House GOP Questions Chair Of FTC About Big Tech Regulation
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Trade Commission chairman on Thursday defended his aggressive legal strategy against the nation's biggest tech companies after Republican congressmen accused the agency of being overzealous and politicized under President Joe Biden.
Republicans accuse Lena Khan of arbitrarily suing big tech companies after Elon Musk bought Twitter and refused to drop multiple lawsuits. Khan was subpoenaed by the committee in April after a panel investigation found the agency had targeted Musk for political reasons.
Biden's FTC is trying to "abolish the rules that made America's economy great" and give the government unregulated power over business practices, said Jim Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, R-Ohio.
Khan dismissed criticism that more regulation is becoming more important as businesses grow and that the tech giant could hurt the economy and consumers.
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"Our antitrust mission is founded on the principle that strong antitrust enforcement is essential to the growth and dynamism of our economy, and to our collective prosperity and liberty," said Hahan. "However, over the past few decades, they have made it clear that Americans can lose when markets strengthen."
The hearing comes as the agency is embroiled in a series of lawsuits against the tech company, and Kahn -- a staunch big-tech critic before he became head of the agency -- has been trying to curb government oversight of the company and stifle growth , which was not always successful. .
Khan and his agency suffered a major setback Tuesday when a federal judge blocked Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of video game company Activision Blizzard. The FTC tried to stop the deal, saying it would harm competition.
US District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley said the deal, the largest in tech industry history, should be carefully considered, but the FTC did not indicate it would do serious harm. The FTC appealed the decision.
Similarly, another judge earlier this year dismissed Meta's efforts to block Unlimited's acquisition of the Virtual Utility Fitness company.
Republicans are focusing on the agency's poor legal record in this antitrust case.
- Did you lose on purpose? Attorney Kevin Kiely, R-Calif., citing Hahn's earlier comments, said the court loss would be a signal to Congress that the antitrust laws should be reformed.
"Of course," Khan replied, "unfortunately things don't always go the way we want them to."
Republicans questioned whether the aggressive bill would hurt the arts and small businesses. California Rep. Darrell Issa-Hahan has criticized the FTC's "left turn" since taking office two years ago.
