The administrative state is out of control. Many of you have read my threads about the gross overreach of the SEC, but it is not the only agency that acts as though it has unlimited power and jurisdiction. So too, does the FTC.
Before @elonmusk bought Twitter, the FTC entered into a privacy settlement w/ Twitter. Since, Musk bought Twitter, the FTC has, allegedly, pushed the bounds of the settlement, seeking to not only punish Twitter, but to dictate the judgment of independent auditors.
As part of the privacy settlement, the independent audit firm, Ernest & Young, was engaged to confirm that Twitter was complying with its obligations with the settlement. Independent is the key word here - independent auditors are supposed to design proceeders and execute...
audits without the influence of outside parties and without having the results of those audits dictated to them by the audit parties.
In a deposition of one of the EY auditors, as described in a motion filed by a Musk-controlled party, said:
"Mr. Roque testified that the FTC's conduct made him 'fe[el] as if the FTC was trying to influence the outcome of the engagement before it had started.' 'In some of the discussions... with the FTC, expectations were being conveyed about what those results should be...
before we had even begun any procedures.'
According to Mr. Roque, he felt that the FTC was attempting to 'influence' EY to reach the conclusion that 'there were deficiencies in Twitter's privacy and information security program.'
He was so concerned by the FTC's communications that he and his colleagues discussed whether the agency threatened to become an' adverse threat' to EY's independence or a party 'outside of the arrangement we had with Twitter trying to influence the outcome of our results.'"
An agency of the Federal Government does not have authority to dictate the procedures or outcomes of independent audits. To do so, flys in the face of the purpose of hiring independent auditors in the first place, and is evidence that the agency has pre-determined an outcome.
I take no position in Twitter's/Musk's dispute the FTC. But, I take strong position that federal agencies have run off the rails and must be reeled in. They are not legislators or courts. Their jurisdiction is limited, just as the actions they may take.
Congress must hold all agencies accountable to the people and ensure that they do not overreach, especially when overreach is driven by partisan politics and pre-determined outcomes.