Last week, seven top officials in TX AG Ken Paxton's office reported him to law enforcement for "improper influence, abuse of office, bribery, and other potential criminal offenses.”
Three of those 7 people -- Jeff Mateer (Paxton's No. 2), Ryan Bangert (No. 3) and Darren McCarty -- are key figures in the Google probe
Mateer resigned Friday; Bangert and McCarty's status is unclear. But with the leadership in TX now in flux, the Google ad tech complaint is also in limbo
The Dem AG Association -- which reps 25 state AGs -- came out with a statement pressing for Paxton to resign.
“These latest allegations, combined with the indictment pending against him on charges of securities fraud, put the work of Paxton's office — and even the joint work among offices of state attorneys general — at risk.”
That "joint work"? Google
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From reading the Ken Buck minority report, though, there are 4 proposals he says Rs can support: additional funding for the agencies; data portability & interoperability; shifting burden of proof in merger cases; and market definition isn't required w/ direct proof of mkt power
On the shifting burden, Buck is a little squishy, saying "Congress must be exact in its language."
There are 7 other "maybes" that Buck says they could get behind but want further discussion/hearings about. 4 relate to monopolization law and 3 relate to mergers.
H/T to my friends over @FTCWATCH who got an exclusive with @JusticeATR's Makan Delrahim in their latest issue. A couple of highlights:
@FTCWATCH@JusticeATR On the split w states in Sprint-T-Mobile: " I would always look at the motivation of somebody who might be criticizing me first ...State AGs are elected officials — they are political bodies. They are not disinterested as federal prosecutors are and should remain."
@FTCWATCH@JusticeATR On disputes w @FTC over Big Tech: "There was an agreement made between the FTC and DOJ, July 12th, that [the FTC] no longer found convenient. There was a change in position ...This issue between the two agencies has been going on for years. I didn’t create the clearance problem."