Margrethe Vestager is the European Union antitrust enforcer who’s earned global recognition for pushing Silicon Valley giants like Apple, Google and Facebook to treat consumers and competitors fairly.
Last month she put herself in the running to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker as president of the European Commission. That makes her a Spitzenkandidat, a German word that is EU jargon for being one of the lead candidates for Mr. Juncker’s job.
This conversation with Vestager is from an edited recording of a live event that was held on April 2 and organised by Res Publica Europa, a group of EU officials venturing beyond their civil service day jobs to defend the EU project.
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The discussion was a chance to push Vestager for her stance on topics that are cornerstones of a progressive agenda such as climate protection, the rise of far-right nationalism, the power of social media platforms and tax justice. It also was an opportunity to hear about some of her other preferences. Beatles versus Rolling Stones, for starters.
