Joe Biden Nominates Lina Khan To Federal Trade Commission

Lina Khan, who had a key role in a House subcommittee antitrust investigation of major tech giants, has been nominated by President Joe Biden to serve on the Federal Trade Commission.

Biden’s selection of Khan is a further indication that his administration will take an aggressive approach to scrutinizing antitrust issues. Khan was the author of the influential Yale Law Journal study, Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox. She then helped lead the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee investigation of competition in digital markets, culminating in a conclusion that “the antitrust agencies failed, at key occasions, to stop monopolists from rolling up their competitors and failed to protect the American people from abuses of monopoly power. Forceful agency action is critical.” The FTC and a group of states sued Facebook last year, claiming antitrust violations.

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Khan previously was a legal adviser to FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra and legal director at the Open Markets Institute. She is an associate professor at Columbia Law School.

The FTC has one vacancy following the resignation of chairman Joseph Simons in January. There also will be another vacancy when Commissioner Rohit Chopra is confirmed to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Biden has not yet put forward a nominee to fill one vacancy on the FCC, after the departure of Chairman Ajit Pai. Jessica Rosenworcel is serving as acting chairwoman.

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