Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) October 12, asked the Justice Department’s antitrust chief to recuse himself from the agency’s review of AT&T and Time Warner’s proposed tie-up.
So far, Makan Delrahim has refused to commit to a recusal.
Before being named assistant attorney general of the DOJ’s antitrust division, Makan Delrahim told a Canadian TV station that he thinks the proposed US$85.4 billion merger doesn’t pose a “major antitrust problem” because it doesn’t involve direct competitors.
Warren said she’s concerned by Delrahim’s comments about the merger, which she says “implies an underappreciation of the impact of a merger of that size on the media market.”
In a letter to Delrahim, Warren revealed that Delrahim refused to commit to stepping aside from the investigation in a September 6 meeting. “Your refusal to recuse yourself will undermine public confidence in the division’s ability to reach an unbiased final decision in the matter,” Warren said.
Antitrust officials sometimes remove themselves from investigations that pose a conflict, such as mergers involving companies that are former clients. According to lobbying disclosures, Delrahim has never formally lobbied for either AT&T or Time Warner.
Full Content: Reuters & Bloomberg
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
Court Order Temporarily Halts U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Layoffs
Feb 16, 2025 by
CPI
Nokia Poised to Gain EU Approval for $2.3 Billion Infinera Acquisition
Feb 16, 2025 by
CPI
Turkey Fines Frito-Lay in Antitrust Crackdown
Feb 16, 2025 by
CPI
Advances Bill to Strengthen Antitrust Enforcement Through AI
Feb 16, 2025 by
CPI
Intel Faces Potential Breakup as Broadcom and TSMC Explore Deals
Feb 16, 2025 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – International Criminal Enforcement
Jan 23, 2025 by
CPI
The Antitrust Division’s Recent Work to Combat International Cartels
Jan 23, 2025 by
Emma Burnham & Benjamin Christenson
Information Sharing: The New Frontier of U.S. Antitrust Enforcement
Jan 23, 2025 by
Brian P. Quinn, Casey Kovarik & Michael Tubach
The Key Role of Guidelines on Exchanges of Information Among Competitors and the Divergent Transatlantic Paths
Jan 23, 2025 by
Rosa Abrantes-Metz & Albert Metz
Leniency, Whistleblowers, and Compliance
Jan 23, 2025 by
Richard Powers, Tara O’Malley & Cory Gordon