Five big players to watch in Big Tech’s antitrust fight
Although President Biden has remained fairly quiet on any antitrust action since assuming office, he has nominated and appointed two critics of Big Tech to key enforcement and advisory positions.
And on Capitol Hill, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have been pressing the tech CEOs and proposing legislation to revamp antitrust laws.
Here are five big players to watch going forward:
Lina Khan: Khan, an influential antitrust scholar who was boosted by progressive critics of big tech, is known for her “Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox” paper, which she wrote as a student at Yale.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.): Klobuchar, a former presidential candidate who had a good relationship with Biden, is a key Democratic lawmaker to watch in the coming battle.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah): Lee, the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, is also focused on Big Tech, though sometimes from a slightly different perspective than Klobuchar.
Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.): Cicilline has used his perch at the top of the House Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust to lead and shape Democrats’ approach to Big Tech.
Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.): Cicilline’s counterpart on the antitrust subcommittee, Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) is set to play a pivotal role in marshaling Republican support behind any proposal.