Rep. Jim Jordan on Jan. 3. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan backed down Wednesday on his effort to remove antitrust authority from the FTC as part of the budget reconciliation process after discussions with the White House.
Why it matters: The Trump White House is more likely to side with those pushing the "MAGA antitrust" agenda at the DOJ and FTC rather than support efforts to fully kneecap them.
- Jordan has long been against aggressive antitrust enforcement, and he had better luck railing against the FTC when it was helmed by progressive Democrat Lina Khan.
- But in President Trump's second term, Republican chair Andrew Ferguson is fully committed to Trump's agenda, and there's no Democrats at the FTC anymore.
Driving the news: Jordan introduced an amendment during Wednesday's reconciliation markup to remove a section that would have consolidated antitrust enforcement authorities and resources in the DOJ antitrust division.
- Jordan made waves earlier this week when he put the measure, something conservatives including Sen. Mike Lee have floated in the past, into the House Judiciary Committee's reconciliation text.
What they're saying: "After consultation with the administration and House leadership, we all agreed that the reconciliation bill was not the best vehicle to advance this provision," Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye said in a statement to Axios.
- Ferguson balked at Jordan's proposal to strip the FTC of antitrust authority and appealed to the White House, which agreed and urged Jordan to drop it, a senior Trump administration official said.
- A White House spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.
The big picture: The FTC is currently facing off against Meta in an antitrust case in federal court, and Ferguson has said antitrust enforcement can be used against companies that use their market power to squelch certain views.
