FTC Commissioner Expected To Resign

Christine Wilson, the sole Republican on the Federal Trade Commission, said Tuesday she will resign soon, blaming the move on the agency’s top official, Lina Khan, reports The NY Post.

“Much ink has been spilled about Lina Khan’s attempts to remake federal antitrust law as chairman of the Federal Trade Commission,” Wilson wrote in an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal. “Less has been said about her disregard for the rule of law and due process and the way senior FTC officials enable her.”

Christie Wilson

Wilson said in the piece that she would resign “soon” but gave no date. Her departure will not change the balance of power in the commission. It should have five members but without Wilson, a Republican, it would have just Khan, as chair, and commissioners Rebecca Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya. All three are Democrats.

Khan, Slaughter and Bedoya said in a brief statement that they wished Wilson well.

Wilson said Khan has been responsible for “abuses of power,” such as voting to challenge Meta Platforms Inc’s acquisition of virtual reality content maker Within. Wilson argued that Khan had said before coming to the FTC that Meta should not be able to make additional acquisitions, and that this meant Khan should be recused from FTC deliberations regarding the deal.

“I dissented on due-process grounds, which require those sitting in a judicial capacity to avoid even the appearance of unfairness,” wrote Wilson. The FTC lost the fight to stop the deal.

Wilson accused the Biden administration FTC of overstepping by being too aggressive in stopping mergers and banning most noncompete clauses.

Lina Khan

Wilson pointed to Khan’s actions in the FTC’s challenge to Meta’s acquisition of virtual-reality gaming company Within.

“Before joining the FTC, Ms. Khan argued that Meta should be blocked from making any future acquisitions and wrote a report on the same issues as a congressional staffer,” she said. “She would now sit as a purportedly impartial judge and decide whether Meta can acquire Within. Spurning due-process considerations and federal ethics obligations, my Democratic colleagues on the commission affirmed Ms. Khan’s decision not to recuse herself.”

Wilson notes in her column that the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey showed 87% of surveyed FTC employees “agreed that senior agency officials maintain high standards of honesty and integrity” under Trump appointees in 2020, while only 49% do today. She said their discomfort is rooted less in policy than in the means Khan uses to accomplish her agenda.