The Hill

AT&T, Time Warner extend deadline to finalize merger

AT&T and Time Warner are extending the termination date of their merger to April 22, 2018 now that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing to block their deal.  Despite the DOJ’s move to stop the merger, both companies are hopeful they’ll still be able to complete the $85 billion deal if they beat the agency’s lawsuit. “AT&T intends to vigorously contest the DOJ’s allegations and is confident that the Court will reject the DOJ’s challenge to the merger,” the company wrote in its SEC filing.

The public wins a DOJ-AT&T court battle, no matter the result

[Commentary] The Justice Department (DOJ) just filed a lawsuit over AT&T’s proposed acquisition of Time Warner. For a number of reasons, I think this is a good thing. In fact, it could be a really good thing, and that is true regardless of who wins in the end. Here’s why:

Reason 1: The antitrust agencies and the courts have given businesses a pretty clear framework of how to think about mergers between direct competitors, but this is not true when it comes to vertical mergers.

Reason 2: An AT&T loss might actually be good for CNN.

Former ethics adviser files complaint against Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway

The dispute over Roy Moore's Senate campaign has now led to a legal complaint against White House adviser Kellyanne Conway. Walter Shaub, a former government ethics official and frequent critic of President Donald Trump, said Conway's comments about Moore's Democratic challenger Doug Jones may be a violation of the Hatch Act, which forbids federal employees from getting involved in elections. Shaub said he filed a complaint with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel.  "She’s standing in front of the White House.

President Trump: AT&T-Time Warner merger 'not good for the country'

President Donald Trump said that AT&T's planned merger with Time Warner is "not good for the country."  Personally, I’ve always felt that that was a deal that’s not good for the country,” President Trump told reporters at the White House. The president's comments came a day after the Justice Department sued AT&T to block the $85 billion Time Warner merger, arguing that the deal would create a media behemoth and ultimately hurt U.S. consumers.

Sen Cardin Calls for Hearing on Trump Jr.'s Contact with Wikileaks

Sen Ben Cardin (D-MD) called for a congressional hearing into Donald Trump Jr.'s communications with WikiLeaks during the 2016 presidential campaign, saying the matter was "troublesome."  "This is extremely troublesome and it really does require a congressional hearing," Cardin, who is the Ranking Member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.  "First of all, we know that WikiLeaks has been working with Russia in regards to what happened in our election. Now we know there was communication between WikiLeaks and Donald Trump Jr.