Democrats and Republicans unite around Biden’s tech picks

Jonathan Kanter, who has represented Big Tech rivals like Yelp and News Corp, skated through his nomination hearing for leader of the Justice Department's antitrust division without incident as both Democrats and Republicans lauded his tougher stance on regulating digital behemoths. It’s no surprise Democrats are backing President Biden's pick, a favorite among progressives and anti-monopoly advocates. But the fact that Republicans raised few, if any, objections to him while some went as far as to say they will vote to confirm him speaks to how united lawmakers are in wanting tougher oversight of Big Tech. The controversy-free session largely mirrored the confirmation process for Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, a star of the progressive movement who rose to prominence by arguing that current antitrust standards are ill-equipped to deal with online powerhouses like Amazon. The tech industry’s efforts to get lawmakers to raise political and ethical issues with Kanter’s nomination ahead of the hearing also appear to have fallen flat. Ultimately, Kanter offered glimpses of the views that have endeared him to tech critics across the political spectrum, including taking extra funding for the division, keeping pathways open for whistleblowers to come forward, and adapting competition policy to keep up with evolving markets.

[Cristiano Lima is a tech newsletter reporter for the Washington Post.]