Attorney General William Tong wants to break up big tech.
He told New Haven Democrats that if elected to a third term, he would address the cost-of-living crisis by pressing forward on lawsuits against large companies like Apple, Meta, and Nexstar Media Group.
On Monday, Tong pitched that anti-trust agenda to the city’s Democratic Town Committee (DTC) at the Betsy Ross Parish House on Kimberly Avenue. His speech took place just days after a federal jury ruled in favor of Tong and a coalition of 33 other state attorneys general on a lawsuit contesting the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster.
Tong is a highly influential attorney general who over the last two years has filed more than 40 lawsuits against the Trump administration. A Hartford-area native, he was recently elected to lead the National Association of Attorneys General, a nonpartisan forum of all state attorneys general.
Tong, a Democrat, has been the state’s attorney general since 2018. Westport attorney John Bolton, a Republican, is his only challenger so far this election year. Next month, 2,000 delegates will gather in Hartford to decide whether the party should formally nominate Tong for a third four-year term.
In Connecticut, the state attorney general is in charge of filing civil suits on behalf of the government and often in conjunction with other states. While they do not handle criminal litigation, the attorney general plays a leading role in addressing concerns around consumer protection, financial fraud, immigrant rights, and environmental protection.
During Monday’s DTC meeting, Tong acknowledged how expensive life has become, citing how an order of pizza and zucchini fritters in Stamford recently cost him over $78. He promised to target companies that exert monopoly power to raise prices on consumers.
He also touted his record on antitrust legislation, pointing to past victories against Google and generic prescription makers. Click here, here, and here to read about his current suits against Apple, Meta, and Nexstar Media Group.
Later in his speech, Tong criticized the federal government’s efforts to cut funding to public schools with DEI policies and restrict services at Fair Haven Community Health Care, a federally qualified health center.
Tong, a vocal critic of the Trump administration, was recently named in a federal lawsuit contesting local and state policies that limit cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The Trump administration sued “because we dared to do what the policy of Connecticut and the law says we must do, which is respect, honor, and defend immigrants and immigrant families,” said Tong. The room burst into applause.
Discover more from InnerCity News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
