The sweeping executive order takes aim at concentrated markets in industries including agriculture, airlines, broadband and banking — and includes e

Biden launches assault on monopolies - POLITICO

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2021-07-09 22:00:02

The sweeping executive order takes aim at concentrated markets in industries including agriculture, airlines, broadband and banking — and includes efforts to lower drug prices and protect privacy.

The White House announced a sweeping executive order Friday to promote competition throughout the U.S. economy, in the most ambitious effort in generations to reduce the stranglehold of monopolies and concentrated markets in major industries.

The order — whose details POLITICO first reported last week — also includes elements designed to lower the price of prescription drugs, protect consumers' privacy and increase scrutiny of abusive business tactics in the tech industry.

The effort marks a major push by President Joe Biden’s administration to focus on competition as part of the economic recovery from the pandemic. It also offers a response to progressives’ criticisms that the federal government has focused too much on supporting banks and other corporations without concern about the effect on consumers, who have watched their choices dwindle over the years.

The president described himself as a “proud capitalist” in his Friday remarks, clarifying that “capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism, it’s exploitation.”

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