“I hope the incoming Trump administration will not let Amazon and Facebook parent Meta off the hook from pending antitrust lawsuits by my agency with a sweetheart deal,” stated Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan on Tuesday.
But, Khan stated on CNBC’s Squawk Box, “I can’t predict what future people in my position are going to do.”
Khan’s remarks coincide with apparent attempts by Amazon chairman Jeff Bezos and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to curry favor with President-elect Donald Trump.
These initiatives have included Bezos and Zuckerberg visiting the president-elect individually at his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, and contributing $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund.
Andrew Ross Sorkin of CNBC questioned Khan about her opinion of those initiatives.
It’s true that the FTC has had great success, especially in its continuing lawsuits against Facebook and Amazon, Khan added.
It follows that such businesses will naturally want to visit and see if they can obtain a sweetheart deal. said Khan, a President Joe Biden appointee.
Is there a way for them to avoid a liability finding in court and obtain a low settlement that would only cost cents on the dollar? “I said,” she said.
Khan responded, “I hope it won’t,” when asked if she envisioned it occurring under the incoming administration.
However, she continued, “I can’t predict that.”
In the spring of 2026, we will stand trial against Facebook, and in the fall of 2026, against Amazon. They would naturally want a sweetheart deal, and I hope that future enforcers won’t grant it to them.
FTC Commissioner Andrew Ferguson, who has vigorously enforced anticompetitive business practices as the agency’s head, was appointed by Trump last month to succeed Khan.
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