On a high school trip in 1984, Christine Wilson traveled to several countries in the Soviet bloc, getting a peek behind the Iron Curtain that she would recall 34 years later as a Federal Trade Commission nominee.

Wilson, a former Delta Air Lines executive in charge of legal, regulatory and international, was named in January as one of the Trump administration's four picks to fill the FTC. Unlike the other nominees, her name had not been publicly floated as a potential pick before the administration announced its four selections in January.

Introducing herself to the Senate Commerce Committee, Wilson, formerly an antitrust partner at Kirkland & Ellis and O'Melveny & Myers, traced her career back to that formative high school trip in 1984.

Christine Wilson

“During that trip, I witnessed first-hand the consequences of an authoritarian government and a centrally planned economy, and finished that trip an ardent advocate for a market economy and personal liberty,” Wilson wrote in response to a question about her background and why she wants to serve as an FTC commissioner.

Wilson highlighted her time as chief of staff to former FTC chairman Tim Muris, now a senior counsel at Sidley Austin, who led the agency in the first half of the George W. Bush administration. She counted her time as Muris' chief of staff as “the most important experience of my professional career to date.”

In a separate portion of the questionnaire, Wilson said the FTC should keep up its close scrutiny of the health care sector. The FTC in recent years has challenged several proposed hospital mergers and also ordered divestitures as a condition for other health sector deals.

“The continuing growth of this sector, combined with significant concerns about health care costs, misuse of sensitive data, and burgeoning occupational licensing requirements, underscore the need for the FTC to maintain its focus on this industry,” Wilson wrote. “It is imperative for the FTC to continue increasing its understanding of how these developments affect patient choice and the quality of patient care, and how these changes should be incorporated into the commission's advocacy and enforcement efforts.”

According to the questionnaire and a review of federal campaign finance records, Wilson has consistently donated to Republican presidential candidates—but she did not contribute to Trump's campaign. In March 2016, she donated $2,700 to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz's presidential campaign. She previously donated to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's presidential bid and advised U.S. Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign on antitrust issues.

What follows are highlights from Senate questionnaires from the three other nominees—former Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison partner Joseph Simons; congressional lawyer Noah Phillips, chief counsel to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas; and Rohit Chopra of the Consumer Federation of America. The nominees are expected to appear Feb. 14 at the Senate Commerce Committee for their confirmation hearings.

Hey, Joe, we thought you left Paul Weiss? Well, not exactly. Just because Simons has departed Paul Weiss doesn't immediately end his ties there. Simons told the Senate: “Pursuant to the firm's partnership agreement and the firm's handbook, I have been provided an office, secretarial services, access to a computer and computer services, and the ability to participate in the firm's health insurance plan. Upon confirmation, I will forgo all of these benefits.” Simons was formerly co-chair of the antitrust team at the firm, where he worked from 2003 to Dec. 31, 2017. Previously, he was a partner at Clifford Chance in Washington from 1998 to 2001. Simons was an associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom from 1985 to 1987, and an associate at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz from 1989 to 1994.

Chopra spotlights big data as one of the three biggest challenges facing the agency. “Big data is offering new opportunities in almost every sector of the economy. At the same time, it raises important questions with respect to consumer protection, privacy and competition that require thoughtful examination.” Chopra also said the FTC should expect to be busy. Despite expectations of rising interest rates, he said, merger activity is “likely to be robust” in light of strong corporate earnings. “The macroeconomic environment has significant implications for the type of work the commission can expect to address in the upcoming years,” he wrote. “The commission must ensure that it has a clear view into the broader economic environment.”

Phillips answered “yes” to whether he'd ever been arrested. As a sophomore at Dartmouth College, Phillips was arrested for underage drinking. He told the Senate: “My roommates and I were not yet 21, and the Hanover Police Department (HPB) shut down the party following a complaint. I was arrested for the unlawful possession of alcohol. The charges were dropped following my participation in the HPD's Alcohol Diversion Program.”

OK, but some more meaty stuff about Phillips, a 2005 Stanford Law School graduate: His Big Law ties are strong. Phillips was an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore from 2006 to 2010, and an associate for a year at Steptoe & Johnson LLP from 2010 to 2011. At Cravath, Phillips handled fraud and antitrust matters, among other issues. “I supervised teams of junior attorneys, accountants and support staff on a variety of matters, including litigation and internal investigations.” Phillips told the Senate: “The FTC's antitrust, consumer protection and public education missions are as important to the American economy as ever. Technology and business practices are evolving rapidly, public discussion about antitrust is growing loudly and Americans are grappling with increasing healthcare costs and new realities of data privacy.”

Simons wants the FTC to look at whether merger enforcement has been too soft. “Significant concerns have been raised that the federal antitrust agencies have been too permissive in dealing with mergers and acquisitions, resulting in harm to consumer welfare via increased prices, limited consumer choice and harm to workers.” He added: “Even if the evidence shows no such failure, it would be good practice to evaluate more systematically the commission's merger enforcement program through the regular use of retrospective studies to prevent potential problems in the future.”

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