US: Companies lobby for FTC choice that can take-on tech giants

Companies with past issues with Google believe President Trump should nominate Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes to be the next chairman of the Federal Trade Commission. The Wall Street Journal reported that a number of companies and interest groups have waged behind-the-scenes lobbying campaigns over who will chair the Federal Trade Commission

Reyes, a rising star in politics with a record of success as Utah’s attorney general, has proven to have strong ethics and would serve well. Looking at his record of achievement and resume indicates that Reyes would have an easy time being confirmed as the new chairman of the FTC.

Currently, the FTC is led by Acting Chair Maureen K. Ohlhausen who has been on the commission since April of 2012. Reyes has an impressive resume. He graduated summa cum laude from Brigham Young University and earned his law degree with honors from U.C. Berkeley in 1997. He then practiced law for 14 years as a partner at Parsons Behle & Latimer, the largest law firm in the State of Utah. When he ran, Attorney General Reyes secured over 60 percent of the vote in 2014.

According the article, Reyes makes the tech giant Google a little nervous. Reyes has stated he would like to see the FTC reopen the case against Google for anti-competitive behavior. The case stems from claims that Google improperly pressured mobile phone makers to install Google Apps on their phones. Under the Obama administration the Google investigation was swept under the rug and closed in 2013. Reyes believes new information has come to light and the case needs to be followed where it may lead.

Full Content: The Wall Street Journal

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