According to a report from Politico, a White House-endorsed task force run by the Justice Department to go after COVID-19 price gougers and scam artists is running into interference from others in the White House who believe that the free market should be the arbiter of what is fair or not.

Earlier this year, as the country was swamped by the coronavirus pandemic that had the public sheltering at home and hospitals scrambling for enough personal protection equipment (PPE), the White House worked in concert with Attorney General Bill Barr to roll out a task force whose mission was to root out and prosecute individuals and companies indulging in price-gouging the much-needed medical supplies

However, when it came to time to go after and prosecute perpetrators, some officials at the White House urged caution and a go-slow approach that has hindered the task force members from following through.
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“Behind the scenes, according to people familiar with the discussions, some White House officials expressed reservations and concerns about the task force’s approach, and some disagreed with DOJ officials about how to use one particular legal authority,” Politico’s Betsy Woodruff Swan and Josh Gerstein wrote. “And now, three months after its inception, some advocates say the task force isn’t cracking down hard enough on Covid profiteers. DOJ spokespeople didn’t provide a list of price-gouging cases it has brought, and searches of department news releases reveal only a handful of cases.

According to one source with knowledge of the debate between the White House and Justice, “This was more of a philosophical dispute between people who wanted to go aggressively after those who were hoarding and gouging, and those more partial to letting the market sort it out,” before adding, “The White House folks had no involvement in charging decisions, but there is a degree of overlap with certain actions that need to be taken under the DPA [Defense Production Act], so there had to be some coordination.”

As a result, prosecutions have lagged.

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/0...gouging-348434