U.S. Democrats meet with FTC chief on 'troubling' price increases

[March 04, 2022]    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Democrats met on Thursday with Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan to discuss "troubling" price increases in oil, gas, prescription drugs and other items, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer tweeted on Thursday.

FTC Commissioner nominee Lina M. Khan testifies during a Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee hearing on the nomination of Former Senator Bill Nelson to be NASA administrator, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 21, 2021. Graeme Jennings/Pool via REUTERS

The meeting occurred when Khan went to the Democratic Caucus lunch on Thursday, an FTC spokeswoman said.

The Biden administration, headed into midterm elections in November with narrow holds on the Senate and the House of Representatives, was concerned about inflation even before Russia's invasion of Ukraine pushed oil prices up sharply.

"More people are being forced to pay more as mega-corporations make a killing—A twisted thing to see as we recover from COVID," Schumer said on Twitter. "We are working to bring down costs NOW."

The FTC works with the Justice Department to enforce antitrust law. It also investigates allegations of deceptive advertising.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

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