One
factoid
that
should
be
in
every
antitrust
outline
is
that
both
the
FTC
and
the
DOJ
can
bust
up
monopolies.
The
DOJ
tends
to
handle
the
criminal
side
of
antitrust
while
the
FTC
handles
civil,
but
there
is
some
undeniable
overlap
in
the
work
that
they
do.
So
why
keep
both?
Musk
can’t
seem
to
find
a
persuasive
enough
answer
to
maintain
the
apparent
redundancy.
Reuters
has
coverage:
Elon
Musk,
the
billionaire
behind
President
Donald
Trump’s
efforts
to
shrink
the
U.S.
government,
threw
his
support
behind
a
bill
that
would
consolidate
antitrust
enforcement
at
the
U.S.
Department
of
Justice,
stripping
that
authority
from
the
Federal
Trade
Commission.
…
If
the
bill
were
to
pass,
the
FTC
would
continue
to
enforce
consumer
protection
laws.
But
Democrats
have
raised
concern
that
the
U.S.
would
effectively
repeal
the
FTC’s
broad
authority
to
protect
against
unfair
methods
of
competition
under
the
FTC
Act,
which
it
used
in
2024
to
sue
pharmacy
benefit
managers.
The
DOJ
does
not
have
that
same
authority.
Gotta
give
it
to
him
—
consolidating
overlapping
roles
that
two
separate
departments
have
does
read
like
a
common
sense
maneuver.
But,
given
that
the
move
would
result
in
an
effectively
weaker
trust-bustin’
monolith,
makes
you
wonder
if
the
faulty
is
actually
a
filter.
Jonathan
Wolf
has
a
great
read
on
the
matter
—
Elon
could
just
be
a
dingwit
who
is
literally
cleaving
through
bureaucracy
with
a
chainsaw:
But,
he
could
also
be
playing
some
long
game
to
benefit
his
bank
account.
Granted
he
doesn’t
need
to
be
the
mastermind
behind
the
4-D
chess;
if
the
guy
could
afford
to
buy
Twitter,
he
could
afford
to
get
a
Robert
Green
type
to
advise
him
on
how
to
break
the
government
for
profit.
Elon
Musk
Throws
Weight
Behind
Merging
FTC
And
DOJ
Antitrust
Units
[Reuters]
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
is
learning
to
swim, a
published
author
on
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected] and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.