Holland & Hart antitrust attorney Paul Swanson, was quoted in a FTCWatch July 26 article, “Biden’s bid to boost competition could reap political benefits.” The article explores how President Biden’s executive order on competition reflects the administration’s priorities and how the public, policymakers, and politicians may react to moves to ramp up antitrust enforcement. Swanson thinks “the effectiveness of the initiatives by the administration will depend on messaging. The issues of competition and antitrust are abstract, and the administration is wise to issue a list of how people are affected,” he said. “But it will be really hard to make it resonate with people. Even though people think tech is too big, they love their iPhone, they love Facebook. However, there are many areas where the average American feels the pinch, and if the administration can say ‘if companies get too big, it locks you in and limits choices and raises prices,’ that could work with some voters.”
Swanson has experience on the policy and political side of technology issues. Before becoming an antitrust lawyer, he served as a policy aide in the Washington offices of Congresswoman Ellen O. Tauscher of California and Congressman Harry E. Mitchell of Arizona.
Click here to read FTCWatch July 26 article titled, “Biden’s bid to boost competition could reap political benefits,” (subscription needed).