Newly-installed Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson has announced that the agency is stamping out efforts to build diversity at the agency, saying he was "delivering on the promise that President Trump made to the American people."

Ferguson said that DEI -- diversity, equality and inclusion -- "is a scourge on our institutions." He said it "denies to all Americans the Constitutions promise of equality before the law.

"It divides people into castes on the basis of immutable characteristics, and treats them as caste members rather than as individuals. It stokes tensions by elevating race and other immutable characteristics above merit and excellence. It promotes invidious discrimination. And it violates federal and natural law," Ferguson said in a prepared statement.

Ferguson, a Republican who has served on thecommission since 2024, was officially designated FTC chair by Trump on January 20. He replaces Lina Kahn, a Democrat who built a reputation for aggressively prosecuting antitrust cases.

"I am dedicated to protecting all Americans from monopolists, from fraudsters, and from illegal online censorship,"Ferguson said in a posting on X.

He has a long history in law and government, including roles such as:

• Solicitor General of Virginia: From 2022 to 2024
• Chief Counsel to U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell: A key role advising the Republican leader in the Senate.
• Republican Counsel on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee
• Lawyer at various Washington, D.C. law firms

Ferguson earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Virginia. He is a former clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

"Dangerous ideology"

In his statement, Ferguson said the Biden-Harris Administration "reveled in this pernicious ideology. They encouraged it, and it has festered within the federal government for four years."

Ferguson said he has taken the following actions to "protect the FTCs employees and the American people from DEI:"

• Closed the FTCs DEI officethe Office of Workplace Inclusivity and Opportunityand has placed all employees within that office on administrative leave.
• Terminated the Diversity Council.
• Removed materials promoting DEI on the Commissions website.
• Ordered a review of all FTC contracts, which concluded that no FTC contracts currently in force contained DEI ideology.
• Ordered the heads of the Commissions Bureaus and Offices to conduct an internal audit by tomorrow to ensure total compliance with President Trumps orders, and to terminate any noncompliant programs immediately.
• Ordered an immediate review of all Commission orders to ensure that the Biden Administrations DEI dictates did not make their way into formal Commission decisions.
• Forbid the Commission from promoting DEI in any internal or external operations, rules, law-enforcement decisions, or hiring decisions.