A federal judge in Virginia ruled on Thursday that Google illegally monopolized two advertising markets, paving the way for prosecutors to push for the breakup of Google&#8217;s advertising products, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/us-judge-finds-google-holds-illegal-online-ad-tech-monopolies-2025-04-17/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
According to the ruling from U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema, Google broke the law by monopolizing the markets for publisher ad servers and ad exchanges. Brinkema wrote in a 115-page opinion that Google &#8220;engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising,&#8221; Bloomberg <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-04-17/google-partially-loses-us-advertising-tech-antitrust-case?srnd=homepage-americas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
&#8220;For over a decade, Google has tied its publisher ad server and ad exchange together through contractual policies and technological integration, which enabled the company to establish and protect its monopoly power in these two markets,&#8221; the judge added.
Google also pushed &#8220;anticompetitive policies on its customers&#8221; and &#8220;harmed Google’s publisher customers, the competitive process, and, ultimately, consumers of information on the open web,&#8221; according to Brinkema.
Google&#8217;s lawyers pushed back, arguing that the case brought against the company focused on its past practices when it was seeking to connect tools to competitors&#8217; products. The tech giant&#8217;s defense also said that prosecutors ignored some of Google&#8217;s large competitors, such as Amazon and Comcast, when digital ad spending shifted to streaming services and apps, Reuters reported.
The ruling against Google in Virginia comes as the tech giant faces a separate antitrust case, with the Department of Justice looking to force the company to sell its Chrome browser, which processes 90% of internet searches in the United States. The DOJ argues that &#8220;Google&#8217;s unlawful behavior has deprived rivals not only of critical distribution channels but also distribution partners who could otherwise enable entry into these markets by competitors in new and innovative ways.&#8221;
Last year, a federal judge <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/federal-judge-rules-google-has-illegal-monopoly-over-search-engines?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Federal+Judge+Rules+Google+Has+Illegal+Monopoly+Over+Search+Engines" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sided</a> with the DOJ and agreed that Google has a monopoly over search engines. A trial to decide a remedy for Google&#8217;s search engine monopoly is <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/google-argues-doj-internet-search-monopoly-remedies-will-harm-consumers/#:~:text=The%20brief%20previews%20how%20the,open%20internet%20search%20competitive%20again.">set to begin</a> on Monday in Washington.
Google has also been accused of censoring Right-leaning news and favoring legacy media outlets in its search function. Republican lawmakers <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/lawmakers-expand-probe-into-google-meta-over-alleged-censorship-of-trump-assassination-attempt-info?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Lawmakers+Expand+Probe+Into+Google%2C+Meta+Over+Alleged+Censorship+Of+Trump+Assassination+Attempt+Info" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investigated</a> Google last year after its search recommendations appeared to remove mentions of the assassination attempt on then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Google claimed that the assassination attempt search recommendations were omitted because of a safety protocol.

Google

Google Illegally Monopolized Advertising Markets, Federal Judge Rules

Antitrust

Big Tech

Business

Courts

Judge

Gail Slater, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, is finally expected to be confirmed by the United States Senate in the coming days. From her work on the Senate staff of Vice President JD Vance to her pro-consumer bent, she’s proven she’ll be prudent and effective.
In her recent confirmation hearing, Slater made it clear that she will bring the DOJ back to its evidence-based approach of targeting companies that have truly harmed competition rather than those who are merely scapegoated for macroeconomic conditions. Adherence to the facts and the law will improve antitrust enforcement, allowing the department’s staff to focus their talents where they belong — on cheaters.
I believe in strong antitrust enforcement. As a lawmaker, I often joined bipartisan coalitions to encourage it when warranted. That legitimate enforcement of antitrust laws is impaired when overreach becomes the rage. Unfortunately, that&#8217;s exactly what happened under the Biden-Harris administration.
For example, as Fox News recently highlighted, the Biden DOJ recently went after Visa’s debit card network. Are we really supposed to believe that not enough companies are competing in the debit card space? With tokenization and decentralized finance tools spreading like Georgia Kudzu, actions like this strain credibility. More likely, the Biden-Harris administration needed to deflect blame for inflation, so Visa became a political “whipping boy.”
The Biden DOJ also sued property management software, blaming them for higher housing costs. Why blame supply chain issues, restrictive zoning laws, and high regulatory costs when you can just blame the software that told the American people about the rising costs of Biden’s economy, I guess?
Gail Slater can fix it. In her confirmation hearing, she said she will prioritize “surgical enforcement” over reckless attacks on innovative businesses. Instead of wielding antitrust law as a blunt instrument to reshape entire industries like the Biden Antitrust Division did, she will deploy it only as a “precision tool”—intervening only where there is clear, demonstrable evidence of consumer harm. And in those cases, Gail Slater will be a warrior for consumers. By removing so many false positive cases off the Antitrust Division docket, Slater will have significantly more time to devote to the most pressing threats to free speech and collusive corporate behavior, of which there remain plenty.
For example, Slater stated in her confirmation hearing that she will pay significant attention to Google. This is great news for the conservatives who have long argued that the company, as the dominant force in online search and digital advertising, has used its power to marginalize conservative perspectives, including by manipulating search algorithms, demonetizing conservative content on YouTube, and restricting access to conservative news outlets. Google could likely resolve many of these concerns by remediating the censorship it has allowed. Of course, putting the One America News Network on YouTubeTV would be a great start!
Another area of enforcement that Slater highlighted as a prime example of antitrust violations deserving DOJ scrutiny is the issue of group boycotts against conservative businesses. We’ve seen the coordinated exclusion of conservative media outlets from advertising platforms through entities like the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and NewsGuard. We&#8217;ve also seen financial institutions denying services to firearm manufacturers and faith-based organization.
It is clear that when dominant players in an industry collude to exclude or financially strangle disfavored businesses, competition is not just distorted — it is intentionally sabotaged. This represents precisely the kind of collusive conduct that antitrust law was designed to address — and Slater’s DOJ will make sure these cases are treated with the seriousness they deserve.
As you can see, Slater’s strategy is not to avoid enforcement — it’s to make enforcement more effective. By concentrating on cases of monopolization and exclusionary practices, the DOJ can achieve more successes and stronger legal outcomes.
This kind of focused enforcement incentivizes better behavior and compliance from industry, too. When businesses know that the DOJ will act decisively where real harm exists, they are more likely to be better corporate citizens with consumer protection top of mind.
This is the antitrust policy America needs — one that fosters innovation, consumer choice, and economic growth while holding genuinely bad actors accountable. The Senate should confirm her immediately.
* * *
Matt Gaetz is a former U.S. congressman from Florida who served on the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, including the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government and the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law. He is also a former Attorney General nominee from President Donald J. Trump. Presently, Gaetz is the host of The Matt Gaetz Show on One America News Network.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Senate Judiciary Committee Holds Confirmation Hearing For Todd Blanche And Abigail Slater

