Trump fires both Democrats on the Federal Trade Commission

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President Donald Trump fired two Democratic commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, in another major test of the independence of regulatory agencies.

A White House official confirmed the firings of Democratic Commissioners Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter after they were first reported by Reuters, but had no additional comment.

The firings drew sharp criticism from Democratic senators and antimonopoly groups concerned that the move was designed to remove opposition within the agency to big corporations.

“Illegally gutting the Commission will empower fraudsters and monopolists, and consumers will pay the price,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat from Minnesota, in a statement.

The FTC enforces consumer protection and antitrust laws, and has a bipartisan structure where no more than three of the five commissioners can come from the same party.

Both Bedoya and Slaughter plan to sue to reverse the firings. “This is corruption plain and simple,” Bedoya said in a statement on X.

“Illegally gutting the Commission will empower fraudsters and monopolists, and consumers will pay the price,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat from Minnesota, in a statement.