A coalition of state attorneys general led by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is warning major corporations that participating in coordinated “plastics sustainability” initiatives could expose them to serious antitrust and consumer protection liability, according to a <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eCxmUDluD7iaEOb6c9qOFvmbrXw03vW9/view">letter</a> obtained by The Daily Wire.
The letter, sent Tuesday, targeted 78 companies affiliated with several prominent plastics and packaging advocacy groups, including Amazon, Lego, Intel, and Microsoft. The attorneys general argue that collective commitments to eliminate products, reduce packaging options, or alter product quality may unlawfully restrain trade by limiting output and bypassing normal market competition.
The warning focuses on companies involved with the U.S. Plastics Pact, the Consumer Goods Forum, and the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. These organizations promote industry-wide targets aimed at reducing or eliminating certain plastic products and mandating recyclability and content standards. According to the attorneys general, those targets are not simply aspirational—they function as coordinated pressure campaigns that can distort markets and harm consumers.
This letter follows earlier warnings sent directly to the advocacy groups in October, escalating scrutiny from the organizational level to individual company participation.
The attorneys general warn that companies that continue to adhere to or enforce these policies may face enforcement under the Sherman Antitrust Act, as well as state and federal consumer protection laws. The letter emphasizes that membership in an industry association does not shield companies from liability if their conduct results in reduced output, degraded product quality, or higher prices.
Collective action lies at the heart of the concern. The advocacy groups themselves have acknowledged that their goals cannot be achieved through individual corporate decisions alone, but require coordinated commitments across competing firms—a hallmark of the kind of conduct antitrust laws are designed to prevent.
The letter draws on legal <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/attorneys-general-warn-financial-institutions-of-antitrust-violations-over-climate-activism">scrutiny</a> of so-called “net-zero alliances”—industry groups that coordinated commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions—as a cautionary example. In those cases, state attorneys general raised antitrust, fiduciary, and consumer protection concerns because competitors aligned on output-related targets and standards instead of competing independently. Some companies responded by withdrawing from the alliances, causing the initiatives to dissolve or weaken without full enforcement actions.
The attorneys general argue this history is instructive because the plastics advocacy groups at issue rely on similar coordinated commitments across multiple companies, which can produce the same anti-competitive effects antitrust law seeks to prevent.
The letter also cites a recent federal court ruling allowing antitrust and consumer protection claims against BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street to proceed. The court found that allegations of coordinated climate commitments leading to reduced output and market manipulation could support legal claims. The attorneys general contend that this precedent directly applies to plastics initiatives.
The letter stresses that environmental or social intentions do not exempt companies from antitrust law. Even for public-interest reasons, courts have consistently held that agreements to restrict output or reduce quality remain illegal. As the attorneys general note, no legal exception allows companies to collude to “protect consumers from their own choices.”
Beyond antitrust concerns, the attorneys general warn that companies may mislead consumers if they promote sustainability targets that are unrealistic, artificially imposed, or unlikely to be met—particularly if they fail to disclose the costs, tradeoffs, or feasibility of those commitments.
Attorney General Uthmeier framed the warning as a response to ideological pressure on corporations. “Multiple advocacy organizations have pressured companies into artificially changing the output and quality of their goods and services in ways that normal market forces would not otherwise bring about,” Uthmeier said. “Advocacy for a particular agenda is not a basis to mislead consumers.”
Jason Isaac, CEO of the American Energy Institute, compared the plastics initiatives to ESG-driven net-zero alliances. “When corporations coordinate through advocacy groups to restrict products, degrade quality, or manipulate markets outside normal competitive forces, that raises serious antitrust and consumer protection concerns,” Isaac said. “Coordinated pressure to eliminate products or reduce quality without regard to consumer demand is not sustainability—it is cartel-like behavior dressed up in advocacy language.”
Will Hild, Executive Director of Consumers’ Research, framed the letter as broader pushback against ESG-driven coordination. “State Attorneys General are sending a clear message to corporate America: you cannot collude with woke activists to push a political agenda and expect to escape scrutiny,” Hild said. “These plastics initiatives are not about serving consumers; they are about quietly eliminating products, reducing quality, and driving up costs.”
The attorneys general now demand that companies explain the legal basis for continued participation in these initiatives and provide documents showing why their conduct does not violate antitrust or consumer protection laws. The letter warns that failure to respond could trigger subpoenas or other compulsory legal action.
Requests for comment sent to Amazon, Intel, Lego, and Microsoft were not returned before publication.