Why The Senate Must Confirm Gail Slater As DOJ Antitrust Czar

Biden Administration

Matt Gaetz

Opinion

Pam Bondi

President Trump

U.S. Senate

The House Judiciary Committee is ramping up its investigation into the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), which allegedly colluded with advertisers to keep business from conservative news outlets.
Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) on Thursday <a href="https://x.com/JudiciaryGOP/status/1819078756600099182">wrote</a> to more than 40 companies connected to GARM, instructing them to turn over relevant documents to the committee. Jordan also asked the companies—including behemoths like Pepsi, Adidas, and Shell—whether they agreed with GARM&#8217;s actions.
&#8220;The Committee has uncovered evidence of coordinated action by GARM and its member companies, including boycotts of disfavored social media platforms, podcasts, and news outlets,&#8221; Jordan writes.
Jordan&#8217;s letter is the latest step in the committee&#8217;s probe of GARM. Last month, Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-here-ben-shapiro-testifies-to-congress-on-censorship-updated-live">testified</a> before the committee about GARM&#8217;s actions. Emails obtained by the committee <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ad-firm-replaces-ceo-after-congressional-face-off-with-ben-shapiro-on-censorship">showed</a> GARM and ad-buying executives expressing contempt for conservatives, admitting that they used rules about &#8220;conspiracy theories&#8221; and &#8220;misinformation&#8221; as a pretext to withhold revenue from conservative news sites, including The Daily Wire.
The committee&#8217;s investigation could clarify whether GARM and ad firms were manipulating or misrepresenting their customers, or if those customers were active participants in denying ads to conservative websites. If those companies—many of whom are direct competitors—coordinated their activities, they could run afoul of antitrust laws, Jordan said.
According to the committee, GARM has &#8220;deviated far from its original intent&#8221; or creating a &#8220;&#8216;more sustainable and responsible digital environment,'&#8221; and instead &#8220;has collectively used its immense market power to demonetize voices and viewpoints the group disagrees with—even intervening in situations that do not have a so-called &#8216;brand safety&#8217; concern.&#8221;
Jordan asked each company whether it agreed with GARM executive Robert Rakowitz&#8217;s complaint that an “extreme global interpretation of the US Constitution” and “taking US norms and applying them globally” was a hindrance to advertisers.
The letters also ask whether the companies &#8220;participate in any collective boycotts with GARM or its members that it believes is exempt from antitrust law, and whether they supported or were &#8220;aware of the coordinated actions taken by GARM toward news outlets and podcasts such as The Joe Rogan Experience, The Daily Wire, Breitbart News, or Fox News, or other conservative media.&#8221;
<a href="http://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.amiracist.com&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1722626094661000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0xeRV2yZnGyN0DMA1KI89w">WATCH THE TRAILER FOR &#8216;AM I RACIST?&#8217; — MATT WALSH&#8217;S EXPOSÉ ON DEI</a>
Emails reveal that Joe Barone, GroupM’s Managing Partner Brand Safety Americas, admitted the group had “Daily Wire on our Global High Risk exclusion list, categorized as Conspiracy Theories.”
In an email to Rakowitz, GroupM Executive Vice President of Global Brand Safety John Montgomery admitted that the group did not find that The Daily Wire published misinformation.
GroupM CEO Christian Juhl struggled to explain the emails when he testified before the committee alongside Shapiro. He was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ad-firm-replaces-ceo-after-congressional-face-off-with-ben-shapiro-on-censorship">replaced</a> as CEO soon after.
The companies receiving congressional letters as GARM members include:
Adidas Group 
Adidas North America 
American Express 
Bayer AG 
Bayer U.S. 
Beiersdorf AG 
Beiersdorf North America 
BP 
BP America 
Centene Corporation 
Chanel 
Chanel 
Colgate-Palmolive 
CVS Health 
Dell Technologies 
Electronic Arts 
Foreign: 
FrieslandCampina 
FrieslandCampina 
General Mills 
Goldman Sachs 
Haleon 
HP Incorporated 
Ikea U.S. 
Ingka Group 
Johnson &amp; Johnson 
Kellanova 
Kenvue Incorporated 
Kimberly-Clark Corporation 
L&#8217;Oréal 
L&#8217;Oréal USA 
Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy 
Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy, North America 
Mastercard 
McDonald&#8217;s Corporation 
Merck &amp; Co. Incorporated 
Microsoft Corp 
Mondelēz International 
NIKE Incorporated 
PepsiCo 
Perfetti Van Melle 
Perfetti Van Melle 
Pernod Ricard 
Pernod Ricard North America 
Red Bull GmbH 
Red Bull North America Inc. 
Roblox 
Sanofi 
Sanofi 
Scotiabank 
Scotiabank U.S. 
Shell 
Shell USA 
Sony Corporation of America 
Sony Group 
Suntory Global Spirits 
Suntory Holdings 
Verizon 
Volvo Cars 
Volvo Cars USA

