Donald Trump's nomination of Matt Gaetz as US attorney general could spell trouble for Google and other Big Tech giants accused of maintaining monopolies.
Mr. Gaetz's confirmation of a former Republican congressman to be the nation's top law enforcement official is by no means a sure thing. The president-elect's nomination of Gaetz, who is facing an investigation by the House Ethics Committee over allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use, is said to have shocked many Republicans.
However, if confirmed, Gates would have significant influence over the Justice Department's handling of pending antitrust cases against CEO Sundar Pichai's Google, Tim Cook's Apple, and others. Become.
Gaetz, 42, is considered one of the most hawkish members of the Republican Party on antitrust issues. Gates, a particularly vocal critic of Google, called out this. Repeatedly over the years to dismantle Big Tech In the past, in 2021 they were referred to as “internet hall watchers,” engaged in censorship and suppression of conservative views.
“Gaetz's appointment as AG means that the aggressive antitrust enforcement against Big Tech companies that began in President Trump's first term and continues through President Biden will continue uninterrupted during President Trump's second term. That means,” one technology policy official told the Post. “Great news for small tech companies, bad news for Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai.”
President Trump has recently expressed some reluctance to break up Google, arguing that doing so would benefit China. But he remains a major critic of the company, saying he will “do things” to make sure Google is “more fair.”
Brendan Benedict, an antitrust litigator at Benedict Law Group, said the Justice Department, led by Gates, would not seek to force Google to break up its business model with aggressive behavioral remedies without requiring a forced breakup. There is a possibility that they will continue to pursue this.
Benedict added that most of the remedies recently outlined by the Justice Department in the Google search case focus on changing business practices rather than cutting out parts of the companies themselves.
“We hope that the Trump Justice Department and the FTC will be a little more lenient on merger reviews and change their policies related to merger liquidations,” Benedict said. “But I think enforcement actions against Big Tech, especially Google, will continue.”
At a House Judiciary Committee hearing last November, Gaetz praised Biden's nominee for Justice Department antitrust director, Jonathan Cantor, for filing two major antitrust lawsuits against Google. did.
“I think you're doing a good job, but it hurts to have to say this about the people who work at the Department of Justice. I believe that the Department of Justice has fallen victim to political capture. Masu.” Gates said at the hearing..
Gates added, “I'm probably just as concerned about Google's monopoly power,” calling “a powerful monopoly that can define the nature of truth itself” a “threat to the republic.”
A federal judge ruled in August that Google has an illegal monopoly on online search, and is expected to rule on potential remedies next summer, when Trump's term ends.
Closing arguments are expected to be heard later this year in the second Justice Department lawsuit targeting Google's alleged monopoly on digital advertising technology. The Justice Department's lawsuit against Apple, which focuses on the company's alleged efforts to secure the iPhone's dominance in the smartphone market, has not yet proceeded to trial.
In August, Gates and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) I sent a letter to Pichai. It warned the company to comply with a court ruling regarding its illegal monopoly in online search.
“If we witness Google's efforts to evade court-imposed remedies, we will always pursue any resolution necessary to hold your company accountable,” the letter said. are.
Gaetz also worked with former Reps. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) and David Cicilline (D-R.I.), who tried to pass six highly publicized bipartisan antitrust bills in the last Congress. supported the initiative.
The Florida Republican is a self-described “Kern conservative,” or one of the few Republicans to praise the likely outgoing FTC chairman's aggressive enforcement tact for the agency. At one point, Gates interviewed Khan on his Newsmax show.
“I hope that whoever is the next FTC chairman continues many of the cases that Chairman Khan has brought against predatory companies,” Gaetz told the Wall Street Journal last month. Ta.
Khan is scheduled to step down in January after President Trump takes office. Her term as FTC chair officially expired in September.
Earlier this year, Gaetz filed a legal brief supporting the FTC's ban on companies requiring employees to sign non-compete agreements.
He also worked with Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on a measure to block stock ownership by members of Congress.
On Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson said Gaetz resigned from Congress “immediately” after his nomination.
