SHADY REGULATORS? -- Could the revolving door shape the antitrust enforcement for the proposed merger between Comcast and Time Warner? A number of key officials responsible for overseeing antitrust enforcement are closely tied with Comcast. * ATWELL BAKER: When Comcast purchased NBC Universal, lobbyists were hired to ensure the merger. After signing off on the Comcast-NBC deal, FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker was hired by Comcast for an undisclosed amount. * WILLIAM BAER: The recently installed head of the Department of Justice Antitrust Division, William Baer, was a lawyer representing GE and NBC in their push for the merger with Comcast. At the time, Baer was an attorney with the firm Arnold & Porter. Disclosures reviewed by Republic Report show that Baer will continue receiving payments from Arnold & Porter for the next eleven years as part of his retirement package. * MAUREEN OHLHAUSEN, one of four commissioners on the Federal Trade Commission, which oversees antitrust enforcement, provided legal counsel for Comcast as an attorney just before joining the FTC. She also represented NBC Universal in the year before before becoming a commissioner in April of 2012. NBC Universal completed its merger with Comcast in January of 2011. * JOSHUA WRIGHT began his term as an FTC Commissioner last month as a Republican member. Since 2009 he had worked for the economic consulting firm Charles River Associates where he secured “antitrust clearance from the DOJ and FCC” for NBC Universal’s merger with Comcast. In addition to his salary as a law professor, Wright earned nearly $900,000 consulting for various Charles River Associates clients. Comcast and Time Warner are major players in both Democrat and Republican parties. - See more at: republicreport.org/2014/comcast-antitrust-revolvingdoor/#sthash.rDdDkWIL.dpuf DENEICE KENEHAN OBSTRUCT PLUTOCRACY~ LIBERATE DEMOCRACY: AN OCCUPATION | FACEBOOK
Posted on: Sun, 23 Feb 2014 23:17:26 +0000
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