Several prominent Big Tech lawyers have organized high-profile fundraisers for Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, which has raised concerns among antitrust advocates.
These recent events, attended by influential tech lawyers and economists, had ticket prices as high as $6,600 and featured speakers like former Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, the New York Post reported.
This backing has sparked a backlash from anti-monopoly advocates, who argue that Harris’s support from Big Tech defenders signals a potential shift from the Biden administration’s aggressive antitrust stance.
“This is a confab of ‘Big Law’ lawyers who have been representing monopolists against the FTC and DOJ, and they are shamelessly trying to storm the castle after being locked out during the Biden years,” one Democrat who pays attention to antitrust issues told The Post.
Influential figures like Daniel Bitton, who is defending Google in a Justice Department case, and Karen Dunn, a litigator who was instrumental in Harris’s debate prep and Google’s defense, have co-chaired the fundraisers.
This support comes as major tech firms face unprecedented legal challenges, with Google and Apple contending with federal antitrust cases and Amazon and Facebook dealing with FTC lawsuits. Additionally, AI sector giants Nvidia and OpenAI have attracted regulatory interest, heightening the scrutiny of Silicon Valley’s political sway.
Some political observers have noted Silicon Valley’s growing support for Donald Trump, including contributions from high-profile figures like Elon Musk.
This trend has led Harris’s campaign surrogates, including investor Mark Cuban and her brother-in-law, Tony West, to reassure tech executives that a Harris administration could be more business-friendly, signaling a potentially softer approach to tech regulation.
While Harris’s platform has only lightly touched on antitrust issues, her recent economic policy plan highlighted the importance of fostering tech innovation with consumer protection, though it referenced “antitrust” only once.
With Harris’s potential shift in policy focus, advocates are concerned that ongoing Big Tech antitrust battles could see less aggressive outcomes if she wins the election.
This article was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence.