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On Friday, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) put out a new bill that would give the United States’s antitrust enforcers the ability to seek fines over anti-competitive behavior, something that, if approved, could scare big companies into following the law because there would be clear punishments for violations.
Right now, the federal government has its hands tied when it comes to punishing anti-competitive behavior. In most cases, the FTC opts to settle with companies rather than sue them when they’re believed to violate the law.
Klobuchar’s “Monopolization Deterrence Act” would empower both the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission with the authority to seek civil penalties for behavior they deem monopolistic. In theory, the bill…