If nothing else, the politics of AT&T's (NYSE: T) proposed $39 billion merger with T-Mobile USA should be fun to watch.
Most mergers favor big business interests and therefore get Republican support and Democrat opposition. The best and most recent example of that is Comcast's (Nasdaq: CMCSA) takeover of NBCUniversal. AT&T, on the other hand, might be opposed by Republicans--or at least favored with distaste--and supported by Democrats because the merged company would swell the ranks of the Communications Workers of America (CWA).
T-Mobile employees are not unionized, but AT&T workers are. "CWA is very influential in certain states and this might increase their political muscle in certain places where they are powerful, like New Jersey," according to City College of New York political science professor Daniel DiSalvo.
For more:
- The Hill has this story
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