FTC Chair Lina Khan criticized by GOP-led House panel

The House Oversight Committee calls Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan be replaced, accusing her of infusing the powerful agency with “left-wing ideology” and allowing it to be used as a “political tool” for Democrats as the 2024 presidential election approaches.

The GOP-led panel accused the 35-year-old U.S. regulator, who in 2021 became the youngest FTC chair in the agency’s history, of overseeing the “massive destruction of the agency’s standards,” warning against extending her term again in a scathing 59-page report on Thursday.

In addition to concerns about unfair merger policing that punished U.S. companies and instead helped do the bidding of EU regulators, Republicans on the Oversight Committee said Khan allowed the agency to pursue partisan politics on behalf of Democrats.

As an example, they cited the so-called “Unfair and Illegal Pricing Strike Force” established at the FTC, which they said amounted to blaming inflation.

“In fact, instead of examining its own role in contributing to inflation, the White House has often used the FTC to shift the blame for historic inflation to the administration’s favorite scapegoats: American companies,” the report said.

Republicans also criticized Khan for appearing at events with prominent Democrats in recent weeks – so close to the election.

“Instead of fulfilling its responsibility to ensure the FTC fulfills its independent role, our investigation reveals that Chairman Lina Khan abused her power and bent the knee to the Biden-Harris White House,” said Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.). Lent.

“It is now clear that Chairman Khan will stop at nothing to achieve the desired goals of the radical left. If this conduct is allowed to continue, it will further undermine Americans’ confidence in the FTC’s role.”

Khan’s tough approach to big business has made her a progressive darling with key supporters in Congress, including sense. Elisabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) warned of an “uncompromising fight” if Kamala Harris decides to abandon it if she wins the White House.

But her tenure has rattled wealthy Wall Street donors in the Democratic Party – including LinkedIn founder Reed Hoffman – and prompted some to insist that Vice President Kamala Harris not renominate Khan as FTC chair if she wins the November 5 election.

So far, Harris, 60, has been coy about retaining Khan.

“Chair Khan’s term expired last month and she should not be allowed to continue to lead an independent agency,” Comer, 52, added.

Deterring ‘any merger’

A key factor in Khan’s appeal to progressives was her opposition to a number of corporate mergers, while Republicans on the panel accused her of being too restrictive on contracts.

The report discussed the legal failures the FTC has experienced in trying to thwart mergers involving tech giants such as Meta and Microsoft, arguing that under its watch the agency “has thrown sand into the gears at every step of the merger review and approval process.” “

Estimates cited in the report suggest that the paperwork burden resulting from the FTC’s changes to the Hart-Scott-Rodino review process “would almost quadruple.”

“Chairman Khan has abdicated the Commission’s responsibility to protect Americans from anticompetitive mergers while allowing procompetitive—and therefore proconsumer—mergers to continue,” the oversight report said.

“Instead, Chairman Khan has instructed the Commission to use seemingly every possible lever at every possible moment to prevent any merger of any kind to the detriment of consumers.”

FTC’s comfort with EU regulators

The Supervisory Committee also drew attention to the FTC’s cooperation with European entities on issues such as the EU Digital Market Act, which tightens the screws on technology giants, including the American ones.

“Under Khan’s leadership, the Commission appears to be working to force U.S. businesses to implement burdensome European Union (EU) regulations that are not required under U.S. law,” the report said.

He noted that European regulators are at loggerheads with U.S. companies on various fronts, such as social media content moderation, and warned that some regulations are “harmful to U.S. tech companies.”

At one point, the Oversight Committee cited an e-mail from Maria Coppola, director of the Office of International Affairs, who congratulated her European counterparts on the adoption of the Digital Market Act.

“Exodus” at the FTC

The report said morale at the FTC had plummeted under Khan’s watch and cited a survey that found the FTC was once ranked second on its list of “Best Places to Work in the Federal Government,” but dropped to 22nd in 2022 .

Khan has implemented a “gag order” of sorts, restricting staff from engaging in certain types of “consumer and business education.”

The report also found that some staffers complained that they spent significantly less face-to-face time with Khan than with previous FTC chairmen.

The report highlighted Trump-appointed FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson protesting resignation in 2023 over what she described as a “disregard for the rule of law and due process” at the agency.

The Post has contacted the FTC for comment.

Despite complaints about Khan in the business sector, some Republicans, such as Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Ohio) and GOP vice presidential candidate Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), they praised some of her work.