Today's Quote 10.12.06

"The Justice Department has packed its bags and walked out on consumers and small businesses by refusing to impose even a single condition in the largest telecom merger the nation has ever seen," FCC Commissioner Michael Copps complained in a statement. Because the Justice Department did not issue a consent decree, or a settlement with the parties, a combined AT&T-BellSouth would not be subject to an automatic judicial review. "This abdication looks suspiciously like an end-run around the public interest review" required under antitrust law, Copps charged. His views were echoed by the FCC's other Democratic member, Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, who issued a statement characterizing the department's conclusions as "a reckless abandonment of [Justice's] responsibility to protect competition and consumers."