GOP chairs accuse FTC’s Khan of ‘misleading Congress’ over ‘ethical failure’ in Meta probe

The Republican chairs of two House committees accused Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan on Wednesday of misleading Congress about her decision to reject ethics advice in a case against Meta.

House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and House Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) said in a letter to Khan that a recent report on her decision in the Meta case raised “serious questions about your commitment to the fair and impartial administration of the FTC’s authorities.”

Khan decided not to recuse herself from the FTC case challenging Meta’s merger with a virtual reality company, despite receiving a memo from the agency’s ethics official last August recommending that she step back from the proceedings to “avoid an appearance of partiality.”

“In my opinion, there is a reasonable appearance concern with her participation in this matter,” Lorielle Pankey, the FTC’s ethics official, said in the memo first reported by Bloomberg earlier this month. “I also recognize that reasonable minds may disagree.”

Pankey also noted that she did not believe Khan’s participation would constitute a “per se federal ethics violation.”

Jordan and McMorris Rodgers specifically accused Khan of providing “misleading testimony” at a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing in April. 

When asked at the hearing whether there were any cases in which she did not follow the advice of the FTC’s ethics official, Khan said “no,” explaining that she had “consulted” with the official and “taken actions that are consistent with the legal statements” the official had made.

Khan is the subject of three separate investigations by Republican-led House committees, including the Oversight, Judiciary, and Energy and Commerce panels.