The second Trump administration is not your grandfather’s Republican administration.
In several areas, especially trade, there is a marked departure from the approaches of previous GOP leaders—and even from the policies Trump advocated during his first term. However, key questions remain about how to translate Trump’s nationalist-populist philosophy into actionable policies.
When it comes to immigration, do mass deportations imply a vigorous pursuit of all undocumented individuals right now? Or should we temporarily pause agricultural raids to safeguard American agribusiness in the short term?
One of the most pressing questions facing the administration is the direction of antitrust enforcement. Aristotle once posited that virtue lies between two extremes, and this seems to be the balancing act Team Trump is attempting to navigate.
Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater, appointed by Trump to lead the Justice Department's antitrust division, appears to strike a middle ground—neither overly deferential to big corporations nor reflexively antagonistic toward them.
In a recent interview, Slater stated, “If you’re doing a merger that’s benign, we’ll just get out of the way.” She voiced a determination to disregard “economists who are ideologically opposed to antitrust enforcement.”
Thus far, she has focused sharply on Big Tech, advocating for strict penalties against Google that could dismantle the tech giant, yet questions remain about how she will apply her principles as time goes on.
Within the administration, there are factions that would delight in a return to traditional Republican pro-business policies, while it appears that others yearn for a continuation of the progressive antitrust actions taken under Biden’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) chair, Lina Khan.
Enter the American Economic Liberties Project (AELP). Their website prominently showcases a quote from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and their team is loaded with progressives, including former Democratic candidates and alumni from the Obama and Biden administrations, along with ACLU representatives and Khan's own staff.
Essentially, the AELP appears to be filled with individuals’ intent on blocking even the benign mergers that Slater is willing to support. They openly criticized Trump-appointed FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson's choice to withdraw a case against PepsiCo, labeling it a “nakedly political effort” based more on the company’s market share than on substantiated consumer welfare concerns.
In a separate statement, AELP Senior Counsel Lee Hepner expressed discontent over the state of vertical merger scrutiny after Ferguson abandoned a tenuous attempt to reconsider Microsoft’s acquisition of the video game maker Activision-Blizzard. This case relied on a dubious assertion that the merger would threaten equitable access to Call of Duty games. Despite the absurdity, Microsoft complied, and the deal was approved.
Yet AELP was still unsatisfied, questioning the “adequacy” of signed agreements between Microsoft and rival console manufacturers aimed at ensuring Call of Duty remains multi-platform for the next decade.
If AELP were merely venting these opinions in a vacuum, like many left-wing think tanks navigating a GOP administration, their impact would be minimal. The real concern is that AELP is intent on inserting its radical antitrust agenda into the America First coalition.
For instance, research director Matt Stoller—dubbed “Washington’s angriest progressive” by Politico—penned the antitrust enforcement chapter for Moving the Chains, a 2020 report on industrial policy compiled by the influential New Right think tank, The American Compass. He is also actively seeking alliances with populist figures, such as Missouri Senator Josh Hawley.
Trumpism has breathed new life into the American right and challenged its departures from free-market principles—something that was long overdue. However, a multitude of left-leaning government officials and policy organizations are eager to maintain their influence by pushing a version of populism that veers uncomfortably close to socialism.
This is where MAGA Republicans need to exercise vigilance, ensuring they do not fall for the progressives masquerading as populists.
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Michael Busler is a public policy analyst and a professor of finance at Stockton University in Galloway, New Jersey, where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in finance and economics. He has written op-ed columns in major newspapers for more than 35 years.