Klobuchar: “Let's go for the lie, it does not do that”
WASHINGTON – This week on the Senate Floor, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) pushed back against the baseless claim that the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, which addresses the competition problems that occur when big tech companies preference their own products and services, will hurt Amazon Prime.
“Nothing in this bill will require a company to shut down their marketplace or prevent them from selling their own branded products,” said Grassley.
Klobuchar echoed that point: “As Senator Grassley outlined, this bill does not outlaw Amazon Prime. Let's go for the lie, it does not do that.”
She continued by summarizing the legislation as providing “Commonsense rules of the road for major digital platforms allowing them to continue to operate their businesses. We're glad for these products. We like these products. We want to keep these companies strong, but they don't need to engage in this kind of [anticompetitive] behavior.”
The senators also addressed other baseless claims.
“Nothing prevents a search company from showing maps or answer boxes in their search results. And cellular phones can be sold with preinstalled apps,” said Grassley.
Klobuchar again concurred: “Or free shipping, or stop Apple from pre-loading useful apps onto their iPhones.”
Transcripts and videos of Klobuchar and Grassley’s floor speeches can be found here and here, respectively.
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