Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance arrives for Day 1 of the Republican National Convention (RNC), at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S., July 15, 2024. REUTERS/Callaghan O’Hare
Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick, J.D. Vance, has openly praised the work of Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan, signaling potential support for the agency’s broad antitrust enforcement approach in a second Trump administration.
Vance, a Republican U.S. senator from Ohio, joined the presidential ticket on Monday at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Trump was officially nominated as the party’s candidate.
Vance is among several Republican lawmakers, including U.S. Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri and Florida U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz, who are dubbed “Khanservatives” for aligning with Khan’s perspective that U.S. antitrust law should encompass more than just keeping consumer prices low.
“She recognized there has to be a broader understanding of how we think about competition in the marketplace,” Vance said at a Washington event in February.
This stance highlights a division within the conservative movement, between those advocating for shrinking regulatory agencies and those supporting the use of antitrust laws to challenge powerful corporations, especially Big Tech, where there is a concern over perceived censorship of conservatives online.
Joseph Coniglio, director of antitrust policy at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, noted that Vance’s selection as vice president indicates a commitment to this broader antitrust approach.
Scrutiny of Big Tech is not new for Trump. During his presidency, the FTC and Department of Justice initiated investigations into Meta, Amazon, Apple, and Google over alleged antitrust violations. All four companies were sued and have denied wrongdoing.
Vance, a Yale-educated lawyer and venture capitalist, has previously worked at Sidley Austin and assisted Trump with fundraising in Silicon Valley. He has also called for breaking up major tech companies, particularly Google, criticizing its monopolistic control of information.
It remains unclear what specific focus a second Trump administration would adopt. The conservative Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 policy platform suggests ways to champion conservative causes through antitrust enforcement, while also questioning the continued existence of the FTC.
Business groups have criticized President Joe Biden’s antitrust enforcers for expanding their focus beyond traditional considerations of price competition to include issues like labor. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has sued to block the FTC’s recent ban on non-compete agreements for workers.
At the February event, hosted by Silicon Valley startup incubator Y Combinator, Vance emphasized that his antitrust views include supporting small firms, workers, and the quality of consumer goods. He criticized the notion held by some conservatives that corporate behavior cannot be “tyrannical.”
“I want people to live good lives in our country,” Vance said. “I don’t really care if the entity that is most threatening to that vision is a private entity or a public entity.
Source: reuters
