Key senators are weighing whether to hold additional hearings on a slew of corporate megamergers under review by the Department of Justice.
A federal judge’s rejection of the department’s challenge to the AT&T-Time Warner merger has fueled speculation that a new wave of acquisitions could join deals already proposed in the healthcare, content and telecommunications industries. How the government responds to the transactions, including the proposed combination of Sprint and T-Mobile, may well define antitrust enforcement under the Trump administration.
The Senate Judiciary Committee’s antitrust panel recently called in top executives from both companies to defend the landmark takeover, which would shrink the mobile communications industry to three major carriers. In the aftermath, Republican subcommittee Chairman Mike Lee of Utah and Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, the top Democrat on the panel, are considering hearings on more of the mergers.
Klobuchar, who confirmed the discussions on Tuesday, declined to say what deals the two may examine. The Senate lacks the authority to approve or deny a merger, but Klobuchar says the hearings can force company executives to answer questions they may otherwise only address in private discussions with the federal government.
“It gives the public a chance, and other people outside of the Justice Department a chance, to hear about the deal,” she said.
Among the major deals under review by the Trump administration are proposed acquisitions in the healthcare industry between CVS Health and Aetna as well as Express Scripts and Cigna. The Justice Department recently threatened to block Walt Disney Company’s attempts to purchase key 21st Century Fox assets unless Disney divests its regional sports networks.
[More: Disney ups bid for 21st Century Fox to $71.3 billion]
