Resignation is the typical path for agency chairs in Khan's situation. And that's the playbook that Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler drew from when he announced Nov. 21 that he will resign on Inauguration Day. But Khan hasn't revealed her intentions, and sticking around as long as possible might be her best way to preserve aspects of her agenda many Republicans view as too left-leaning. Khan's term as commissioner actually expired in September, but she is free to remain in the role—leaving Andrew Ferguson with the bully pulpit that goes with being chair but keeping the panel under Democratic control—until the Senate confirms her successor, which could be many months, depending on how Trump prioritizes his confirmation fights. If Khan does opt to resign, the panel would have a 2-2 Republican-Democrat split, which could result in a deadlock on matters such as whether to challenge a particular merger on antitrust grounds, noted Gerald Stein, a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine. “Some of the more politicized cases might end up in ties, and you can’t enforce without a majority,” Stein said. How Ferguson might differ from Khan is a matter of intense speculation, though he's widely expected to follow Khan's hard-line enforcement of antitrust laws against Big Tech while taking a less interventionist approach to mergers in other industries. Ethan Wong, associate product counsel at Google, said he expects the FTC will continue the agency's crackdown on the veracity of claims by social media influencers. Peri Fluger, the general counsel at the global communication and creative agency Ruder Finn, said that any material connection between endorser and advertiser must be revealed to consumers. “It doesn’t necessarily have to involve money, It could be a personal or business relationship, "Fluger said. “You have to disclose this." Full story from James Palmer: https://lnkd.in/eBX7fb-P
