Meta had its first day in court against the Federal Trade Commission in what will be the second-largest antitrust trial of the decade. At stake is Meta’s ownership of both Instagram and WhatsApp, and the viability of Mark Zuckerberg’s company as traditional social media enters the era of AI. Say what you will about the political influence of Meta and the repositioning of Zuckerberg since Trump’s return…
President Donald Trump’s critics are right about one thing: The first few months of his second term have been a reckoning. Starting with the federal government’s pursuit of law firms and organizations that committed lawfare against the president to hobble his political comeback, Trump has now supercharged executive authority to stop the flood of ideologically based lawsuits targeting America’s energy providers. In an executive order signed last week, Trump empowered Attorney General Pam Bondi to…
Consumer Choice Center Deputy Director Yaël Ossowski offers a wider perspective around Meta Platforms’ (META) antitrust trial launched by the FTC. He considers it the first test for the Trump administration to set the tone on what antitrust means in the U.S. and the message it sends abroad. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said there’s plenty of competition already, especially TikTok. April 15, 2025
When the average driver in St. Louis, Orlando, or Des Moines goes to buy a new car, they would be forgiven for thinking they have a wide range of choices for their next automobile. Whether they know it or not, the cars on local dealership lots had to pass several layers of fuel economy regulations, emissions testing, and safety rules designed and codified in Sacramento,…
If we knew about a $500 billion drain on the American economy that inflates prices for everyday consumers, slows down much needed technological innovation, and locks real victims out of our civil justice system, wouldn’t we all demand something be done about it? This is the current state of our liability lawfare system today, known as tort law in the United States. It’s a disaster…
I’m invited once more to the Bitcoin Layer podcast to discuss the latest and greatest changes in bitcoin policies in the United States.
If there is one bright spot in Trump’s trade threats, it is that the conversation on how to improve the global regulatory space for the average consumer has been recalibrated. President Trump’s tariff-heavy trade agenda is quickly proving unpopular with Americans, which might explain why the administration worked overtime to rebrand tariffs as “liberation” from foreign partners who treated the United States unfairly. As part of the narrative switch,…
Memcoining is legal. Or at least they’re not securities. On February 27th, the Securities and Exchange Commission stated in its latest staff statement that memecoins are not necessarily securities. “Although the offer and sale of meme coins may not be subject to the federal securities laws, fraudulent conduct related to the offer and sale of meme coins may be subject to enforcement action or prosecution,” writes the SEC….
As Congress debates yet another Continuing Resolution to hastily fund the federal government for a few months, the House yesterday passed a resolution that mixes together several bills. Tucked within these provisions was a legalistic quirk that would end Congress’ ability to end President Trump’s “State of Emergency” that has so far given him some legal latitude to impose swaths of new tariffs and duties that affect…
Consumer Choice Center Deputy Director Yaël Ossowski discusses President Trump’s proposal for a Strategic Bitcoin (and Crypto) Reserve on the Steve Gruber Show, and why it matters. March 3, 2025