MADISON, Wis. – Today, Attorney General Brad Schimel announced he is leading a
bipartisan coalition of nine states, in support of a trial court’s decision to uphold the
AT&T/Time-Warner merger. President Trump’s U.S. Department of Justice has come
under broad, bipartisan criticism for bringing an unusual enforcement action to block
the merger.
“A trial court found this merger is going to save Americans – and Wisconsinites –
money on their cable bills, and will give consumers more choices,” said Attorney
General Schimel. “The federal government’s attack on this deal is completely
wrongheaded, and I’m proud to be leading a bipartisan coalition of States against this
action. No matter who is in power, I will defend Wisconsin against federal
government overreach.”
The trial court, after considering numerous witnesses and thousands of pages of
exhibits, concluded that the evidence demonstrated that this merger will save
consumers many millions of dollars, while giving them additional choices in a
landscape increasingly dominated by highly integrated entertainment companies like
Netflix and Amazon.
Wisconsin’s friend of the court brief is joined by Attorneys General of both political
parties, from the states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Mexico,
Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Utah.
