The Capitol Forum Podcast
The Capitol Forum
Exploring Solutions to Monopoly ProblemsFollowing 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.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Nov 10, 2025 • 1h
Presidential Tariffs and Executive Power: Legal Challenges to the IEEPA Tariffs
In this episode, Teddy Downey sits down with Kathleen Claussen, Professor of Law at Georgetown University, and Beth Baltzan Senior Advisor at The Capitol Forum and former Counselor for Trade and Investment to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, for a discussion on the legality of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
Nov 10, 2025 • 55min
Lower Artificial Intelligence Literacy Predicts Greater AI Receptivity with Chiara Longoni
How does understanding AI change the way we trust it?In this interview with The Capitol Forum’s Executive Editor & CEO, Teddy Downey, Chiara Longoni, Associate Professor of Marketing at Bocconi University and co-author of “Lower Artificial Intelligence Literacy Predicts Greater AI Receptivity,” explains the methodology and surprising findings from her research on AI literacy.
Nov 10, 2025 • 1h 2min
The Antitrust Case Against AI Overviews with Madhavi Singh
In this episode, we’re joined by Mahdavi Singh Deputy Director of the Thurman Arnold Project and Resident Fellow at the Information Society Project at Yale Law School to discuss how Google's integration of A.I. overviews could extend its search monopoly and the legal arguments that it could violate antitrust law.
Aug 14, 2025 • 1h 3min
Price Discrimination Laws—the Dormant Half of Our Antitrust Laws that Can Save Our Economy
In this Capitol Forum podcast, Executive Editor Teddy Downey speaks with Catherine Simonsen—co-founder of the newly launched Simonson Susman LLP and former FTC antitrust enforcer—about the long-neglected Robinson-Patman Act. Together, they dissect how underenforcement of price discrimination laws has contributed to excessive consolidation, economic rent extraction, and the quiet hollowing-out of American small businesses.Simonson outlines legal strategies to revive these laws and challenge dominant “power buyers” like Walmart and Amazon, and explains how price discrimination distorts the supply chain from producer to pharmacy shelf. This is antitrust not as theory, but as practice.
Aug 14, 2025 • 1h 3min
How Courts Interpret Copyright in the Age of AI
Generative AI is testing the limits of copyright law — and the courts are starting to weigh in. Teddy Downey speaks with Keith Kupferschmid, CEO of the Copyright Alliance, about:The legal stakes of AI training on copyrighted works-Conflicting rulings in California courts-How the Warhol decision could influence AI copyright cases-The importance of a healthy licensing market-What’s at risk for creators and the economy📌 Subscribe for more policy and legal deep dives
Aug 5, 2025 • 55min
Steris/Synergy a Decade Out: A Retrospective Assessment
In this episode, Capitol Forum’s Nate Soderstrom sits down with Jeremy Sanford, partner at Econic Partners and former FTC economist, to discuss his new paper on the 2015 Steris/Synergy merger—a key potential competition case that was litigated but allowed to proceed.Jeremy walks through:Why the FTC brought the case-The court’s reasoning in denying the injunction-What we’ve learned from 10 years of post-merger evidence-How this case fits into broader merger enforcement and guideline updates📺 Subscribe for more analysis from The Capitol Forum
Jul 31, 2025 • 1h 8min
Trump’s Trade Letters and the August 1st Deadline
In this wide-ranging conversation, Capitol Forum Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Beth Baltzan — former Counselor to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai — and Capitol Forum Trade Correspondent Neil Tracey to unpack the latest wave of Trump tariff threats.We cover:Why Trump is targeting an unusual mix of countriesHow rare earths give China lasting leverageWhether USMCA will actually be exemptedThe growing influence of Big Tech on trade policySection 301 vs. Section 232: What tools Trump is using — and whyHow global trust in the U.S. rule of law is erodingWhat’s missing from a purely tariff-based industrial strategyWhy the global trading order may never be the same
Jul 29, 2025 • 1h 2min
Patenting and Pricing Eliquis, Ozempic, and Other Medicare-Targeted Drugs
Teddy Downey, Executive Editor of The Capitol Forum, sits down with Tahir Amin, co-founder of I-MAK, to discuss the pharmaceutical industry’s misuse of the U.S. patent system—and what it costs American patients and taxpayers.They dive into I-MAK’s new report, Overpatented, Overpriced, and explore:How drugs like Eliquis and Ozempic are protected by dozens to hundreds of patentsThe role of patent term extensions, follow-on patents, and settlement deals in delaying generic competitionHow companies like Novo Nordisk and BMS generate tens of billions in additional revenue through strategic patentingWhy the Hatch-Waxman Act and USPTO are failing to protect patients and the public interest Full report: https://www.i-mak.org/overpatented/
Jul 23, 2025 • 51min
Proposed Breakups of Live Nation/Ticketmaster with Tommy Dorfman
What happens when one company dominates every aspect of an industry—from venues and ticketing to artist access and local politics? In this in-depth interview, The Capitol Forum’s Teddy Downey speaks with Tommy Dorfman, former promoter and now CEO of Juice Entertainment, about his extraordinary 15-year legal battle against Live Nation and Ticketmaster.Dorfman alleges that Live Nation used anti-competitive tactics—backed by its control of Ticketmaster—to force him out of the industry, block access to artists, and coerce state-run venues. His claims include:Closed-door threats and pressure to enter a forced partnershipA nationwide pattern of leveraging rebates to inflate ticket pricesControl over municipal venues, artist touring, and even event securityAs the U.S. Department of Justice pursues its own case against Live Nation, Dorfman makes a broader argument: that monopolistic control in the live events industry suppresses competition, stifles independent promoters, and ultimately harms artists and consumers alike.A story of market power, legal resilience, and the changing economics of live music.
Jul 21, 2025 • 60min
Google’s Role in Digital Advertising with Ari Paparo
Ari Paparo, a digital advertising veteran and CEO of Markitecture Media, dives deep into Google's ad tech dominance and the resulting challenges. He discusses why publishers have lost control and critiques the DOJ's approach to Google's antitrust issues. Ari shares insights on the tangled history of the ad market, the real reasons behind Google's fierce resistance, and potential reforms that could lead to a more open digital advertising landscape. His insider perspective sheds light on the industry's future, including the growing importance of privacy-preserving technologies.
