The Senate yesterday confirmed a handful of new commissioners to the Federal Trade Commssion, which will give the agency a full slate of commissioners for the first time in the Trump Administration.
The agency had been operating with just two commissioners — one Republican and one Democrat — for the past 15 months. Terrell McSweeny, the lone Democrat at the top of the agency, had previously announced her resignation and is stepping down after today.
Joseph Simons will be the FTC’s new chairman, replacing Maureen Ohlhausen, who was acting director but is leaving after being nominated for a job as a federal judge. Simons is an antitrust attorney who ran the FTC’s competition bureau during the administration of President George W. Bush.
Two other Republicans — Noah Phillips and Christine Wilson — and two Democrats — Rohit Chopra and Rebecca Slaughter — were also confirmed by the Senate.
Phillips is an aide to Sen. John Cornyn [R-Texas] and Wilson was an executive at Delta Air Lines. Chopra is a consumer advocate and used to work at the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection and Slaughter was an aide to Sen. Chuck Schumer [D-N.Y.].
“I congratulate Joe, as well as Noah, Rebecca, and Rohit on their Senate confirmations,” Ohlhausen said in a statement. “I look forward to welcoming them to the Commission once their appointments are made final by President Trump. I also congratulate Christine, who will take my seat if I am so fortunate as to be confirmed by the Senate as a Judge on the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.”
