Aligned with Trump: Technology companies meet and donate money to the Republican

Donations have been taken not only as a sign of support but as a way to iron out past rough spots. For example, Bezos and Trump had differences during the magnate’s first term when he accused the online sales giant of paying “too little” or not paying taxes.

Mark Zuckerberg also had disagreements with the elected candidate, since Facebook was one of the social networks that banned Trump after the attack on the Capitol in Washington, on January 6, 2021, which claimed the lives of five people.

Trump announced that Andrew Ferguson will be the next chairman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the body in charge of consumer protection and antitrust measures. However, his position will be one of contrasts towards technology companies.

Ferguson was one of two Republican FTC commissioners confirmed by the Senate and appointed by the current president, Joe Biden, so he knows the administration from the inside and important changes are expected in terms of content moderation, in addition to a strong orientation to benefit local companies.

According to Ferguson’s proposal to lead the FTC, which was published in several US media, part of his intentions are to “reverse Lina Khan’s anti-business agenda”, “hold Big Tech accountable and stop censorship” and “protect the freedom of expression.”

Lina Khan, current FTC director, was appointed by President Joe Biden and is spearheading a policy to curb the unlimited expansion of technology emporiums.

Ferguson will inherit a list of cases against large technology companies, including Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta and even Apple, in addition to the rapidly evolving cases involving Artificial Intelligence.