Former FTC chief technologist Neil Chilson weighs in on Google dealing with a 3rd anti-trust case from the Division of Justice and why regulators go after Large Tech.
Federal Commerce Fee Chair Lina Khan stated in an interview that aired Sunday that companies are driving inflation and defended her company’s function in cracking down on mergers and acquisitions.
“So there’s no doubt that the pandemic and the war led prices to soar. What’s been interesting is that even as some of those supply chain pressures have eased, prices have not come down concurrently as much,” Khan stated within the interview with Stahl about the reason for inflation. “There’s a lot of discussion about what’s driving the inflation, and we’ve actually seen some executives boast on earnings calls about how inflation is great for their bottom line.”
Khan additionally stated that proposed mergers and acquisitions, which fall below the FTC’s regulatory oversight, must protect the competitiveness of {the marketplace} even when they create efficiencies that end in decrease costs for shoppers.
THE FTC: SEE HOW MANY MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS IT BLOCKED DURING BIDEN ADMIN
FTC Chair Lina Khan stated her company has to protect competitors when it critiques proposed mergers and acquisitions. (Eugene Gologursky/Getty Photos for Quick Firm / Getty Photos)
“Even if those efficiencies arise, if the company’s not checked by competition, it won’t have an incentive to pass those benefits on to the consumer because those consumers may not have anywhere else to go,” Khan stated.
Stahl famous that the FTC’s oversight and investigation of proposed mergers can generally create a chilling impact that leads to firms abandoning the deal.
“Sometimes, you know, the companies decide that they’re going to abandon the merger,” Khan stated. Stahl requested if abandoning a merger amid the FTC’s scrutiny was a win, to which Khan stated, “That’s right.”
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Khan, a Democratic appointee, has acquired some help from populist Republicans. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Photos)
Khan added that it is “important to step back and keep all of this in context” and defined, “Of all the thousands of deals that are proposed every year, the FTC and DOJ collectively investigate maybe 2% or 3%.”
The chairwoman was requested if she ever worries that the facility the FTC and its chair have might “result in a destabilizing of basically the whole economy.”
“Of course we have to worry,” Khan stated. “But we also should worry about the destabilizing effect that can arise from companies believing that they’re above the law, and that they can be reckless, take massive risks in ways that can crash the economy, and then they can get away with just a slap on the wrist, and that creates a destabilization too.”
TWO BILLIONAIRE HARRIS DONORS WANT HER TO FIRE FTC CHAIR LINA KHAN
A few of Vice President Harris’ donors have urged her to exchange Khan as FTC chair if she wins the election. (Slaven Vlasic/Getty Photos for The New York Instances / Getty Photos)
The FTC is dealing with lawsuits accusing it of overstepping its authority, which Stahl famous might have the top results of courts clamping down on the company’s powers.
She requested Khan if that potential final result was regarding and the chairwoman replied, “I think one challenge that agencies can face is when they shrink their own powers and authorities by not actually using the authorities that Congress has given them.”
Stahl requested Khan about whether or not she would keep in her function on the helm of the FTC if Vice President Kamala Harris wins the election, given a few of her largest donors have publicly referred to as for Khan’s ouster.
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“My focus is not listening to what CEOs are saying on TV. It’s important in these jobs to really stay focused and block out a lot of the noise,” Khan stated. “There’s so much work to be done, and it’s such an honor to be in this role. And it would be an honor to have that opportunity to keep going.”