US-NEWS-FLA-AG-TRUMP-ENDORSEMENT-OS

State AGs Tell Companies Their Sustainability Pacts Violate Antitrust Laws

Antitrust

Economy

Environmentalism

James Uthmeier

U.S.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has filed <a href="https://aboutblaw.com/bknd">suit</a> against Starbucks, claiming they “used DEI to implement illegal race-based policies for hiring and advancement.”
“Using DEI as an excuse to hire, promote, or humiliate an employee based on race violates Florida&#8217;s civil rights law, and we just filed a lawsuit to hold Starbucks accountable,” he wrote on X.
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Starbucks used DEI to implement illegal race-based policies for hiring and advancement. 
Using DEI as an excuse to hire, promote, or humiliate an employee based on race violates Florida&#39;s civil rights law, and we just filed a lawsuit to hold Starbucks accountable. <a href="https://t.co/e3pK0GguQ0">pic.twitter.com/e3pK0GguQ0</a>
&mdash; Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) <a href="https://twitter.com/AGJamesUthmeier/status/1998796682289365005?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 10, 2025</a></blockquote>
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The suit claims Starbucks implemented policies and programs over the past five years that favor certain racial groups while discriminating against others, including white, Asian, and multiracial employees, in violation of Florida’s Civil Rights Act. The Attorney General emphasized that using DEI as justification for race-based hiring, promotion, or workplace treatment violates the state’s civil rights laws.
The lawsuit, filed in the circuit court of Florida’s 10th Judicial District, details multiple allegations. Starbucks is accused of establishing racial quotas and goals for hiring, paying employees differently based on race, tying executive compensation to race-based mentorship programs and retention of favored racial groups, and excluding certain races from networking and mentorship opportunities.
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Uthmeier notes that civil rights protections extend to all individuals, and promoting diversity does not excuse discrimination against any group. This legal challenge follows previous cases in which Starbucks faced liability for allegedly disfavoring nonminority employees, including a $25.6 million jury award to a white employee.
Starbucks, incorporated in Washington with a certificate to operate in Florida, employs 381,000 people nationwide and operates 934 stores in Florida, including at least one in Highlands County. The suit seeks declaratory and injunctive relief, damages, and civil penalties under the Florida Civil Rights Act, which prohibits employers from discriminating in hiring, compensation, promotions, or other employment conditions based on race. Florida law mirrors federal civil rights protections, which also recognize “reverse discrimination” against nonminority groups as unlawful.
The complaint outlines specific discriminatory practices at Starbucks, including:
<ol>
<li data-start="2180" data-end="2368">Race-based hiring: Starbucks has publicly set hiring goals for people of color in retail, distribution, and corporate roles and tied executive performance to achieving these targets.</li>
<li data-start="2372" data-end="2617">Race-based compensation: Employees of certain races are reportedly paid more than others with comparable experience, and promotion increases can be influenced by race. Executives reportedly plan to maintain these race-based pay policies indefinitely.</li>
<li data-start="2621" data-end="2879">Executive bonuses tied to race metrics: Executive pay has been linked to mentoring BIPOC employees and retaining employees of favored races. Even after 2024 adjustments in language to focus on “belonging,” race-based numerical targets remain in effect.</li>
<li data-start="2883" data-end="3151">Exclusive mentorship and networking: Starbucks created programs explicitly limited to certain racial groups, while reports from Florida employees indicate these policies have caused humiliation, exclusion, and a hostile work environment for disfavored employees.</li>
</ol>
The attorney general argues that these practices have caused substantial harm to Florida residents, including lost wages, denied promotions, and exclusion from professional development opportunities, as well as broader economic impacts. The suit emphasizes that Starbucks’ policies constitute a “pattern or practice of discrimination” affecting thousands of employees across the state.
The lawsuit requests the court to declare Starbucks’ policies discriminatory, permanently enjoin the company from race-based employment actions, impose civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation (potentially amounting to tens of millions of dollars), and award compensatory and punitive damages for the harm inflicted on Florida employees.

