Center for American Progress

STATEMENT: Lina Khan’s Bipartisan Confirmation to FTC Chair Signals the Urgency of Tackling Competition and Consumer Threats to the United States
Press Statement

STATEMENT: Lina Khan’s Bipartisan Confirmation to FTC Chair Signals the Urgency of Tackling Competition and Consumer Threats to the United States

Washington, D.C. — Yesterday, with a bipartisan vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed Lina Khan to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). She was subsequently designated chair.  Following the vote, Adam Conner, vice president for Technology Policy at the Center for American Progress, released the following statement:

The strong bipartisan vote to confirm professor Lina Khan to the FTC, and her subsequent designation as chair, brings a leader uniquely suited to the challenges of this moment. Khan’s powerful analysis of modern digital markets and subsequent work at the FTC, on Capitol Hill, and in academia could not be more pertinent to the urgent task of protecting American consumers against emerging threats. We celebrate her achievement, particularly as the first woman of South Asian descent to lead the FTC, and urge Congress to increase the agency’s funding to sufficient levels to enable its work under her leadership.

Marc Jarsulic, senior fellow and chief economist at CAP, added:

The FTC’s dual mandates of promoting competition and protecting consumers have never been more important as we rebuild from the COVID-19 collapse, redouble our work to address historic inequalities, and confront the excessive market power of platform monopolies. Khan’s bipartisan confirmation and warm support from both parties is yet another promising signal that the U.S. government is ready to get to work tackling the significant competition and consumer threats faced by Americans today. We very much look forward to working with Chair Khan.

For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Julia Cusick at [email protected].