Welcome, this is Anastasia Glova with the Cato Daily Podcast for Thursday, June 29th.

Taking a cue from Microsoft's legal troubles in the 1990s, the search engine giant

Google does not intend to remain a sitting duck for antitrust lawyers and regulators.

So reports of Washington Post story last week documenting Google's new lobbying presence in Washington.

Is it a smart move for Google?

Our guest today, Kata's Executive Vice President David Boz thinks not.

A Washington Post story about Google last week President David Bowes thinks not.

A Washington Post story about Google last week reports, quote,

Microsoft was so disdainful of the federal government back then

that it had almost no presence in Washington.

Largely because of that neglect, the company

was blindsided by a government antitrust lawsuit

that cost a dearly, end quote.

Has Google made the same mistake in having

no lobbying shop in DC up until recently?

Well, I think that's just typical of the Washington establishment's view of all this.

They think everything revolves around Washington, and so they think if you don't have a lobbying presence in

Washington that you're doing something wrong. I think it's completely

different. I think companies ought to stay out on the West Coast, make

interesting things, invent stuff, innovate, bring it to the consumer, and leave

Washington alone.

Now, did they make a mistake in not having a lobbying shop?

...