Kovacic: Her term expired in September, but she is allowed by law to remain on the commission until her successor is confirmed and comes to take office. So the the speed with which she departs the commission will depend on her own personal preferences. Does she want to stay as part of a loyal opposition maintaining a three vote block that could operate to retire, to roll back of her program. On a personal level, it’s not enjoyable to go through that kind of demotion.

Simone Del Rosario: Bill Kovacic is a former FTC chair and commissioner. We spoke with him after the election about the direction Trump would take antitrust enforcement. 

Bill Kovacic: I think with respect to the big tech cases, those carry on without, without interference. In other areas, he may back off some I expect a more permissive approach towards mergers than the Biden enforcement agencies have taken, and that was the one of the big irritants that even the democratic donors expressed concern about is, is that the deal making environment has been made so much more difficult.

Simone Del Rosario: He says without question, merger enforcement will be relaxed under Trump.

The appointment of Ferguson comes the same day the FTC won in court fighting against the Kroger-Albertsons mega-supermarket-merger. Now Albertsons is suing Kroger for billions of dollars in damages over the busted merger. 

You can find that coverage at SAN.com or on the Straight Arrow News app today.