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Business Groups Urge Trump to Stay the Course on Antitrust Enforcement

By  |  October 6, 2025

Dozens of U.S. business organizations have called on President Trump to maintain a tough stance on corporate monopolies, urging him not to ease pressure on companies like Google and Ticketmaster. According to the New York Post, the groups sent a letter to the White House this week praising Trump’s appointments of aggressive antitrust enforcers and pushing him to follow through on pending federal cases against major firms.

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    In their letter, the organizations commended Trump’s choices of Justice Department antitrust chief Gail Slater, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson, and FTC Commissioner Mark Meador, saying these appointments demonstrated a commitment to stronger market oversight. The letter urged the president to “press forward with the full slate of pending cases currently being advanced by the FTC and DOJ” rather than settling with large corporations. As reported by the New York Post, the groups also warned Trump to “resist pressures” to return to a more lenient enforcement style that they say allowed market dominance to flourish in the past.

    Behind the scenes, sources told the New York Post that divisions have emerged within Trump’s circle over how far the administration should go in pursuing antitrust actions. One faction reportedly wants to continue taking on tech and entertainment giants such as Google and Ticketmaster, while another prefers a more business-friendly approach reminiscent of earlier Republican administrations. Those internal rifts reportedly intensified after the Justice Department approved Hewlett Packard’s $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks in July, a move that allegedly clashed with Slater’s recommendations.

    Read more: Trump 2025 Antitrust Agenda: Targeting Regulatory Barriers

    The fallout from that settlement included the abrupt dismissal of two senior officials in the antitrust division, Roger Alford and William Rinner, according to the New York Post. Alford later delivered a fiery public address in August criticizing what he called “MAGA-in-name-only lobbyists and DOJ officials” whom he accused of undermining the administration’s antitrust goals.

    Per the New York Post, the tension within the Republican coalition reflects a broader divide between those advocating a rollback to Bush- or Obama-era enforcement norms and those focused on curbing structural corporate power. The issue resurfaced when Trump hosted a dinner with top technology executives last month, including Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Apple’s Tim Cook. Pichai reportedly thanked Trump for a “resolution” following Google’s escape from a potential antitrust breakup, a gesture that alarmed smaller tech advocates and watchdog groups who fear the administration may be softening its stance.

    Source: The New York Post