“Andrew Ferguson to Head FTC an Excellent Decision by President-Elect Trump”

Robert H. Bork Jr., President of the Antitrust Education Project, reacts to President-elect Donald Trump’s’ selection of Federal Trade Commissioner Andrew Ferguson to serve as the agency’s next Chair:

“Anyone who has listened to Andrew discuss the law or read one of his dissents from Chair Lina Khan, appreciates the sharpness of his intellect, the strength of his principles, and his trenchant writing. This is an excellent decision by President-elect Trump.

“Andrew has a chance to fulfill a historic mission – to turn the page on the heavy regulatory approach of Lina Khan, rooted in neither economic logic nor authorized by law. Andrew also has a historic opportunity to return antitrust enforcement back to its strongest roots – the Consumer Welfare Standard – a principle that has guided regulators and judges to side with neither management nor labor, but to act always in the best interests of the American consumer and the wider economy.

“Lina Khan brags that under her watch, mergers and acquisitions ground to a halt. Any continuation of her policies that seek to further fossilize capitalism will do only harm. For almost half-a-century under the Consumer Welfare Standard, consumers and workers saw unprecedented growth in wages and jobs … until President Biden and Chair Khan took control. Andrew Ferguson has a golden chance to reverse their mistakes and once again make the American economy great again.”