LinkedIn billionaire is going all-in on Kamala Harris. But he wants her to make a big change
By Matt Egan, CNN
New York (CNN) — LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman is throwing his financial firepower behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Hoffman, who has donated $7 million to the leading pro-Biden and Harris super PAC, told CNN he’s “redoubling” efforts to support the campaign and has “great hope” that Harris will become the United States’ first woman president.
But the billionaire argued that if Harris wins in November, she should install a new antitrust cop in place of Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan.
“Lina Khan is…a person who is not helping America,” Hoffman told CNN in his first on-camera interview since President Joe Biden stepped aside as the presumptive Democratic nominee. “I would hope that Vice President Harris would replace her.”
Hoffman, who sits on the board of Microsoft, a company that has clashed with the FTC, said Khan is operating “outside the scope” of her job at the FTC.
“Antitrust is fine…Waging war is not,” said Hoffman.
Bernie Sanders blasts ‘arrogance’ of Hoffman
Khan has won praise from many progressives by confronting dominant companies, from Big Oil to Big Tech.
Noting the $7 million Hoffman has donated to Future Forward PAC, Sen. Bernie Sanders blasted “the arrogance of Mr. Hoffman” and praised Khan as both one of the best Biden appointees and best FTC chairs in a “very, very long time.”
“Billionaires should not be telling candidates who to be keeping on or not,” the Vermont independent told CNN in a phone interview Thursday. “This concerns me because Lina Khan is doing a great job and I would hope and expect that the VP, if she wins, keeps her on.”
Another progressive, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, told CNN in a statement that Khan has done an “excellent job” and “should of course continue her work lowering costs, protecting workers and supporting entrepreneurs.”
Even some Republicans are on board with Khan.
Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the GOP nominee for vice president, is a fan. In February, Vance said Khan is “one of the few people in the Biden administration that I think is doing a pretty good job.”
Now, a Democratic megadonor is sharply criticizing a Biden-appointed regulator who has been praised by the Republican nominee for vice president.
Harris campaign: No discussions on replacing Khan
Hoffman told CNN he “certainly” hasn’t directly pushed Harris to replace Khan.
“I do find it entertaining that she’s the precise person that JD Vance supports,” he said.
A Harris campaign aide told CNN that there have been “no policy discussions” about replacing Khan at the current time.
“She has been the presumptive nominee for three days,” the aide added.
Hoffman sits on the board of directors at Microsoft, a company that has clashed with the Khan-led FTC.
In June, a person familiar with the matter confirmed to CNN’s Brian Fung that the FTC had launched an investigation into a recent Microsoft deal with AI startup Inflection.
The FTC also tried, and failed, to block Microsoft’s $69 billion takeover of “Call of Duty” video game maker Activision Blizzard.
FTC spokesperson Douglas Farrar told CNN in a statement Wednesday that Khan is “honored to serve in the Biden Harris administration, where she has protected consumers, workers and entrepreneurs from illegal conduct and corporate abuse.”
“From banning junk fees and noncompete agreements to lowering prices for essentials like groceries, gas and health care, Chair Khan has been a leader on the Biden-Harris team’s fight to help working families across the country,” Farrar said.
Asked if Khan would consider staying at the helm of a Harris administration, the FTC spokesperson Farrar said: “Yes.”
Some of that work has won approval from Khan’s Republican colleagues at the agency. For instance, earlier this month the FTC voted unanimously to block Tempur Sealy’s $4 billion takeover of Mattress Firm on antitrust grounds.
Harris is more pro-business than Trump?
Beyond antitrust matters, Hoffman showered praise for Harris on economic matters.
“Trump wants tariffs, which is anti-business. You know, it makes this a very strange election indeed, because I think actually Vice President Harris is much more of the pro-business candidate than Trump,” Hoffman told CNN.
Of course, the Biden-Harris campaign has pushed to raise the corporate tax rate and increase taxes on billionaires.
Such moves would face fierce opposition from major business groups, like the US Chamber of Commerce.
“There are ways that I think they should navigate somewhat differently,” Hoffman said in response to a question about the Biden-Harris administration’s tax and tariff moves. “But what’s most important for business is stability of the country. Unity. Rule of law. A percent difference in corporate tax, or 2% or 3% difference in corporate taxes, is far, far less important.”
Hoffman has argued that former President Donald Trump, on the other hand, does not respect the rule of law and would pose a threat to business.
The Trump campaign did not directly respond to Hoffman’s recent comments. In a statement last month, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung slammed Hoffman in a statement to CNN as a “protégé of George Soros” and made other attacks on his character.
Mark Cuban for VP?
The LinkedIn co-founder faced criticism earlier this month after the assassination attempt against Trump. Before the shooting, Hoffman reportedly had a public quarrel with fellow tech billionaire Peter Thiel. Thiel accused Hoffman of making a martyr of Trump by funding lawsuits against the former president. Hoffman told Thiel he wished he had made Trump an “actual martyr.”
“I definitely regret having echoed the word martyr, which was pitched to me from the audience, and I echoed it. That was a mistake,” Hoffman told CNN. “It’s super important that we all as leaders strongly speak against physical violence in democracies and politics and everything else. I deeply regret having echoed that word.”
Asked about his preference for a Harris VP pick, Hoffman argued that Democrats have an “amazing bench” to select from, specifically mentioning Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
Hoffman said having two women on the ticket would be “awesome” and a way to show the party’s dedication to women’s rights.
Asked about the prospect of Harris tapping a business leader like billionaire Mark Cuban, Hoffman said it would be “awesome and bold” to have a business leader on the ticket as a way for Harris to make her mark.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
