FTC nominee Joshua Wright to skip Google cases

Joshua Wright, the Obama administration’s nominee to fill a Republican spot on the Federal Trade Commission, has informed congressional aides he will recuse himself from cases involving Google for two years to avoid any perceived conflict of interest.

Wright is expected to make that vow publicly during his Senate Commerce Committee confirmation hearing Dec 4, sources said. Wright, a professor at George Mason University, has never been paid directly by Google. But he has faced scrutiny because some of his academic research has been funded indirectly by the search company, and the nominee previously has defended the company against the FTC’s ongoing antitrust probe. To allay those concerns, Wright told the Senate Commerce Committee staff that he’s not going to take part in agency enforcement decisions — antitrust or otherwise — regarding Google for two years.