FTC Departs From ABA, Ending Government Support For The Legal Group

The Federal Trade Commission has announced it will no longer recognize the American Bar Association as a neutral legal institution, blocking its appointees from engaging with the organization and ending federal funding for ABA activities. FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said the decision was necessary due to the ABA’s overt political bias and financial conflicts of interest.

The move follows a recent ABA statement that accused the Trump administration of undermining the rule of law. The organization specifically criticized efforts to reform USAID, limit diversity programs, and reduce the size of federal agencies. Ferguson pushed back, arguing that the ABA’s statement was politically motivated and failed to disclose its own financial stake in USAID’s survival.

According to Ferguson, the ABA received more than $39 million in government contracts last year, including grants from USAID and the State Department. He suggested that its opposition to Trump’s reforms was not about protecting legal norms but about protecting its own revenue.

Sen. Mike Lee supported the decision, stating that the ABA has long served as a partisan institution rather than an objective legal body. He also questioned why the Senate Judiciary Committee continues to rely on ABA evaluations when they have consistently worked against conservative judicial nominees.

Elon Musk added his voice to the criticism, labeling the ABA a “far-left political organization.” With the FTC leading the charge, there is speculation that other agencies may follow suit in severing ties with the ABA and limiting its influence over government policy.

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