Democrats Brace for 'Tug of War' with Tech

The tech industry could face a reckoning on privacy if a blue wave puts the House in Democrats' hands. It’s the one issue that seems to offer the richest opportunity for legislating if Democrats flip the chamber, coming amid pressure over the tech industry's growing pile of privacy scandals. “There will be a tug of war on this,” said Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT). “It’ll be resisted by the industry.” Democrats say the fight will likely center on how much they can bolster the Federal Trade Commission’s powers in exchange for federal provisions pre-empting state privacy efforts like the recent law passed in California. NetChoice, a trade group that counts Facebook and Google as members, sees “a real threat and not in a good way with [a] Democratically controlled House in advancing federal privacy legislation,” said general counsel Carl Szabo, who fears Democrats will resist pre-emption. “House Democrats are always ready to pounce on something that creates more government bureaucracy,” said Senate Commerce Chairman John Thune (R-SD), who is putting together a privacy draft now as a template for congressional action in 2019.