Donald Trump fires FTC's only two Democrat commissioners
What's the story
US President Donald Trump has fired the last two Democratic commissioners from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter. Bedoya confirmed his dismissal via a social media post, while Slaughter provided statements to media outlets regarding her dismissal. The White House later confirmed the dismissals to The Verge. The move marks a major shift in the FTC's balance of power, an independent agency founded 111 years ago to prevent unfair business practices and promote consumer protection.
Unlawful dismissal
'President just illegally fired me'
Bedoya took to social media to express his discontent, saying, "I'm a Commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission. The President just illegally fired me." He further slammed Trump's purported intention for the FTC to become "a lap dog for his golfing buddies." Slaughter echoed similar sentiments in her statement where she called her firing unlawful and accused Trump of silencing dissenting voices within the FTC.
Legal concerns
Supreme Court precedent and FTC independence
Slaughter's statement stressed that her firing violated "the plain language of a statute and clear Supreme Court precedent." This refers to a 1935 US Supreme Court ruling which upheld a law that FTC commissioners could only be dismissed for valid reasons like neglecting their duties. The ruling was meant to protect independent, bipartisan agencies like the FTC from direct White House control.
Agency's future
Concerns over corporate accountability
Both Bedoya and Slaughter were worried that their dismissals could jeopardize corporate accountability. Slaughter warned that Trump's ousting of dissenting voices from the FTC may enable his administration to go easy on powerful corporations. This could potentially weaken the FTC's role in consumer protection and competition matters in big businesses.
Agency changes
FTC's recent actions under new leadership
Earlier on Tuesday, Wired reported that the FTC had deleted business guidance blogs from the last four years. This included a page detailing how AI chatbots can comply with FTC regulations on unfair and deceptive practices. The page also included details of privacy lawsuits against Amazon and Microsoft, filed under Lina Khan, the former commissioner of the FTC.