Noah Phillips, one of two Republican commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission, announced that he is stepping down.
Phillips will step down from his position at the FTC in the fall, according to Politico. The Republican commissioner’s decision to step down arrived weeks after the agency’s Chairwoman Lina Khan brought a major Big Tech case against Meta to stop it from acquiring a virtual reality company.
“Fundamentally, more than anything else now is the right time for me and my family,” Phillips said, according to Politico.
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While Phillips said in a memo sent to FTC staff members that he was leaving in order to prioritize his family, he also noted that a factor in his decision was the inability of the commissioners to discuss or compromise on their choices. “I have always tried to bring to light the tradeoffs the commission faces in doing the work we do,” Phillips said. “And the conversation lately has not accounted for the serious discussion of counterargument.”
There were also several points of tension between Phillips and his fellow commissioners. “I have tremendous respect for Chairman Simons, [acting] Chairwoman Slaughter, and Chair Khan,” Phillips said. “I have disagreed with each of them sometimes emphatically. But it’s fair to say lately there have been more disagreements.”
It’s unlikely that Phillips’s departure will have a notable effect on the agency’s decisions due to Khan having a Democratic majority, and current rules would require Biden to nominate another Republican to replace Phillips. The commissioner’s departure will offer the White House a chance to work with GOP leaders in Congress to find a replacement who may hold skeptical views of Silicon Valley. However, it is unclear how willing Congress will be to negotiate on such matters during the midterm elections.
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The FTC announced on July 27 that it was suing Meta in an attempt to stop its acquisition of Within, a VR developer, due to potential antitrust violations. Khan chose to go ahead with the suit despite resistance from the staff. This conduct appears to be occurring amid slowly diminishing staff morale at the agency, a matter that Khan says she intended to address in April.
