Elizabeth Warren wants DOT to block JetBlue-Spirit merger
- Dan Primack, author of Axios Pro Rata
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is asking the U.S. Department of Transportation to block JetBlue's $3.8 billion takeover of budget carrier Spirit Airways.
Why it matters: Antitrust is normally the purview of the DOJ or FTC, but this is a reminder that DOT has special authority to block airline mergers that it finds aren't in the public interest. No court case required.
Reality check: Warren has publicly opposed plenty of mergers that have gone through.
Primary sources: Read Warren's letter to DOT.
More, per Bloomberg: "Warren cited Spirit's own analysis that a JetBlue deal raises antitrust concerns as evidence the agency should find the deal is against the public interest. The airline prepared the analysis for investors in May as shareholders considered competing bids from JetBlue and Frontier."