The Trump appointee making Silicon Valley sweat

Makan Delrahim, who heads the Justice Department’s antitrust division, has spent months laying out a case for greater scrutiny of the country’s powerful technology industry, making the argument in speeches from Chicago to Rome. And his rhetoric — he told an audience at the University of Chicago in April that "enforcers must take vigorous action" if digital platforms harm competition — is being closely watched in the tech industry amid fears that Washington's souring view on Silicon Valley could eventually result in a crackdown. “At the end of the day, my job is policing the free market system to make sure you have competition to create innovation and ultimately help consumers," he said. Delrahim’s talk is raising hopes among some progressives that they have an unlikely ally in the Trump administration. Still, those agitating for a tougher approach to tech companies say they’re not clear whether the antitrust chief is planning to take action — or simply floating ideas.