President Donald Trump continues to fulfill his presidential campaign promises, this time by directing federal agency heads to consult with U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Andrew Ferguson and U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi to identify and eliminate regulations hindering competition, creating monopolies.
This action is long overdue.
The Biden administration intensified government intervention.
A 2024 study revealed that Biden’s regulatory actions cost American taxpayers nearly $1.4 trillion — that’s a trillion with a T.
This onslaught resulted in a stagnant economy, skyrocketing inflation, and soaring costs for food, housing, and fuel — burdens falling squarely on everyday Americans, erasing years of wage gains.
We are well-versed in the regulations imposed on the energy sector, which drove up gas and electricity prices, undermined energy independence, and forced America to rely on foreign adversaries.
We saw needless burdens placed on small businesses, choking off innovation, and slamming the brakes on job creation.
The White House even tried to destroy and control the upstart AI industry, aiming to smother it in the crib with regulations that would place AI firmly under government control.
One area in which Biden opened the regulation spigot was antitrust, destroying a generation of consensus among both political parties on mergers and acquisitions.
The Biden administration abandoned the consumer welfare standard for antitrust review, replacing a clear, consistent framework — focused on how mergers and business practices affect consumer prices and choices — with an ambiguous, ideologically driven approach that harms the economy.
This shift imposed billions of dollars in regulatory costs on American businesses, damaging both consumers and the competitive marketplace.
It created widespread confusion, uncertainty, and unnecessary financial burdens at precisely the time when the nation’s economy needed clear and streamlined policy the most.
American companies, one after another, were hauled into court as they tried to expand and create jobs.
JetBlue, for example, tried to merge with a struggling Spirit Airlines, but was blocked by the Biden DOJ, forcing Spirit to file for bankruptcy.
Visa, too, fell victim to the Biden administration's zealous regulatory overreach, facing a costly antitrust lawsuit over its debit card market practices.
Biden and his Department of Justice behaved as if it's a crime for the company to have amassed 60% of the debit card marketplace.
It's not.
Visa amassed this market share because consumers and businesses find it to be the best game in town.
They can choose to use many other debit card networks or payment options; they opt for Visa because they prefer it.
Only socialists would take umbrage with this, because they don’t believe private companies should be able to succeed to any great extent.
Thankfully, Mr. Trump's latest executive order, "Reducing Anti-Competitive Regulatory Barriers," calls for rescinding unnecessary and anticompetitive regulations; this is a decisive step to reverse the course set by his predecessor.
The executive order directs federal agencies, in consultation with FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson and Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi, to identify and eliminate regulations that unfairly limit competition, create monopolies, or burden businesses unnecessarily.
The Department of Justice’s Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force, established under Trump, actively identifies laws and regulations that distort and hinder the marketplace.
By explicitly addressing market distortions in vital sectors such as housing, energy, transportation, and agriculture, the Trump administration is prioritizing policies fostering competition and lower costs for American families and businesses.
Our nation's 47th commander in chief is correct in decisively reversing Biden-era mistakes and reinstating a consumer-centric, free-market-driven approach.
His executive order and ongoing regulatory review are essential steps to unwind unnecessary burdens and restore the vitality and dynamism that American businesses need to thrive.
However, the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice must also reverse the failed, costly, and arbitrary changes to antitrust review.
This is about renewing American competitiveness, unleashing innovation, and ensuring a prosperous future for all Americans.
Horace Cooper is a senior fellow with the National Center for Public Policy Research, chairman of the Project 21 National Advisory Board and a legal commentator. He is a frequent Fox News contributor and the author of How Trump is Making Black America Great Again: The Untold Story of Black Advancement in the Era of Trump. Read Horace Cooper's Reports --- More Here.