During the 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama said the Bush administration had “one of the weakest records of antitrust enforcement of any administration in the last half century.” He promised to “reinvigorate antitrust enforcement, which is how we ensure that capitalism works for consumers.”
Despite that tough talk, antitrust lawyers say the changes so far have not been especially drastic. At the Federal Trade Commission, the same four commissioners have remained in place, although Obama promoted Jon Leibowitz to chairman in March. Two FTC nominations, Democrats Julie Brill and Edith Ramirez, are pending in the Senate — one to fill an open spot, the other to replace independent Pamela Jones Harbour, who continues to serve although her term has expired.