MixCollage-10-Dec-2025-01-39-PM-1866

Florida Attorney General Sues Starbucks Over DEI Policies

Florida AG Sues Starbucks Over Alleged Race-Based Hiring, Pay, And Mentorship Policies

Florida

Starbucks

One of the world&#8217;s largest banks was notified on Monday morning that its cooperation with the Biden administration&#8217;s partisan Arctic Frost probe is now under investigation by Florida&#8217;s attorney general, The Daily Wire can first report.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier told JPMorgan Chase in a Monday morning letter reviewed by The Daily Wire that it had &#8220;grave concerns&#8221; about the bank&#8217;s actions relating to Trump Media, the Florida-based company that operates Truth Social.
The investigation was prompted by information released by the Senate Judiciary Committee, which <a href="https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/rep/releases/new-jack-smith-subpoenaed-records-for-over-400-republican-targets-as-part-of-arctic-frost">disclosed last month</a> that Special Counsel Jack Smith&#8217;s Arctic Frost investigation into Donald Trump had targeted hundreds of Republican individuals and entities with subpoenas.
&#8220;I write to express grave concerns about the explosive revelations regarding the Biden Administration’s pursuit of its political adversaries, and [JPMorgan Chase&#8217;s] ensuing actions in the shadow of this operation, codenamed &#8216;Arctic Frost,'&#8221; Uthmeier wrote in a letter to JPMorgan Chase, first obtained by The Daily Wire.
In the letter, which was sent Monday to JPMorgan Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon, Uthmeier notes that the Biden DOJ subpoenaed JPMorgan on March 28, 2023. That subpoena called for any and all records of Trump Media Group including &#8220;records covering a time period before [Trump Media] existed,&#8221; the Florida attorney general noted. 
&#8220;In addition to spying on Republican Senators,&#8221; the letter states, &#8220;the Biden Administration subpoenaed sensitive banking information from several Florida individuals, organizations, and business entities including Trump Media &amp; Technology Group Corp. (TMTG), a Florida corporation.&#8221; 
Uthmeier suspects that JPMorgan Chase was providing sensitive banking information to the Department of Justice and Smith as part of the &#8220;malicious prosecutions&#8221; into the president, the attorney general told the Daily Wire. He also said the bank was &#8220;asking many questions of Trump Media, its client, questions seemingly unrelated to its business.&#8221;
JPMorgan did not directly address the Monday letter, but spokeswoman Lauren Bianchi told The Daily Wire on Monday afternoon that the company will &#8220;follow the law in responding to subpoenas from the government and will continue to do so.&#8221;
JPMorgan alerted shareholders last week that it was &#8220;responding to requests from government authorities and other external parties regarding, among other things, the firm’s policies and processes and the provision of services to customers and potential customers,&#8221; an apparent reference to debanking. President Trump signed an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/white-house-prepares-executive-order-targeting-politicized-debanking">executive order in August</a> demanding that regulators look into “politicized or unlawful debanking” by the big banks.
JPMorgan says it supports the executive order on debanking.
“This is a step in the right direction,” a JPMorgan spokesman told The Daily Wire in August. “Preventing regulatory overreach and reforming laws that have led to debanking are welcome efforts. The industry has been involved in identifying solutions to this problem for years and looks forward to continuing to work this Administration and Congress to get this right.”
Dimon himself has been vocal in his support of the Trump administration&#8217;s efforts to end debanking, noting that JPMorgan and other financial institutions were strong-armed into debanking individuals by the Biden administration.
“The rules and requirements are so onerous and it does cause people to be debanked who, in my opinion, should not be debanked,” Dimon <a href="https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025/02/jamie-dimon-regulators-pretty-much-to-blame-for-debanking-00204094">told reporters</a> in February.
Bianchi, the spokeswoman, reiterated Dimon&#8217;s statement that it&#8217;s against any discrimination in the banking industry based on politics.
&#8220;It’s terrible that people can lose their bank accounts because of broken policies that encouraged banks to be overly cautious,&#8221; Bianchi told The Daily Wire. &#8220;It’s not fair and it shouldn’t happen, and it’s great that this administration is finally brining needed regulatory change we’ve been requesting for years.&#8221;
&nbsp;
