"America First Antitrust": New Policy Or New Terminology?

Last week, Assistant Attorney General (AAG) of the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, Gail Slater, issued her first formal address since her confirmation. AAG Slater's speech, as well as Republican FTC Commissioner Mark Meador's longer "Antitrust Policy for the Conservative," provide an excellent overview of the conservative principles and ideals that underlie AAG Slater's "America First Antitrust" enforcement policy.

AAG Slater's speech, aptly titled "The Conservative Roots of America First Antitrust Enforcement," began by lauding the Trump administration's trade policies, deregulation efforts, and border/migration policies. A major source of anticompetitive conduct, AAG Slater argued, was "neoliberal public policy" that weakened the middle class, all while its proponents falsely promoted free trade and open border policies as a means of spurring economic growth and prosperity. AAG Slater chastised these policies' promotion of the globalization