Ben Shapiro

House Committee Expands Probe Into Anti-Conservative Advertising Collusion

Jim Jordan

NewsGuard

Social Media Censorship

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares sued the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ncaa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NCAA</a> on Wednesday, accusing the organization of antitrust violations related to its name, image, and likeness (NIL) policies.
According to the <a href="https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/attorneygeneral/documents/pr/2024/pr24-10-NCAA.Antitrust.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuit</a>, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee on Wednesday, the NCAA has been “artificially depressing” the amount of compensation prospective student-athletes can earn through NIL deals and their ability to negotiate those deals.
“This is all about protecting student athletes and prospective student athletes in making sure that they have market sources available to properly value their name, image, and likeness rights [because] the NCAA has a structure that artificially restricts the market in a way that hurts the student athletes,” Skrmetti told The Daily Wire.
“Student athletes are the heart of college sports and everybody else in college sports is getting rich, and the student athletes are getting left behind because of the lack of competition for their name, image, and likeness rights. That’s illegal and it’s not fair. It’s not right,” he added.
The lawsuit is aimed at rules from the NCAA that limit the ability of prospective student athletes to negotiate NIL rights. According to the suit, these rules harm athletes “at a critical juncture in the recruiting calendar.”
The lawsuit says that the rule “bans prospective college athletes (including current college athletes looking to transfer to another school who are in the ‘transfer portal’) from discussing potential NIL opportunities before they actually enroll. It’s like a coach looking for a new job, and freely talking to many different schools, but being unable to negotiate salary until after he’s picked one (the depressive effect on coaches’ wages in such a dysfunctional market is obvious).”
The NCAA has said the rules act as necessary protections for student athletes after they were first allowed to pursue such deals in 2021.
Skrmetti said that the issue came to his attention last year after there was concern that the NCAA might institute a postseason ban for the University of Tennessee football team after recruiting violations that occurred under a former coach. He said the bowl ban would have harmed the NIL rights of the students who were not connected to the infractions.
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“Student-athletes generate massive revenues for the NCAA, its members, and corporations within the college sports industry, especially in football and basketball,” Miyares <a href="https://www.oag.state.va.us/media-center/news-releases/2680-january-31-2024-attorney-general-miyares-sues-ncaa-over-nil-restrictions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a statement. “Student athletes should have more freedom over negotiating and earning money for their skills and ability. Colleges and universities benefit dramatically from the success of their student athletes &#8212; it’s only fair that student athletes also get the full picture of how they may benefit from their choice of school as well.”
Skrmetti said that the suit wasn’t directed to protect any specific institution, but was about the rights of student athletes and the principle that “concentrated power causes harm.”
“I’m not for, necessarily, the Wild West of unregulated college sports, but what we have now is such an inconsistent and arbitrary and unfair system, there has to be some deep change to make sure that it both comports with the law and is doing right by student athletes,” he said.

2018 NCAA Division III Football Championship

Tennessee, Virginia Attorneys General File Antitrust Lawsuit Against NCAA

Jason Miyares

NCAA

Sports

Tennessee

U.S.

Virginia

Partially redacted portions of the Federal Trade Commission&#8217;s (FTC) <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ftc-launches-antitrust-suit-against-amazon-over-illegal-monopoly-officials-say" target="_blank" rel="noopener">antitrust lawsuit</a> against Amazon allege the company used an internal algorithmic pricing tool described as an &#8220;unfair method of competition&#8221; to test how much it could raise prices so competitors would follow.
FTC officials and 17 state attorneys general sued Amazon last week for allegedly using &#8220;interlocking and anticompetitive and unfair&#8221; strategies to maintain its monopolistic power over current and future rivals.
The <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/1910129AmazoneCommerceComplaintPublic.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">172-page lawsuit</a> details a number of examples accusing the American multinational company of raising consumer prices across retail, including a system called &#8220;Project Nessie,&#8221; which Amazon allegedly stopped using in 2019 for unknown reasons.
Sources familiar with the complaint <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/retail/amazon-used-secret-project-nessie-algorithm-to-raise-prices-6c593706?mod=hp_lead_pos2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Wall Street Journal that the algorithm allegedly &#8220;helped Amazon improve its profit on items across shopping categories, and because of the power the company has in e-commerce, led competitors to raise their prices and charge customers more,&#8221; as the outlet reported.
The Journal reported that the algorithm would return the item to its standard price point if competitors didn&#8217;t match Amazon&#8217;s prices.
&#8220;In a competitive world, Amazon&#8217;s decision to raise prices and degrade services would create an opening for rivals and potential rivals to attract business, gain momentum, and grow,&#8221; the lawsuit reads. &#8220;But Amazon has engaged in an unlawful monopolistic strategy to close off that possibility.&#8221;
According to the lawsuit, the FTC estimated a redacted amount had been &#8220;extracted from American households&#8221; by the system, but one source told the Journal that Amazon made over $1 billion in revenue using Project Nessie.
FTC spokesman Douglas Farrar declined to comment on the redacted portions in the complaint but called on Amazon to remove the blocked information.
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&#8220;We once again call on Amazon to move swiftly to remove the redactions and allow the American public to see the full scope of what we allege are their illegal monopolistic practices,&#8221; Farrar told the Journal.
Tim Doyle, a spokesperson for Amazon, told The Daily Wire in an emailed statement that the FTC’s allegations &#8220;grossly mischaracterize&#8221; Project Nessie.
&#8220;Project Nessie was a project with a simple purpose—to try to stop our price matching from resulting in unusual outcomes where prices became so low that they were unsustainable,&#8221; Doyle said. &#8220;The project ran for a few years on a subset of products, but didn’t work as intended, so we scrapped it several years ago.”
Federal officials announced the major federal lawsuit — led by FTC Chair Lina Khan — after the agency voted 3-0 to move forward with the charges in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.
&#8220;The complaint sets forth detailed allegations noting how Amazon is now exploiting its monopoly power to enrich itself while raising prices and degrading service for the tens of millions of American families who shop on its platform and the hundreds of thousands of businesses that rely on Amazon to reach them,&#8221; Khan said in a news release.
Khan, a Democrat appointed by President Joe Biden, reportedly garnered attention as a law student at Yale University when she published an influential antitrust and competition law essay targeting Amazon&#8217;s business practices. But rumors of the FTC going after the online retail giant have been circulating since the Trump administration.
David Zapolsky, senior vice president of Amazon&#8217;s global public policy and general counsel, responded to the complaint last week, saying the federal agency &#8220;is wrong on the facts and the law&#8221; and has &#8220;radically departed&#8221; from its original purpose to enforce federal consumer protection laws and antitrust laws.
&#8220;The FTC has it backwards and if they were successful in this lawsuit, the result would be anticompetitive and anti-consumer because we&#8217;d have to stop many of the things we do to offer and highlight low prices—a perverse result that would be directly opposed to the goals of antitrust law,&#8221; Zapolsky <a href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-ftc-antitrust-lawsuit-full-response" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.

FTC Sues Amazon in Landmark Antitrust Case Over Marketplace

FTC Antitrust Lawsuit Against Amazon Alleges Company Used Internal Algorithm To Raise Prices

FTC Antitrust Lawsuit Against Amazon Alleges Company Used Secret Algorithm To Raise Prices

Amazon

Amazon Prime

Federal Government

Lawsuit

The Federal Trade Commission launched an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/antitrust" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inquiry</a> on Wednesday into the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/baby-formula" target="_blank" rel="noopener">baby formula</a> shortages which have <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/supply-chain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">harmed</a> infants and strained their parents over the past several months.
The agency, which centers on consumer protection and the enforcement of antitrust laws, issued a <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/Baby%20Formula%20RFI_final.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">call</a> for public comments about factors that may have led to the shortages that started at the beginning of last year after a series of safety incidents. Officials invited families who have experienced “fraud, deception, or scams when attempting to purchase infant formula,” as well as retailers who have seen “extremely large purchases of infant formula in excess of a single family’s need,” to submit their insights.
&#8220;We have been monitoring and will continue to monitor the ongoing infant formula shortage, which is causing enormous anxiety, fear, and financial burden for American families,&#8221; FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/05/federal-trade-commission-launches-inquiry-infant-formula-crisis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. &#8220;The FTC is launching a public inquiry to identify the factors that contributed to the shortage or hampered our ability to respond to it. Learning from this experience can help determine how we can minimize the risk of similar shortages in the markets for other life-sustaining products.&#8221;
The move from the FTC comes after Abbott Nutrition temporarily shuttered a baby formula facility in Sturgis, Michigan, last year and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/abbott-nutrition-reopens-baby-formula-plant-at-center-of-nationwide-shortage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">initiated</a> a voluntary recall of several products over concerns about bacterial contamination, a move which came after the FDA found standing water, roof leaks, bacteria growth, and inadequate hygiene in the facility. The sudden absence of EleCare, a formula for children who are unable to digest other products, from the marketplace was especially worrisome to parents and government officials.
Reckitt, another consumer goods company, introduced another nationwide recall of baby formula earlier this year and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/baby-formula-recalled-nationwide-over-possible-bacterial-contamination" target="_blank" rel="noopener">revealed</a> that two batches of ProSobee Simply Plant-Based Infant Formula may have been contaminated with a species of bacteria possibly deadly to infants.
The inquiry from the FTC will also examine the impact of FDA regulations on the “number of infant formula suppliers, capital investment, and total manufacturing capacity” of the product. The agency asked public commenters to report “regulatory barriers that have prevented companies located outside the United States from entering the infant formula market.”
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The White House previously sought to alleviate the shortage with “Operation Fly Formula,” an initiative through which the military imported baby formula from European nations. Some Democratic officials meanwhile <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-yorks-democratic-ag-goes-after-price-gouging-amid-formula-shortage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">contended</a> that producers were engaged in price gouging.
Worldwide lockdowns and public health mandates fostered unpredictable supply chain shocks over the past three years, contributing to inflation in many countries. Prices for baby food and formula rose nearly 9% year-over-year as of last month, according to <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and saw costs increase more than 4% on a month-to-month basis.
Robert Ford, chief executive of Abbott Nutrition, previously apologized for the shortages in an opinion <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/baby-formula-ceo-has-a-message-for-parents-hit-by-nationwide-shortage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">piece</a>, admitting that his firm “fell short” of expectations but insisting that the shutdown was necessary. “We believe our voluntary recall was the right thing to do,” he wrote. “We will not take risks when it comes to the health of children. The data collected during the investigation, genetic sequencing, retained product samples and available product from the four complaints did not find any connection between our products and the four reported illnesses in children.”