<div id="attachment_998153" style="width: 923px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-florida-ag-probes-jpmorgans-cooperation-with-arctic-frost-as-it-debanked-trump/us-news-fla-ag-trump-endorsement-os" rel="attachment wp-att-998153"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-998153" class="wp-image-998153 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/GettyImages-2239430764-913x576.jpg" alt="" width="913" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/GettyImages-2239430764-913x576.jpg 913w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/GettyImages-2239430764-300x189.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/GettyImages-2239430764-768x485.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/11/GettyImages-2239430764.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 913px) 100vw, 913px" /></a>Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier in St. Cloud, Florida, on Aug. 19, 2025. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)</div>
The Florida attorney general&#8217;s letter also states that immediately after the &#8220;Biden DOJ’s fishing expedition began,&#8221; JPMorgan Chase started questioning Trump Media about its transactions from years prior. &#8220;[JPMorgan Chase] insisted this fact-gathering was merely &#8216;due diligence,'&#8221; the Florida attorney general said. &#8220;These inquiries, however, appear to be pretextual and unrelated to their stated purpose.&#8221;
Immediately after Trump Media closed a merger in March 2024, the letter says, JPMorgan Chase notified Trump Media that it was closing its bank accounts — timing that raises &#8220;obvious, troubling questions,&#8221; according to the Florida attorney general.
&#8220;This activity may implicate numerous Florida criminal and civil anti-fraud laws and de-banking prohibitions, as well as a breach of the basic, fundamental duties owed to your banking customers,&#8221; the letter states. &#8220;Rest assured, this office will be investigating to ascertain the nature of these secret and suspicious circumstances.  I have directed my Office of Statewide Prosecution and Enforcement Division to begin investigating this matter immediately.&#8221;
JPMorgan is asked in the letter to initiate a litigation hold to preserve all documents relevant to the matter.
Uthmeier told The Daily Wire that he&#8217;s committed to protecting Florida-based companies, especially when it believes there was &#8220;intent to harm.&#8221;
&#8220;We think it&#8217;s wrong that companies were just coughing things up to the Department of Justice when there was not real probable cause, and we think it&#8217;s wrong that companies are debanked, especially at such important times,&#8221; Uthmeier said. 
&#8220;So we&#8217;re going to investigate further,&#8221; the attorney general said. &#8220;We protect Florida-based companies like Trump Media Group. We protect our consumers and where there&#8217;s discriminatory banking practices taking place, especially those with intent to harm, we will fight back and hold wrongdoers accountable.&#8221;
Uthmeier also pointed out to The Daily Wire that the matter also appears to be related to Jack Smith&#8217;s January 6 investigation, and he noted that Trump Media Group&#8217;s Truth Social was launched in in February 2022, more than a year after January 6, 2021.
&#8220;Any notion that this company was somehow involved in whatever criminal activity that the Department of Justice alleged, wrongfully alleged, surrounded the J6 events,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Clearly, Truth Social would not have been a part of that.&#8221;
&#8220;It shows the full scope of the weaponization and the efforts to go after anybody related to Trump or the conservative cause.&#8221; 
Devin Nunes, the former congressman who’s now CEO of Trump Media, appeared on Fox News on Sunday <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFo4R24PSHs">where he also raised questions</a> about JPMorgan Chase&#8217;s treatment of Trump Media in relation to Arctic Frost.
&#8220;One would think that Trump Media would not have been caught up into Arctic Frost at all, largely because&#8230;we just became a public company in 2024 and we were nowhere around in 2021 on January 6. So why would Trump Media be subpoenaed at that time during this investigation? It doesn&#8217;t make any sense.&#8221;
&#8220;Should [JPMorgan Chase] have complied with this, knowing that we weren&#8217;t around? They had to know that our company wasn&#8217;t around on January 6. We were never notified&#8230;did this break laws in the state of Florida?&#8221;
JPMorgan &#8220;inexplicably&#8221; debanked Trump Media &#8220;right at the time we were going public,&#8221; he argued, &#8220;right at the height of the campaign,&#8221; a move that &#8220;looked political at the time,&#8221; but now looks even more suspicious.

