Pressure is building among some Democratic Lawmakers for another antitrust probe of Google

Rep Keith Ellison (D-MN) is calling on the US government to investigate Google, the latest sign that some Democratic lawmakers are ready to challenge the tech industry after befriending it in the past.  In a letter to the Federal Trade Commission, Rep Ellison urged the watchdog agency to take a closer look at Google and its parent company, Alphabet, given that European regulators recently found that the search giant harmed its rivals and fined it $2.7 billion. “The FTC should determine whether Alphabet has engaged in similar conduct in the United States and whether such conduct violates the FTC Act,” he wrote.

“We’re seeing breaks in the ranks,” said Barry Lynn, the director of the Open Markets Institute, which has advocated for antitrust scrutiny of major tech companies. “The Democratic Party is going to end up within the next two-to-three years doing something about big tech because the rank and file is going to force them.”