President Trump said he ‘didn’t make that decision’ to potentially force AT&T and Time Warner to sell CNN

President Donald Trump appeared to stress that he had not intervened in AT&T’s bid to buy Time Warner — nor did he seek to require that the companies sell CNN in order to obtain the US government’s approval of the deal. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, President Trump said he “didn’t make that decision — it was made by a man who’s a very respected person, a very, very respected person.” The “decision” appears to refer to reports that the Justice Department would seek to block the merger, unless AT&T sold off assets perhaps including CNN, and the person that President Trump highlights is likely Makan Delrahim, the antitrust chief at DOJ. “I did make a comment as to what I think,” President Trump also acknowledged. Previously, the president has blasted AT&T and Time Warner’s merger plans — and during the 2016 election, he threatened to block the companies from combining under his watch. “I do feel you should have as many news outlets as you can — especially since so many are fake,” President Trump continued. He concluded: “I didn't make a statement, but I did make a statement long before. So we’ll see — that probably ends up being litigation, maybe not, we’ll see how it all plays out.”