Editorial Board
Justice Has a Case on AT&T/Time Warner
Challenging the merger is a break from the past, but the DOJ's argument has merit.
Seeking synergies.
Photographer: Amir Levy/Getty ImagesThe Justice Department’s new head of antitrust enforcement, Makan Delrahim, is getting plenty of grief for his surprise decision to challenge the merger of AT&T and Time Warner. He's been accused of stretching the law “beyond the breaking point,” and of helping President Donald Trump act on his long-running grudge against Time Warner’s flagship news network, CNN.
Actually, Justice is to be commended for spelling out its rationale and making a compelling case -- something it had failed to do in the run-up to the announcement. A big point in its favor: Consistently applied, this new thinking on anti-trust could in fact reduce the need for other kinds of antitrust regulation.