Competition Policy

To ensure a future of shared prosperity for consumers, workers, and businesses large and small, America must guarantee open and fair competition. Our history shows that competitive markets support business growth, innovation, and an entrepreneurial spirit, leaving room for small, independent businesses to flourish alongside larger corporations. Competition means that businesses offer high-quality products and services at fair market prices. It helps workers get fairer wages and better working conditions. And competitive markets encourage start-ups and business creation while forcing existing companies to innovate and become more efficient. When businesses and entrepreneurs can freely compete, our economy grows stronger and more resilient.
Unfortunately, America has a major monopoly and competition problem. In fact, over 75 percent of U.S. industries have become more concentrated since the late 1990s. This is a problem that touches the lives of every American and affects our entire economy, from pharmaceuticals to big tech, agriculture to telecommunications. Reduced competition can mean higher prices, lower product and service quality, depressed wages, and less innovation for millions of American consumers and workers. It also weakens our nation’s economic resiliency. This can have an especially devastating impact during times of economic uncertainty. It is a problem that we can no longer afford to ignore.
To ensure our future economic prosperity, America must confront its monopoly power problem and restore competitive markets. That means we need more effective congressional oversight to promote vigorous antitrust enforcement while giving federal enforcers the resources and tools they need. And we must update our antitrust laws for the twenty-first century to protect the competitive markets that are the lifeblood of our economy.
We don’t have to choose between having successful American companies and having effective antitrust enforcement. We can, and must, have both. Strong competition policy is necessary to build a vibrant economy that works for consumers, for workers, for entrepreneurs, for local communities, and for companies, large and small.
As Minnesota’s U.S. senator, I will continue to focus on these priorities: