The Washington Post - USA (2020-12-11)

A22 EZ RE THE WASHINGTON POST.FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11 , 2020

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

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“B

REAK UP Facebook” has proved a popular rallying cry in papers, on podcasts, on the Internet and even on Capitol Hill. Whether the demand holds up in court is a more dubious proposi- tion — but one that suddenly seems sure to be tested in the coming years as 46 state attorneys general and the Feder- al Trade Commission battle with the technology behemoth over what the enforcers allege are anticompetitive acquisitions and behavior. The sister complaints filed Wednesday afternoon are full of anecdotal morsels assembled to show that Facebook has systematically marched toward, as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg reportedly used to shout at the end of team meetings, “domination!” The company and its leader, according to the lawsuits, went from trying to win on the merits of a more secure, more appealing site to believing “it is better to buy than com- pete.” The government’s two primary cases in point: Instagram (purchased in 2012) and WhatsApp (2014), from which prosecutors suggest Facebook ought to be forced to divest itself.

Facebook responds that it shouldn’t be punished six-plus years and billions of dollars in investment after the fact for mergers that the FTC chose not to object to at the time. Indeed, such an action could deter all manner of acceptable acquisitions, as well as dissuade start- ups from starting up at all. The bar for structural separations is and ought to be lofty: That radical remedy should be invoked only when it is the only way to repair demonstrable harm. And the harm in this matter is hard to demon- strate. Would Instagram, which had 13 employees when it was purchased in 2012, have emerged as a viable rival to Facebook without incubation by the parent company? Would WhatsApp have developed from a messaging service into the full-scale social network that Face- book feared could fell it? These questions are particularly diffi- cult to resolve in digital markets made up of free services, where relying on prices to assess consumer welfare is a nonstarter. These lawsuits may be helpful if they generate light on whether 19th-century laws are sufficient for 21st- century realities in evaluating effects on

quality of service or innovation as well as price. Also potentially helpful will be a weighing of the second, more compelling prong of the complaint, which alleges that Facebook closed off competitors’ ability to integrate with its platform. Generally, courts have found that compa- nies don’t have a duty to deal with their rivals, but that may need reconsideration in a world where network effects can tip toward winner-takes-all outcomes. The lawsuits, their overreach notwith- standing, may therefore prove to be constructive. After years of inaction from enforcers that left so much legal territory uncharted, there’s a c hance to start drawing a map. We doubt that breakup will or should be the outcome, but smart remedies short of breakup might enhance competition without sti- fling innovation: requiring approval of future purchases by Facebook, for exam- ple, or restricting its ability to wield data to squelch competition. It also could inform what remedies are most appro- priate in the rest of the vast technological realm. A complaint that looks eight years into the past may prove most useful for its role in charting the future.

The tough sell of breaking up Facebook

Still, recent lawsuits should be welcomed.

a degree in public health from Harvard, he returned to his native Jiddah, where he opened a private hospital in partner- ship with the Cleveland Clinic, and later the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Fitaihi recruited scores of U.S.-trained doctors and fre- quently cared for U.S. diplomats sta- tioned in Jiddah. Meanwhile, he became a popular YouTube personality and accu- mulated 1.7 million followers on Twitter. It was that public following, Dr. Fitaihi told us earlier this year, that likely led Mohammed bin Salman to include him in a vast 2017 sweep of perceived oppo- nents. He was tortured and held for 21 months without trial. U.S. pressure helped obtain his release on bail in 2019, and Saudi officials assured U.S. diplo-

mats that his case would be dropped. Instead, he has now been imprisoned, even as the regime revives criminal proceedings against other domestic op- ponents, such as the women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul. Perhaps Mohammed bin Salman cal- culates that he no longer needs to heed the priorities of the Trump administration. Or maybe he is attempting to project toughness toward Mr. Biden, who has pledged he will withdraw “the dangerous blank check” Mr. Trump granted the crown prince. In any case, the imprisonment of Dr. Fitaihi is an insult to the United States as well as a gross injustice. It should not go u nanswered.

F

EW WORLD leaders owe more to President Trump than Saudi Ara- bia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman. By Mr. Trump’s own account, he “saved his ass” by excusing him from accountability for the murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. After an Iranian attack dev- astated a Saudi oil field, Mr. Trump rushed U.S. forces to the kingdom to head off additional strikes. When Con- gress passed legislation to stop further U.S. support for Saudi bombing of Yem- en, the White House circumvented it. Mr. Trump styles himself as a transac- tional leader, but he hasn’t gotten much back from the Saudi ruler. Promised purchases of U.S. arms never material- ized; nor has the normalization of rela- tions between Saudi Arabia and Israel the administration fervently sought in its final months. Then there’s the case of Walid Fitaihi, a U.S. citizen, prominent doctor and motivational speaker who was arrested and tortured during a 2017 wave of repression directed by Mohammed bin Salman. Dr. Fitaihi’s case was a focus of the Trump administration’s diplomacy in Riyadh. It was raised publicly during two visits to the kingdom this year by Secre- tary of State Mike Pompeo, who asked that pending charges against the doctor be dropped and that he and his family of seven — all U.S. citizens — be allowed to travel. On Tuesday, the answer to these re- quests came in the form of a six-year prison sentence imposed on Dr. Fitaihi by a Saudi court. The crimes he was alleged to have committed included seeking U.S. citizenship. In essence, the verdict was a kick in the rear by the regime to the Trump administration as it heads out the door — and a direct challenge to President-elect Joe Biden. Ironically, Dr. Fitaihi saw himself as a bridge-builder between Saudi Arabia and the United States. After spending a decade in this country, during which he obtained bachelor’s and medical degrees from George Washington University and

A farewell kick to Mr. Trump

Saudi Arabia’s jailing of Walid Fitaihi, a doctor and U.S. citizen, is a gross injustice.

The Dec. 4 front page article “Toddler is latest victim as D.C. gun killings spike” quoted D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) as stating, “We’re all sick for the heinous crimes in our city,” and noting “the havoc and pain that guns are causing in our city.” This latest tragedy brought to mind a recently published raw personal account by a young Black author, Kondwani Fidel, writing about growing up poor in Balti- more, titled “The Antiracist: How to Start the Conversation About Race and Take Action.” It brings the writer’s life and those of his neighbors up close and personal. There is hopefulness in his book as well. Although he writes about Baltimore, the conditions and experi- ences he describes so powerfully and movingly are representative of other cities’ poor Black neighborhoods. The continuing tragedies and Mr. Fidel’s account scream out for systemic change. In systemic change, all parts of the system and their interrelationship need to be transformed — not piece by piece but as a whole — to address the causes of poverty and implicit and explicit racism, including the lack of employment; af- fordable housing; sufficient and avail- able food; lack of equality in the criminal justice system; and educational, mental and physical health resources. Getting rid of guns is needed, but nothing less than systemic change will stop the continuing violence, death and despair that are the result of poverty and racism. When Black lives don’t matter, everyone suffers; that’s our common humanity. Isabelle Schoenfeld, Bethesda

D.C.’s gun tragedy

The Dec. 7 editorial “Misplaced priorities” advocated reopening schools even though the media reports daily on record numbers of cases, hospitalizations and deaths from the coronavirus. And that’s before the Thanksgiving travel surge hits. In just the past few days, The Post has reported that nearly 154,000 children tested positive in one week, before Thanksgiving. Because people generally don’t get tested unless they have significant symptoms, the actual number of infected and infectious children is cer- tainly much higher. An Ohio school dis- trict reopened in October, when the pandemic wasn’t nearly as bad, but couldn’t stay open because it couldn’t find enough healthy teachers and bus drivers. Local school systems are report- ing coronavirus cases among teachers every week, even with schools closed. How many more will there be with schools open? How many of the hun- dreds of thousands of local students traveled over Thanksgiving and are going to bring the virus into classrooms? How many more will travel over the winter break, when most schools are closed for 10 days or more? Comparing the European experience to ours is a false equivalence. Europe took serious steps early to limit the spread and, when cases started peaking this fall, acted rapidly. As The Post reported on the same day as the editorial, local jurisdic- tions “hesitate” to do the same here. We should close the bars and the schools. Curriculums for next fall can be adjusted to catch students up. Dead students and teachers will never have that opportunity. Bob Meyer, Herndon

Close bars and schools

It is a sad irony that President Trump’s legal advocates are named the Amistad Project and the Thomas More Society [“Legal group challenging vote has tie to Trump team,” front page, Dec. 8]. Whereas Mr. Trump’s Amistad represents the effort to disenfranchise a largely African American urban elector- ate, the historic Amistad symbolizes a successful mutiny of Africans against their enslavers. And while Mr. Trump’s Thomas More kneels to an executive who has lost the legal and moral right to govern, the historic Saint Thomas More knelt before an axman for defying a narcissistic despot of multiple marriag- es. Cynicism, thy name is Trump! Martin G. Murray, Washington

Cynical names

In his Dec. 8 Tuesday Opinion essay, “What the pandemic can teach us about treating hunger,” José Andrés offered a compelling solution to what the federal government can do to address the loom- ing hunger and food crisis. What if Congress acted now to provide funding to restaurants to help them stay open and pay their employees, and in return these restaurants would feed those Americans in their communities who need food? Mr. Andrés has already laid the founda- tion for such an operation through his World Central Kitchen. What are we waiting for? Elissa B. Myers, La Plata

Helping the hungry

ABCDE

FREDERICK J. RYAN JR., Publisher and Chief Executive Officer

U

NDETERRED BY one defeat in court after another, President Trump is ratcheting up his effort to overturn last month’s election results. He is promoting a ludicrous lawsuit filed by Republican state attorneys general. He and his allies are pressing members of Congress to reject electoral votes from swing states he lost, using a rare parliamentary maneuver that should be reserved for serious allegations of electoral malfea- sance. These efforts will fail as his lawsuits have failed, but not before further entrenching Mr. Trump’s election lies and doing more damage to Americans’ faith in their democracy. Mr. Trump’s legal crusade was never credible, raising the question of whether he really thought he could win or whether he was challenging the results simply to delegitimize President-elect Joe Biden and keep his grip on Republi- cans. Latching on to Texas v. Pennsylva- nia, the last-ditch lawsuit from Republi- can state attorneys general, the Trump team admitted that it cannot show fraud but argued that the Supreme Court should block the electoral college from finalizing its votes anyway. Judges will

reject this wild argument, too. But instead of deescalating, as many of his enablers in Congress predicted he would have by now, Mr. Trump is abusing yet another legitimate channel to achieve the illegitimate goal of upend- ing the election. The president cannot halt the formal casting of electoral college votes on Dec. 14. So, The Post reported Thursday, he and his allies are increasingly focused on persuading Re- publicans to object to the results when Congress meets to count the electoral college votes on Jan. 6. If at least one member from each chamber objects to a state’s electoral votes, the House and the Senate must separately debate whether to accept them. At least one House Republican already has signaled he will object; the search is on for an unprincipled Repub- lican senator to follow suit. The maneuver would force every Republican to take a stand — for democracy or for Mr. Trump. The Democratic House will not side with Mr. Trump, nor will at least several GOP senators. So the point is the spectacle: making it appear as though there is an authentic controversy where there is none; making it a

Republican article of faith that Mr. Biden is illegitimate. Some GOP members of Congress are actively assisting this effort. An aston- ishing 106 House Republicans signed an amicus brief in Texas v. Pennsylvania, siding with the state attorneys general who seek to disenfranchise millions of swing-state voters. The list includes some who in a different time were seen as relative moderates, such as Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), on e of the many Re- publicans who has lost her credibility defending Mr. Trump. On the Senate side, Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) abused his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to conduct an election-year fishing expedi- tion into Mr. Biden’s son Hunter. Now Mr. Johnson is calling a D ec. 16 hearing into election “irregularities.” Let’s take a moment to recall: There was no fraud in this election. It was not rigged. The president and his craven enablers have marshaled no evidence to support their conspiracy theory. So it comes down to this: These Republicans are slandering American democracy. What do they see when they look in the mirror?

Slandering American democracy

Mr. Trump and his enablers are creating controversy where there is none.

ABCDE

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COURTESY OF AHMAD FITAIHI/VIA REUTERS Walid Fitaihi and his daughter Mariam Fitaihi in 20 17.

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for CAP, in part because of its independ- ence from political and financial con- cerns of donors. CAP and Ms. Tanden have made significant contributions to the Washington and global policy d ebate. William Danvers, Arlington

The Dec. 6 fr ont-page article “Foreign and corporate ties have Tanden under scrutiny” about the Center for American Progress (CAP) and its president, Neera Tanden, made implications with which I disagree. Ms. Tanden was recently nomi- nated by President-elect Joe Biden to be the director of the Office of Management and Budget. I have worked with and for the Center for American Progress since its inception, including working for Ms. Tanden from 2015 to 2017, where I attended meetings and had regular con- tact with her. I never heard her mention fundraising or making sure that a CAP project adopt a certain point of view because of concern over donors. Her focus was on substance and policy c onsiderations. I have worked on national security issues for decades for the executive branch, Congress and international or- ganizations. I can tell if I am being pushed or encouraged to adopt a certain point of view for political reasons. That was never my experience at CAP. I am proud and grateful for my time working

Wrong about Ms. Tanden

Thanks to J. Michael Luttig for finally correcting, in his Dec. 8 op-ed, “No, President Trump can’t pardon himself ,” the big lie that a sitting president cannot be subject to indictment, trial, judgment and punishment according to the law. It was in the Constitution all along: Article 1, Section 3, Clause 7. I take some comfort, after all this election hysteria, that justice can prevail. No one has absolute power to destroy democracy or to self-pardon. Gail Karp, Silver Spring

Justice can prevail

DRAWING BOARD SIGNE WILKINSON

B Y SIGNE WILKINSON FOR THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

 Letters and Local Opinions: [email protected] Op-eds: [email protected]

The Washington Post - USA (2020-12-11)

A22 EZ RE THE WASHINGTON POST.FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11 , 2020

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

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