President Biden has nominated Virginia Solicitor General Andrew Ferguson and Utah Solicitor General Melissa Holyoak to fill Republican slots on the Federal Trade Commission, the White House said Monday.
If confirmed by the Senate, the 2 Republicans won’t change the balance of power on the FTC, which enforces antitrust law and rules against deceptive promoting. It currently has a Democratic chair, Lina Khan, and two Democratic commissioners.
Under the Biden administration, the FTC has taken a tougher stand against mergers it finds may result in higher prices for consumers or stunt innovation.
Khan said in a press release that Ferguson and Holyoak “would bring key skills, experiences, and expertise to the Commission.”
The FTC “operates best at full strength, and I’ll look ahead to working with them,” said Khan, who was sharply criticized by former Republican commissioner Christine Wilson.
Andrew Ferguson was chief counsel to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell from 2019 until 2021.Attorney General of Virginia
Melissa Holyoak previously worked at Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, which focuses on fighting class motion lawsuits and aggressive regulation.Office of the Attorney General Utah
The agency is anticipated to file a case against Amazon, perhaps as early as this summer. It filed an antitrust lawsuit against Facebook during former President Donald Trump’s administration, which has not yet gone to trial.
The FTC can be considering Kroger’s plan to purchase rival grocer Albertsons, amongst other deals.
Ferguson was chief counsel to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell from 2019 until 2021. He has also worked for Sens. Lindsey Graham and Chuck Grassley.
McConnell, who’s accountable for submitting nominees to the White House, applauded the nominations. “We want good and talented leaders to concurrently protect American consumers and defend our economic future from far-left overreach,” McConnell said in a press release urging the Senate to “confirm them at once.”
Holyoak is the Utah Solicitor General with the Utah Attorney General’s Office. She has previously worked as an associate on the law firm O’Melveny & Myers LLP, and at Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, which focuses on fighting class motion lawsuits and aggressive regulation, in addition to on the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Center for Class Motion Fairness.
Amongst its current cases, the FTC sued to stop Microsoft’s $69 billion deal to purchase Activision, and is awaiting a court decision within the matter.
Under the Biden administration, the FTC has taken a tougher stand against mergers it finds may result in higher prices for consumers or stunt innovation.MICHAEL REYNOLDS/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Also this yr, the agency has filed complaints aimed toward stopping a pharmaceutical deal, Amgen’s purchase of Horizon Therapeutics, in addition to Intercontinental Exchange’s planned purchase of Black Knight. It’s also fighting Illumina over its purchase of Grail.
