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Exploring Solutions to Monopoly Problems
Following forty years of laissez-faire antitrust enforcement and industry consolidation, the White House is considering a fundamental rethink of how to interpret, enforce, and rewrite antitrust law, and many questions remain unanswered for the antitrust community.
On the heels of federal and state litigation against Google and Facebook, is Amazon next? Will the new administration put big agriculture, big banks, and big pharma in its crosshairs? Will the courts stop antitrust enforcers in their tracks? Will the Biden administration get cold feet?
The Capitol Forum Podcast provides in-depth discussions with antitrust experts about the answers to these questions and about proposed solutions to the biggest monopoly problems of our time. Backed by the investigative resources and intellectual rigor of The Capitol Forum, Executive Editor and host Teddy Downey examines the effects of the current concentrations of market power across a vast array of industry verticals as he and his guests analyze the potential responses from the federal government. Offering thoughtful conversations with analysts and decision makers, The Capitol Forum Podcast provides everyone from C-Suite executives to policymakers, and all those in-between, strategic antitrust insights at the intersection of law, policy, and markets.
122 Episodes
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Trillions in commitments. Billions in off-balance-sheet debt. Circular investments between vendors and their own customers. The AI infrastructure build-out looks less like a gold rush and more like a house of cards — and policymakers have no plan for when it falls.Today on Second Request, executive editor Teddy Downey sits down with Asad Ramzanali, Director of AI and Technology Policy at the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator, to discuss his paper "After the AI Crash" — and why the time to prepare for a financial crisis is before it happens.
Understanding A.I., it seems, is the fastest way to start doubting it.Today on Second Request, we're re-sharing a conversation Executive Editor Teddy had with Chiara Longoni, Associate Professor of Marketing at Bocconi University, to discuss her research on AI literacy — and why people who understand AI less may actually trust it more.Note: This conversation originally aired on Second Request on November 10, 2025.To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Linkedin and Bluesky.
Your life insurance policy may be private equity's ticking financial time bomb.In this episode of The Capitol Forum Investigates, reporter Lisa Epstein explains her recent investigation into sweeping changes in the life and annuities sector driven by private equity-owned insurers. Despite promising security to policyholders, many of these companies use complex financial structures to shift liabilities into offshore accounts — masking the true health of the policies millions depend on. Now, the recent collapse of a Connecticut-based life insurer has observers around the world asking whether the next global financial crisis is already being built from the inside.To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Linkedin and Bluesky.
In this episode of Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Brendan Ballou, founder of the Public Integrity Project, to examine corruption enforcement under the Trump administration. They also discuss the legal implications of Trump's presidential pardons, which have been criticized for benefitting allies and donors. To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Linkedin and Bluesky.
Affordability is the hottest word in politics, but how does it actually become a reality? One idea: home savings accounts to help new homebuyers compete in an inflated real estate market.Today on Second Request, executive editor Teddy Downey sits down with Jon Schweppe, director of policy initiatives at the American Principles Project, to hear why he thinks home savings accounts could be a powerful tool to help bring down the cost of housing.
Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey is joined by Jonathan Kanter, the former Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice from 2021 to 2024. Together, they unpack the evolving antitrust argument against Ticketmaster.Editor’s note: This conversation was recorded before the Department of Justice announced a settlement with Ticketmaster on March 9, 2026.To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Linkedin and Bluesky.
Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Seth Bloom, President and Founder of Bloom Strategic Counsel, to unpack what would have been the antitrust implications of Netflix's potential acquisition of Warner Bros. This conversation was recorded before Netflix announced they would be ending their bid for Warner Bros. To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Linkedin and Bluesky.
In November, the Department of Justice made headlines when they announced a settlement with the software company RealPage in the DOJ's lawsuit against the company for antitrust violations. But, some have questioned that strategy, especially with several state governments pursuing action against the company. In this episode of Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey unpacks the DOJ's settlement with David O. Fisher, Senior Counsel at the American Antitrust Institute, and the author of the recent commentary "Closing Costs, a Critical Examination of the DOJ's Proposed RealPage Settlement.”To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Bluesky and Linkedin.
When a Pittsburgh based business owner opened a franchise of one of Xponential Fitness' exercise brands, he had no idea it would end in bankruptcy, intimidation and threats of violence. Today on The Capitol Forum Investigates, investigative correspondent Kim Geiger discusses her multi-year investigation into the company Xponential Fitness, and reveals how they lured franchise owners into a predatory relationship that led multiple franchisees to file for bankruptcy, and has made Xponential the target of multiple government probes and lawsuits.
Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Sacha Sloan a senior correspondent at The Capitol Forum to discuss Sacha's recent reporting on potential collusion in the microchip sector. Together they discuss how coordinated production cuts, reduced capital expenditures, and public signaling by major NAND manufacturers are contributing to a sharp supply crunch and record price increases. To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Bluesky and Linkedin.
2026 could make or break Roblox. That's because the multi-billion dollar children's video game company is mired in dozens of private lawsuits on top of multiple probes from several state governments, the FTC and the DOJ. In this episode of The Capitol Forum Investigates, reporter Ethan Ehrenhaft sits down with Arjun Singh to talk about the future of Roblox in the wake of major allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse on its platform.Follow The Capitol Forum on Bluesky or Linkedin
Today on The Capitol Forum Investigates, correspondent Krista Brown discusses the use of artificial intelligence in airline pricing, and how it could potentially lead to personalized prices for plane tickets.
Aviation expert Bill McGee of the American Economic Liberties Project explains how consolidation in the airline sector has led to price gouging for passengers.
Noah Giansiracusa, author of the book Robin Hood Math: Take Control of the Algorithms That Control Your Life explains how companies can exploit personal user data without their knowledge to determine prices.
Follow The Capitol Forum on Linkedin and BlueskySend tips to tips@thecapitolforum.com
Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with antitrust expert Hal Singer, who argues why AirBnb is violating antitrust laws, and how enforcement could address distortions in the housing and rental markets. The conversation centers on Singer’s recent article, “The Antitrust Case Against Airbnb,” which analyzes how Airbnb’s “Smart Pricing” algorithm may facilitate price coordination among short-term rental hosts, the broader effects of short-term rental platforms on housing supply and rents, and the challenges regulators face in applying antitrust law to platform-based and AI-driven pricing models.To learn more about The Capitol Forum click here.
In today's episode of Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Graham Steele former former Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions at the U.S. Department of the Treasury and current Academic Fellow at the Rock Center for Corporate Governance. They discuss Steele's recent paper Financial Statecraft and explore the role of financial institutions in American foreign policy, and the tradeoffs for regulation of those industries in the U.S. To learn more about The Capitol Forum click here. To read Graham Steele's paper Financial Statecraft click here.
Amazon has inked contracts with local governments, municipalities and school districts that often bypasses the traditional guardrails in the procurement process. In this episode of Second Request, The Capitol Forum's Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Stacy Mitchell, co-director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance about ISLR's recent report "Amazon’s Capture of Local Government Purchasing Is Driving Up Public Costs and Eliminating Competition."To learn more about The Capitol Forum click here. Read Stacy Mitchell's report here.
Zynex was a medical device company on the rise. After experiencing decades of growth, Zynex’s founder Thomas Sandgaard had hopes of becoming a billionaire — until The Capitol Forum revealed how they were fraudulently billing insurers, patients and even the U.S. government for tens of millions of dollars. In this episode of The Capitol Forum Investigates, reporter Michael Williams reveals how Zynex misled customers into entering predatory financial arrangements. He also unpacks Sandgaard’s efforts to quash his reporting, including efforts to target Williams and his family.
In this episode of Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Michael Murray, Katherine Wyszkowski, and Daniel Hanley to discuss their recent research about the antitrust risk posed by U.S. electric utilities — especially as it relates to their control over consumer energy‑usage data, potential exclusionary conduct, and the broader consequences for competition, consumers, and market transparency.To learn more about The Capitol Forum click here.
For decades the amount of small homebuilders in the United States has been dwindling. One reason is the shuttering of local financial networks. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Laurel Kilgour Policy Director at the American Economic Liberties Project (AELP) to discuss the findings of Kilgour's recent report Capital Crunch: How the Fall of Local Finance and the Rise of Shareholder Primacy Warped Single-Family Homebuilding in America — And What to Do About It. Follow The Capitol Forum on X, Bluesky or Linkedin.Read Laurel Kilgour's paper here.
After a federal judge rejected the Federal Trade Commission's argument that Meta has an illegal monopoly in the personal social media market, regulators are debating what the decision means for future enforcement of section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act. In this episode of Second Request, Teddy Downey discusses the Meta decision with Joel Thayer, President of the Digital Progress Institute.
Why is it so expensive to build a house in America? That's a question economists, politicians and pundits have argued at length about, but can't agree on. In today's episode of Second Request, executive editor Teddy Downey sits down with Steven Xiao, Associate Professor of Finance at the University of Texas at Dallas Naveen Jindal School of Management and Ph.D candidate Zheng Liu for a robust discussion about how concentration in the homebuilding sector has led to increased costs and prices. To learn more about The Capitol Forum click here.
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