Baby Formula Display

‘Anxiety, Fear, And Financial Burden’: Agency Launches Investigation Into Baby Formula Shortages

FTC Launches Investigation Into Baby Formula Shortages

babies

baby formula

Economy

Supply Chain

Officials with the United States Surface Transportation Board approved the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/antitrust" target="_blank" rel="noopener">merger</a> of Kansas City Southern Railway Company and Canadian Pacific Railway Limited on Wednesday, marking the first combination of major <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/railroads" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rail</a> companies in two decades.
The new entity, which will be called Canadian Pacific Kansas City, will be the first railroad spanning Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern are the smallest Class I railroads in North America; the new firm will retain the distinction.
“The transaction will reduce travel time for traffic moving over the single-line service; it should result in increased incentives for investment; and it will eliminate the need for the two now-separate CP and KCS systems to interchange traffic moving from one system to the other,” the Surface Transportation Board said in a <a href="https://www.stb.gov/news-communications/latest-news/pr-23-07/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. “This will enhance efficiency, which in turn will enable the new CPKC system to better compete for traffic with the other larger Class I carriers.”
The agency said that “numerous conditions,” such as written justifications for any shipping price increases that exceed inflation, can be imposed upon CPKC. Surface Transportation Board officials also established a seven-year oversight period to monitor developments such as the completion of operating improvements and investments to handle new traffic.
The merger comes as the American railroad industry faces increased regulatory scrutiny following the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Local and state authorities were forced to temporarily evacuate all citizens within one mile of the derailment site last month and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/evacuation-ordered-ohio-governor-warns-major-explosion-could-send-shrapnel-a-mile-from-derailed-train" target="_blank" rel="noopener">started</a> a controlled burn of chemicals on the vehicle to decrease the risk of an explosion, inducing unknown <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/researcher-worries-government-is-wrongly-declaring-safety-near-ohio-train-crash" target="_blank" rel="noopener">environmental</a> effects on the small rust belt community.
Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) therefore introduced the Railway Safety Act of 2023, which would <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/senators-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-improve-rail-safety-after-ohio-train-crash" target="_blank" rel="noopener">require</a> rail companies to report hazardous materials on trains to state authorities, raise inspection requirements, and increase the rigor of defect detection efforts. The bill would meanwhile increase several civil penalties for violations of rail safety regulations by tenfold and require that each train must operate with at least two-person crews.
“Through this legislation, Congress has a real opportunity to ensure that what happened in East Palestine will never happen again. We owe every American the peace of mind that their community is protected from a catastrophe of this kind,” Vance said in a <a href="https://www.vance.senate.gov/press-releases/senators-vance-brown-to-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-prevent-train-derailment-disasters/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. “Action to prevent future disasters is critical, but we must never lose sight of the needs of the Ohioans living in East Palestine and surrounding communities. One day, the TV cameras will leave, and the news cycle will move on, but the needs of those Ohioans will remain.”
The state of Ohio <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/entirely-avoidable-ohio-sues-norfolk-southern-for-train-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filed suit</a> this week against Norfolk Southern and asked that the company be held financially liable for the derailment, characterizing the incident as “entirely avoidable” and the result of executives neglecting the “welfare of the communities in which Norfolk Southern operates.” The EPA has meanwhile <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/epa-requires-norfolk-southern-to-test-near-ohio-train-disaster-for-chemicals-which-impact-fertility-last-for-decades" target="_blank" rel="noopener">directed</a> Norfolk Southern to sample for dioxins, a class of pollutants that can be formed by vinyl chloride combustion and can bind to soil for decades.

Canadian Pacific Wins US Approval For $27 Billion Rail Deal

Regulators Approve Largest Rail Merger In Two Decades

Regulators Approve Merger Of Two Large Railroads

Railroads

Train

Former House Speaker <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/nancy-pelosi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nancy Pelosi</a> (D-CA) disclosed a sale of 30,000 shares in <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/google" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Google&#8217;s</a> parent company, Alphabet, roughly one month before the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-justice" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Justice Department</a> opened an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/antitrust" target="_blank" rel="noopener">antitrust</a> lawsuit into the technology firm.
Federal regulators <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/justice-department-sues-google-for-alleged-digital-advertising-monopoly" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> in the Tuesday complaint that Google monopolizes the tools website publishers use to sell advertisements and that companies utilize to purchase advertisements. Pelosi, who resigned from her leadership position but remains a member of Congress, sold 10,000 shares of Alphabet Class A stock on December 20, December 21, and December 28, according to federal <a href="https://disclosures-clerk.house.gov/public_disc/ptr-pdfs/2023/20022260.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disclosures</a>, marking a combined transaction value between $1.5 million and $3 million. The disclosures were digitally signed by the lawmaker on January 12.
Although shares for Google have increased roughly 8% over the past month, the company’s stock price declined some 6% this week as news of the antitrust lawsuit became public.
Officials claimed that Google has engaged in a “pattern of acquisitions to obtain control over key digital advertising tools” and has manipulated auctions to “deprive rivals of scale.” Such moves may violate the Sherman Act, which outlaws “monopolization, attempted monopolization, or conspiracy or combination to monopolize” deemed <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/advice-guidance/competition-guidance/guide-antitrust-laws/antitrust-laws" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unreasonable</a> by the court system. Google said in a statement that the Justice Department lawsuit attempts to “pick winners and losers” in the “highly competitive” advertising technology space.
Pelosi and her husband, Paul, have been repeatedly accused of leveraging insider knowledge that the veteran lawmaker holds in order to increase earnings in the stock market. The filing also revealed that the top Democrat sold shares of Netflix, PayPal, Salesforce, Tesla, and Disney.
Paul Pelosi appeared to have cut losses in software company Nvidia last year before the United States placed new restrictions on computer chip sales to China and Russia. He sold 25,000 shares of Nvidia on July 26 at an average price of $165.05, causing a loss of $341,365, according to a set of <a href="https://disclosures-clerk.house.gov/public_disc/ptr-pdfs/2022/20021438.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disclosures</a>. One month later, Nvidia revealed that the government imposed export restrictions on the company’s A100 and forthcoming H100 circuits. The new regulations will “address the risk that the covered products may be used in, or diverted to, a ‘military end use’ or ‘military end user’ in China and Russia,” Nvidia said in a regulatory <a href="https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001045810/000104581022000146/nvda-20220826.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filing</a>.
The couple has also placed stock market bets in the middle of heated policy debates in Congress. In 2021, Paul Pelosi <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/pelosis-husband-makes-big-tech-stock-moves-again-places-6-million-bet-as-congress-looks-to-rein-in-silicon-valley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bought</a> over $6 million in options contracts related to technology stocks while lawmakers worked on antitrust legislation.
Asset purchases from members of Congress and their immediate families amounted to $267 million in 2021, according to a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/sat-members-of-congress-and-their-families-traded-over-630-million-in-stocks-this-year" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from the New York Times’ DealBook, while sales amounted to $364 million. Officials working at the Federal Reserve have also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/after-ethics-review-fed-bars-top-officials-from-trading-individual-stocks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">faced criticism</a> for purchasing individual stocks amid their work to chart the nation’s monetary policy.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/sen-hawleys-insider-trading-bill-returns-to-congress-under-new-title-pelosi-act" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduced</a> the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act, also known as the PELOSI Act, in order to address the phenomenon of lawmakers using inside information to benefit financially. The legislation would ban politicians from holding individual stocks, diversified mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds. “For too long, politicians in Washington have taken advantage of the economic system they write the rules for, turning profits for themselves at the expense of the American people,” Hawley said in a <a href="https://twitter.com/abigailmarone/status/1617934984568012800" target="_blank" rel="noopener">news release</a>.

