FTC Democrats chart a new course

Thought things are tough for the tech industry in Washington now? Building Democratic frustration with the industry could bring a bigger crackdown if the 2020 election puts the party back in control of the White House. Look no further than the Federal Trade Commission — and its two Democrats — to see those dynamics at play. In a series of unusually blunt dissents in recent cases involving Facebook and Google, FTC Commissioners Rohit Chopra and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter argued for much tougher financial penalties for companies that break their promises and abuse their users’ privacy. They also urged the commission to demand fundamental changes to the companies’ advertising-driven business model and hold CEOs like Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg personally liable for violations — even if it means taking the firms to court, a tactic the FTC’s Republican majority has avoided. The 3-2 party-line votes marked a break with tradition for the FTC, a once-sleepy agency whose institutional culture has long emphasized consensus in high-profile cases. But more than that, the dissents lay the groundwork for a profound shift in how the commission approaches the giants of the tech industry, should the commission eventually go back to Democratic control.