Paula Dwyer , Columnist

Politicians Overreact to AT&T-Time Warner Deal

Absent clear evidence of market power, regulators should stand back on the proposed merger.

October 25, 2016 at 11:30 AM UTC

Paula Dwyer is a senior editor with the New York editing hub, focusing on daily and long-form enterprise. She was London bureau chief for Businessweek and Washington economics editor for the New York Times, and is a co-author of “Take on the Street: How to Fight for Your Financial Future.

Big and bad aren't the same.
Photographer: Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images

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That didn't take long. No sooner did we learn of AT&T's $85 billion plan to acquire Time Warner Entertainment than the presidential candidates and members of Congress in both parties started to weigh in.

Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, wearing their populist stripes, want regulators to block it outright. Utah Senator Mike Lee, the Republican chairman of the Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust, and the panel's lead Democrat, Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, are promising hearings. Hillary Clinton "certainly thinks regulators should look at it," a spokesman says.