FTC Nominees' Hearing Timeline Depends on White House Pick of Second Democrat, Lawmakers Say
Movement toward a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on FTC nominees appears to depend largely on when President Donald Trump names a nominee to a second vacant Democratic seat on the commission, lawmakers told us Tuesday. Trump last month said he is nominating Paul Weiss antitrust lawyer Joseph Simons, whom the administration has said it will designate chairman; former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Assistant Director Rohit Chopra; Noah Phillips, aide to Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas; and Delta Air Lines Senior Vice President-Legal, Regulatory and International Christine Wilson (see 1801250055 and 1801250066). If confirmed, they would leave the FTC with a 3-1 Republican majority, with Chopra the Democrat. Simons would replace current Democratic Commissioner Terrell McSweeny, whose term expired but who can stay under current legislative-appointment rules.
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A hearing on the four current FTC nominees “possibly” could happen next week, Senate Commerce Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., said in an interview. “We're kinda still in the throes of trying to determine whether or not to move forward because we don't have that fifth slot filled yet.” Senate Commerce Republicans don't see it as critical that Trump name a second Democrat to the commission before they move forward with the other four nominees, but “it would be nice because I'm guessing that before we can move them all on the floor, we're going to have to have an agreement” with the Democrats, Thune said.
Senate Consumer Protection Subcommittee ranking member Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told us Democrats are likely to insist that the White House nominate a second Democrat before Senate Commerce holds a hearing on the other nominees. “If all of the nominees have been selected, sure” the committee can proceed with a hearing, Blumenthal said. The Trump administration is considering Rebecca Slaughter, chief counsel to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for the vacant Democratic slot on Schumer's recommendation, industry lobbyists said. The White House and Schumer's office didn't comment.
Simons noted his vision of a strong FTC role in antitrust enforcement in answers to a Senate Commerce questionnaire. “Significant concerns have been raised that the federal antitrust agencies have been too permissive in dealing with mergers and acquisitions, resulting in harm to consumer welfare, via increased prices, limited consumer choice, and harm to workers,” Simons said. “The FTC needs to devote substantial resources to determine whether its merger enforcement has been too lax, and if that’s the case, the agency needs to determine the reason for such failure and to fix it.”
The FTC's antitrust and consumer protection roles “are as important to the American economy as ever,” Phillips said. “Technology and business practices are evolving rapidly, public discussion about antitrust is growing louder and Americans are grappling with … new realities of data privacy.” He listed “keeping abreast of developments in technology and business practices” as a top challenge for the agency. The committee has received answers from Wilson and expected to post the document as soon as late Tuesday, a spokesman said.
The FTC “must confront the rapid development and use of big data in today's modern economy,” Chopra said: “Big data is offering new opportunities in almost every sector of the economy,” but it “also raises important questions with respect to consumer protection, privacy, and competition that require thoughtful examination.” The agency also must “become more nimble and adjust to” changes in the economy that have resulted in increased merger activity, which “has significant implications for the type of work [the FTC] can expect to address in the upcoming years,” Chopra said: The agency “must ensure that it has a clear view into the broader economic environment."