In this file photo, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., listens during a confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Anna Moneymaker/The New York Times via AP, Pool, File)
U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), a vocal critic of big tech, said the antitrust lawsuit filed on Tuesday by the Department of Justice against Google has the potential to become the biggest strike against monopoly power since the Microsoft case settled in 2001.
"This new case will be the most significant antitrust case in a generation and certainly since the Microsoft case, and I think it has the potential to be bigger than the Microsoft case because Google is a more powerful platform, a more powerful company than Microsoft was," Hawley told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin on Tuesday.
He agrees with critics of the Microsoft case that it should have gone further, but maintains that it still helped spur the startup boom of the early 2000s.
"People often say, well, it really wasn't that successful, but actually if you look at the surge in tech startups that occurred during and immediately after the Microsoft case, I think you can see that taking on Microsoft had a significant pro-competition, pro-innovation effect," he said.
The senator also stressed that this is a critical moment for antitrust law in the U.S.
"Let's just be honest here, the stakes are high for the Department of Justice," he said. "They need to prosecute this case to the fullest extent of their abilities, and they need to get a win. They need to show that antitrust law still has an important part to play in the 21st century economy, and I believe they'll do that."
Jennifer Mattson, Contributing Writer at Fast Company, discusses the impact of Trump's first weekend in office and what's to come from the administration.
Ty Young, CEO of Ty J. Young Wealth Management, joins Cheddar to discuss Trump's moves as he returns to Washington D.C. and how it may affect the U.S. economy.
J.D. Durkin, host of 'Common Threads,' helps us unpack Trump's actions on Day One, talks the most meme-able moments from Inauguration Day and more. Watch!
Jonathan Alter, journalist and author of "His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life", discusses the legacy of the 39th president of the United States, Jimmy Carter.
Jonathan Alter, journalist and author, discusses Trump's threats to take back the Panama Canal, unraveling foreign policy work done by Jimmy Carter in 1978.
Rob Schroeder, Washington Bureau Chief at MarketWatch, discusses the Biden/Trump transition, certifying the election and what Trump plans on doing on day one.