Nancy Pelosi

Pelosis Dumped Google Stock Weeks Before Justice Department Unveiled Antitrust Lawsuit

Pelosis Sold Google Stock Shortly Before Antitrust Lawsuit

Congress

Department of Justice

Paul Pelosi

Stock Market

The Biden administration’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-justice" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Justice Department</a> and several state attorneys general filed suit against <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/google" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Google</a> on Tuesday for allegedly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/antitrust" target="_blank" rel="noopener">monopolizing</a> various digital advertising <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/technology" target="_blank" rel="noopener">technologies</a>.
The agency claimed Google monopolizes the tools that website publishers use to sell advertisements and that companies utilize to purchase advertisements. The civil antitrust suit, which follows another <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-monopolist-google-violating-antitrust-laws" target="_blank" rel="noopener">complaint</a> issued by the Trump administration’s Justice Department three years ago related to the company’s alleged monopoly over search advertising, is backed by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Virginia.
“Today’s complaint alleges that Google has used anticompetitive, exclusionary, and unlawful conduct to eliminate or severely diminish any threat to its dominance over digital advertising technologies,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-google-monopolizing-digital-advertising-technologies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. “The Justice Department will vigorously enforce our antitrust laws to protect consumers, safeguard competition, and ensure economic fairness and opportunity for all.”
Shares for Alphabet fell nearly 2% on Tuesday; the company’s stock price has declined 25% over the past year, exceeding 9% decreases in the S&amp;P 500 and 18% decreases in the technology-heavy NASDAQ Composite.
The Justice Department claimed that Google has engaged in a “pattern of acquisitions to obtain control over key digital advertising tools” and has manipulated advertising auctions to “deprive rivals of scale.” Such moves may violate the Sherman Act, which outlaws &#8220;monopolization, attempted monopolization, or conspiracy or combination to monopolize” deemed <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/advice-guidance/competition-guidance/guide-antitrust-laws/antitrust-laws" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unreasonable</a> by the court system.
“The complaint filed today alleges a pervasive and systemic pattern of misconduct through which Google sought to consolidate market power and stave off free-market competition,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in the release. “In pursuit of outsized profits, Google has caused great harm to online publishers and advertisers and American consumers.”
Google said in a statement that the Justice Department lawsuit attempts to “pick winners and losers” in the “highly competitive” advertising technology space. &#8220;It largely duplicates an unfounded lawsuit by the Texas Attorney General, much of which was recently dismissed by a federal court,” a spokesperson told multiple media outlets, contending that the Justice Department is “doubling down on a flawed argument that would slow innovation, raise advertising fees, and make it harder for thousands of small businesses and publishers to grow.”
Google accounted for some 29% of the total digital advertising revenue generated in the United States as of 2021, according to <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/242549/digital-ad-market-share-of-major-ad-selling-companies-in-the-us-by-revenue/#:~:text=In%202021%2C%20Google%20accounted%20for,23.8%20and%2011.3%20percent%2C%20respectively." target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from eMarketer. Meta and Amazon followed with 24% and 11% of advertising revenues respectively.
The news of the antitrust lawsuit comes as Google parent company Alphabet announces significant headcount reductions. Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai informed staff members that roughly 12,000 positions would be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-white-house-brushed-off-concerns-about-mass-firings-at-microsoft-and-amazon-now-google-is-laying-off-employees-too" target="_blank" rel="noopener">eliminated</a> as a result of macroeconomic turmoil and the need to manage costs, affecting roughly 6% of the company’s <a href="https://abc.xyz/investor/static/pdf/2022Q3_alphabet_earnings_release.pdf?cache=4156e7f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">workforce</a> of nearly 187,000.
The Children’s Investment Fund Management CEO Christopher Hohn <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/google-should-dismiss-more-employees-cut-excessive-salaries-from-median-300k-investor-argues" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> for Alphabet to reduce headcount by another 25,000 workers, referencing excessive median salaries surpassing $300,000 and rapid growth in payrolls. “I am encouraged to see that you are now taking some action to right size Alphabet’s cost base and understand that it is never an easy decision to let people go,” he told Pichai. “Ultimately management will need to go further.”

American multinational technology company Google logo seen

Justice Department Sues Google For Alleged Digital Advertising Monopoly

Justice Department Files Second Antitrust Lawsuit Against Google

Technology

Regulators at the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/antitrust" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Federal Trade Commission</a> are attempting to block <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/microsoft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Microsoft</a> from acquiring video game developer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gaming" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Activision Blizzard</a> for $69 billion, claiming that the merger would enable the <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/technology" target="_blank" rel="noopener">technology</a> conglomerate to reduce market competition with subsidiary Xbox.
The agency contended in a <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2022/12/ftc-seeks-block-microsoft-corps-acquisition-activision-blizzard-inc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a> that Microsoft routinely acquires gaming companies to “suppress competition from rival consoles.” Members of the commission voted three to one on issuing the legal complaint.
“Microsoft has already shown that it can and will withhold content from its gaming rivals,” FTC Bureau of Competition Director Holly Vedova remarked. “Today we seek to stop Microsoft from gaining control over a leading independent game studio and using it to harm competition in multiple dynamic and fast-growing gaming markets.”
Stock prices for Activision, which develops popular games such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft, have risen more than 11% since the beginning of the year, but fell 1.4% on Thursday. Shares for Microsoft, which have fallen more than 26% this year, increased by 1%.
Microsoft President Brad Smith contested the agency’s sentiments in a <a href="https://twitter.com/BradSmi/status/1600939963377254400" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> claiming that the firm already addressed antitrust worries from regulators. “We continue to believe that our deal to acquire Activision Blizzard will expand competition and create more opportunities for gamers and game developers,” he remarked. “While we believe in giving peace a chance, we have complete confidence in our case and welcome the opportunity to present it in court.”
Smith argued in an <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/microsofts-activision-blizzard-acquisition-is-good-for-gamers-competition-sony-cross-play-ftc-11670260780" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opinion piece</a> for The Wall Street Journal that purchasing Activision will allow Microsoft to more easily compete with Sony and Nintendo, which surpass Xbox in the console gaming space. Revenue generated by the video game platform dropped 3% year-over-year as of the company’s fiscal first quarter, according to an <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/investor/earnings/fy-2023-q1/press-release-webcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">earnings report</a>.
“While modern consumers can stream videos or music on multiple devices on low-cost subscription plans, many games can often only be individually purchased and downloaded onto one device,” he wrote. “Microsoft wants to change that by offering consumers the option to subscribe to a cloud gaming service that lets them stream a variety of games on multiple devices for one reasonable fee. It would also benefit developers by allowing them to reach a much broader audience.”
Policymakers at the FTC, however, believe that Microsoft could increase pricing at Activision, which is one of the few game developers creating high-quality products for multiple platforms.
FTC Chair Lina Khan, a 33-year-old who also serves as a law professor at Columbia University, was overwhelmingly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/senate-confirms-32-year-old-antitrust-scholar-as-federal-trade-commission-chair" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approved</a> by the Senate last year on a hawkish approach toward regulating technology companies. A number of antitrust <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bipartisan-antitrust-bills-would-break-up-amazon-google-apple-facebook" target="_blank" rel="noopener">packages</a> have been introduced to Congress by bipartisan coalitions over the past several years with negligible success.
Khan emerged to prominence with an <a href="https://www.yalelawjournal.org/note/amazons-antitrust-paradox" target="_blank" rel="noopener">essay</a> published in the Yale Law Journal, entitled “Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox,” which argued that the nation’s current regime of discouraging predatory pricing is inept to spurn abuses from online platforms.
“The economics of platform markets create incentives for a company to pursue growth over profits, a strategy that investors have rewarded,” she wrote. “Because online platforms serve as critical intermediaries, integrating across business lines positions these platforms to control the essential infrastructure on which their rivals depend. This dual role also enables a platform to exploit information collected on companies using its services to undermine them as competitors.”

Microsoft – Activision

FTC Moves To Block Microsoft’s $69 Billion Purchase Of Activision

FTC Disapproves Of Microsoft's $69 Billion Activision Merger

Microsoft

Republican members of the Senate cautioned attorneys to “preserve relevant documents” as lawmakers float <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/antitrust" target="_blank" rel="noopener">antitrust</a> investigations regarding the environmental, social, and governance movement, also known as <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/esg?_gl=1*vzs4hk*_ga*OTAwNTI1NTYwLjE2MTM5NzIxMzI.*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTY2NzU4NTEyOS4xNDMwLjEuMTY2NzU4NTM5MS42MC4wLjA." target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESG</a>.
A <a href="https://www.cotton.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/esg_letter.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a>, spearheaded by Sen. <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/tom-cotton" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tom Cotton</a> (R-AR), told more than four dozen law firms to warn corporate clients about “the risks they incur by participating in climate cartels and other ill-advised ESG schemes,” referencing the fact that FTC Commissioner Lina Khan recently said during a hearing that there is no “ESG exemption” to antitrust laws.
“The ESG movement attempts to weaponize corporations to reshape society in ways that Americans would never endorse at the ballot box,” the letter stated. “Of particular concern is the collusive effort to restrict the supply of coal, oil, and gas, which is driving up energy costs across the globe and empowering America’s adversaries abroad.”
Beyond asset managers encouraging portfolio companies to rapidly pivot toward renewable energy, six major banks recently came under <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/conservative-attorneys-general-investigate-six-major-banks-for-wokeness" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scrutiny</a> from Republican state attorneys general for jointly vowing to discourage fossil fuel use and investment. The financial institutions were served with civil investigative demands requesting details about their involvement with Net-Zero Banking Alliance, a <a href="https://www.unepfi.org/net-zero-banking/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">project</a> of the United Nations which seeks to unify bank portfolios toward the goal of eliminating carbon emissions by 2050.
“Over the coming months and years, Congress will increasingly use its oversight powers to scrutinize the institutionalized antitrust violations being committed in the name of ESG, and refer those violations to the FTC and the Department of Justice,” the letter added. “To the extent that your firm continues to advise clients regarding participation in ESG initiatives, both you and those clients should take care to preserve relevant documents in anticipation of those investigations.”
The letter was also endorsed by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).
Republican officials in South Carolina, Louisiana, Missouri, West Virginia, and Utah have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/missouri-is-the-latest-state-to-divest-from-blackrock-pulls-500-million-in-pension-funds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">divested funds</a> from BlackRock and other asset managers engaged in the ESG movement, under which executives encourage portfolio companies to adopt green energy standards, introduce racial hiring quotas, or otherwise mingle activism with maximizing profits.
Conservatives also argue that the ESG movement threatens the economy of many states by discouraging fossil fuel investment. The government of Texas recently concluded that BlackRock and nine other firms had <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/texas-cuts-ties-with-blackrock-other-woke-firms-over-their-hatred-for-fossil-fuels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">violated</a> state law by “refusing to deal with” companies involved in the production and use of fossil fuels “without an ordinary business purpose.”
BlackRock responded to the states’ criticism and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/blackrock-makes-major-change-after-backlash-against-woke-investing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">broader market forces</a> by extending voting choice to more institutional investors, allowing public and private clients to vote their own shares in portfolio companies instead of surrendering such rights to asset managers. “It’s clear there are investors who don’t want to sit on the sidelines; they have a view on corporate governance, and they want a meaningful way to express those views,” BlackRock CEO Larry Fink wrote in a letter. “While some pension funds have long been actively involved in corporate governance, we’re working to make that easier and more efficient for a larger number of investors.”

Tom Cotton

Republican Senators Fire Warning Shot, Threaten To Investigate Woke Corporations Over Anti-Fossil Fuel Collusion

Republican Senators Hint Future Investigations Into ESG

Politics

Three <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/uber">Uber</a> and <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/lyft">Lyft</a> drivers filed a class action lawsuit in <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/california">California</a> on Tuesday over alleged <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/antitrust">anticompetitive</a> practices that impact gig <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/economy">economy</a> workers.
The two firms “label their drivers independent contractors, yet deprive those drivers of economic independence by fixing the prices that drivers must charge to customers for rides,” according to the <a href="https://towardsjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Uber-Lyft-Complaint.6.20.2022-3.pdf">suit</a> filed by legal nonprofit Towards Justice, which argued that the drivers would have increased earnings under a regime with more pricing freedom.
“Uber and Lyft have insisted that they do not employ their drivers,” David Seligman, executive director of Towards Justice, said in a <a href="https://towardsjustice.org/2022/06/21/press-release-drivers-sue-to-block-uber-lyfts-illegal-price-fixing/">press release</a>. “But if Uber and Lyft are not employers responsible to their employees under labor standards laws, then they are powerful corporations that fix prices, abuse their power, and deceive the workers who drive their profits.”
Beyond the purported price fixing, the plaintiffs argue that Uber and Lyft have been taking greater portions of the sums that riders pay for the service.
Two years ago, a California court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/uber-lyft-avoid-state-wide-shutdown-amidst-legal-battle-with-california">ruled in favor</a> of Uber and Lyft in a lawsuit that would have pressed the firms to classify independent contractors as employees. The most recent lawsuit against the firms also comes one year after Democratic lawmakers introduced the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which would <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-democrats-pro-act-three-things-you-need-to-know">narrow the definition</a> of an independent contractor under the guise of granting them more protections.
“Big Labor incrementally attacks any form of gig work, or contracting, and they come for ride sharing companies first,” Gabriella Hoffman, a freelance media strategist and Townhall columnist who has written extensively about the gig economy, told The Daily Wire. “If you poll rideshare drivers, however, they voluntarily go into this line of work and enjoy the flexibility that comes with the job.”
Indeed, Uber released a poll in 2020 showing that drivers preferred to remain as independent contractors when offered a handful of benefits by the company, according to <a href="https://www.axios.com/2020/08/25/uber-independent-contractors-employees-poll">Axios</a>. Another poll from Lyft likewise showed that most drivers preferred their contractor arrangements.
<a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/12/08/the-state-of-gig-work-in-2021/">Pew Research</a> found in 2021 that 16% of Americans — including 30% of Hispanics, 20% of African Americans, and 12% of whites — have participated in gig economy work, such as shopping for and delivering groceries, cleaning homes, or delivering packages. Young Americans and those with low incomes are most likely to earn money through a gig platform.
“Independent contracting liberates workers from the constraints of traditional work — including unionized jobs,” Hoffman argued. “Workers want more flexibility and freedom to be more fulfilled in their careers. &#8230; Freelancing, as a whole, is a pro-family, pro-free enterprise, pro-free market policy that empowers individuals. And it&#8217;s a great option for women who juggle career and family.”
Although unemployment is presently 3.6% and wages are nominally rising, real average hourly wages <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/realer.nr0.htm">dropped</a> 3% between May 2021 and May 2022 amid rising inflation — meaning that Americans must tighten their budgets or work more than last year to enjoy the same standard of living. Accordingly, a poll taken earlier this year by <a href="https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220413006071/en/Rising-Inflation-Leads-More-Workers-to-the-Gig-Economy-Citing-Increased-Expenses-and-Fuel-Costs">Branch and Marqeta</a> showed that 85% of respondents “increased or planned to increase their gig work,” with 58% “citing inflation as the primary reason.”

Close up of young woman using mobile app device on smartphone to arrange taxi ride in downtown city street, with illuminated busy city traffic scene during rush hour with traffic congestion in the evening

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