Cotton, colleagues to DOJ and FTC: Systemic, weaponized leaks violate ethics rules

Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) today led four of his colleagues in a letter to Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz and Federal Trade Commissioner Inspector General Andrew Katsaros, demanding an investigation into systemic media leaks. These leaks, all to the same media outlet, resulted in negative headlines about the Biden-Harris administration’s antitrust targets and potentially violated ethics rules.

Co-signers to the letter included Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), Senators Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), and Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska). 

In part, the senators wrote:

“These leaks result in negative headlines about the administration’s targets while the targeted companies have no way to respond, as they haven’t yet seen the potential lawsuits. Both DOJ and FTC have ethics rules that prohibit leaking civil cases before the cases are filed.”

Full text of the letter may be found here and below.

October 24, 2024

The Honorable Michael Horowitz 
United States Department of Justice
Office of the Inspector General
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530

Mr. Andrew Katsaros Inspector General
Federal Trade Commission 

600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20580

Dear Inspectors General Horowitz and Katsaros,

We write asking you to investigate whether the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission have violated their own ethics rules by systematically leaking potential antitrust cases to a specific media outlet.

Since 2023, Bloomberg News has broken the news in at least twelve instances that DOJ or FTC was “preparing” or “poised” to take legal action before a lawsuit was filed. Indeed, the same journalist reported on eleven of these cases. This pattern strongly suggests that certain officials at DOJ and FTC are intentionally publicizing legal action days or weeks before filing. 

These leaks result in negative headlines about the administration’s targets while the targeted companies have no way to respond, as they haven’t yet seen the potential lawsuits. Both DOJ and FTC have ethics rules that prohibit leaking civil cases before the cases are filed.[*]

Bloomberg News reporting DOJ and FTC antitrust actions before the filing of a lawsuit

1. January 23, 2023: DOJ Poised to Sue Google Over Digital Ad Market Dominance

2. February 23, 2023: DOJ Preps Antitrust Suit to Block Adobe’s $20 Billion Figma Deal

3. May 15, 2023: Amgen’s $28 Billion Horizon Deal Faces Unexpected FTC Hurdle

4. June 29, 2023: Lina Khan Is Coming for Amazon, Armed With an FTC Antitrust Suit

5. October 16, 2023: Real Estate Brokers Pocketing Up to 6% in Fees Draw Antitrust Scrutiny

6. February 20, 2024: FTC, States to Sue Over Kroger-Albertsons Deal Next Week

7. March 20, 2024: Justice Department to Sue Apple for Antitrust Violations

8. April 10, 2024: Nippon Steel Bid to Buy US Steel Gets Extended Antitrust Review

9. April 17, 2024: Tapestry’s $8.5 Billion Capri Deal Faces Planned FTC Lawsuit

10. May 22, 2024: US Justice Department to Seek Breakup of Live Nation-Ticketmaster

11. July 10, 2024: FTC Preparing Suit Against Drug Middlemen Over Insulin Rebates

12. September 23, 2024: Visa Faces Justice Department Antitrust Case on Debit Cards

These leaks aren’t just unethical, but they harm these companies’ employees, shareholders, and others. If the companies have engaged in wrongdoing, by all means the government should try them in a court of law. But the Biden-Harris administration shouldn’t try them in the liberal media. These leaks appear to be simply one more instance of this administration weaponizing the administrative state against politically disfavored opponents and critics, much like DOJ investigating parents at school-board meetings or the FTC targeting Elon Musk and Twitter for insufficient censorship of conservatives.

We urge you to investigate promptly these systematic, unethical, and potentially illegal leaks.

Sincerely,                           

Walmart sued by Federal Trade Commission

by Kim Souza (ksouza@talkbusiness.net)

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said Tuesday (June 28) that it sued Walmart Inc., alleging the retailer allowed scam artists to access its money transfer services, resulting in fraud that cost consumers “tens of millions of dollars” each year.

The complaint said that for years Walmart did not adequately train employees, failed to warn customers and used procedures that allowed fraudsters to cash out at its stores.

“While scammers used its money transfer services to make off with cash, Walmart looked the other way and pocketed millions in fees,” said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Consumers have lost hundreds of millions, and the Commission is holding Walmart accountable for letting fraudsters fleece its customers.”

https://talkbusiness.net/2022/06/walmart-sued-by-federal-trade-commission/

Social Security and OIG Hold Annual ‘Slam the Scam’ Days

The Social Security Administration and the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) have once again joined forces to raise public awareness about Social Security imposter scams during the second annual ‘Slam the Scam’ Day on March 4. Social Security scams - in which fraudsters mislead victims into making cash or gift card payments to fix purported Social Security number problems or to avoid arrest - are the #1 type of government imposter fraud reported to the Federal Trade Commission and Social Security. The agency has made concerted efforts to address this issue, including partnering with other Federal and State agencies to identify and pursue scammers, increasing employee and public outreach and education, raising awareness through marketing in post offices nationwide, and maintaining a Social Security/OIG work group to maximize resources and ensure a cohesive response.

“I am deeply troubled that crooks are deceiving Americans and using fear tactics to trick people into providing personal information or money,” said Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul. “I urge everyone to remain vigilant, hang up on these fraudsters, and go to oig.ssa.gov to report any attempted scam.”

Criminals are sophisticated and there are many variations of this fraud scheme. For example, scammers may call or email saying they are from Social Security and that the person’s Social Security number is suspended or was used in a crime. The caller identification may be spoofed to appear as a legitimate government number. They may text or email fake documents in attempts to coerce people to comply with their demands.

In recent twists, thieves even use real Social Security and OIG official’s names and send pictures of fabricated government ID badges. Social Security will never tell you that your Social Security number is suspended, contact you to demand an immediate payment, threaten you with arrest, ask for your credit or debit card numbers over the phone, ask for gift cards or cash, or promise a Social Security benefit approval or increase in exchange for information or money.

“We are working with the Department of Justice and law enforcement agencies across the United States to combat Social Security imposter scams—but our best weapon in this fight will always be awareness,” said Inspector General Gail S. Ennis. “I want to thank the many agencies and organizations that have joined us in our effort this year to alert Americans to hang up on suspicious calls, and talk to their family and friends about phone scams.”

Social Security employees do occasionally contact the public by telephone for business purposes. Ordinarily, the agency calls people who have recently applied for a Social Security benefit, someone who is already receiving payments and requires an update to their record, or a person who has requested a phone call from the agency. If there is a problem with a person’s Social Security number or record, Social Security will typically mail a letter.

For more information, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/antifraudfacts/.