Screenshot 2025-11-10 at 9.25.42 AM

EXCLUSIVE: Florida AG Probes JPMorgan’s Cooperation With Arctic Frost As It Debanked Trump

Arctic Frost

Donald Trump

JP Morgan

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on Thursday morning that his office will charge Ryan Routh, who allegedly attempted to assassinate then-GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump on September 15, 2024, at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, with attempted murder and terrorism.
Uthmeier also asserted that the Biden administration had stonewalled the investigation into the matter, and that former President Joe Biden and former Attorney General Merrick Garland had “sought to frustrate our efforts and block our investigation.”
Trump was playing a round of golf on September 15 when Routh allegedly hid in a bush on the outside of the golf course with a semi-automatic rifle. The suspect was spotted by a Secret Service agent as Trump neared the would-be assassin’s hideout.
“On September 15, 2024, Ryan Routh attempted to assassinate then-presidential candidate Donald J. Trump at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach,” Uthmeier declared. “Shortly after the assassination attempt, Governor DeSantis signed an executive order directing the Office of Attorney General to work with our law enforcement partners and investigate Mr. Routh.”
“After 206 days of stonewalling by the federal government that stemmed from days of the Biden administration, I’m able to now announce that my office is charging Mr. Routh for the attempted first-degree murder of President Trump as well as a charge for terrorism,” he stated. “My office, as well as our law-enforcement partners, were met with major roadblocks in prosecuting this case during Biden‘s term. Biden and his attorney general sought to frustrate our efforts and block our investigation into the man who crossed into this state and attempted to commit political violence against a Florida resident.”
“Thank God he was unsuccessful, and thank God we have Donald Trump as president again,” he stated, continuing, “The leadership of Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel was instrumental in preserving Florida’s sovereign authority to do what is right and bring justice where it is due. We now have a federal government willing to work together to pursue justice.”
“Attempting to take the life of a former president and a leading presidential candidate isn’t just an attack on one man,” he said. “This was a political attack against our republican form of government and our shared American values. We cannot allow justice to be delayed or denied, and thanks to the president, our U.S. Attorney General, and the FBI director, we are moving forward in our pursuit.”
“Our state-wide prosecutors will work to hold this evil man accountable and keep Florida safe, strong, and free,” he concluded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Today, my office is officially charging Ryan Routh for attempting to assassinate then-presidential candidate Donald J. Trump.
Thanks to the leadership of <a href="https://twitter.com/AGPamBondi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AGPamBondi</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/FBIDirectorKash?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FBIDirectorKash</a>, we now have a federal government willing to work with the states to pursue justice. <a href="https://t.co/HFuI2W4tdx">pic.twitter.com/HFuI2W4tdx</a>
&mdash; Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) <a href="https://twitter.com/AGJamesUthmeier/status/1910305585658024207?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 10, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Zach Jewell contributed to this article.

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Florida AG Charging Ryan Routh With Attempted Murder Of Trump, Says Biden, Garland Blocked Probe

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James Uthmeier

State AGs Tell Companies Their Sustainability Pacts Violate Antitrust Laws

Florida Attorney General Sues Starbucks Over DEI Policies

EXCLUSIVE: Florida AG Probes JPMorgan’s Cooperation With Arctic Frost As It Debanked Trump

Florida AG Charging Ryan Routh With Attempted Murder Of Trump, Says Biden, Garland Blocked Probe