Democratic Senators Call For Pam Bondi To Recuse Herself From Warner Bros. Discovery Review
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) are calling on Attorney General Pam Bondi to recuse herself from any review of the Warner Bros. Discovery transaction because of her previous employment with D.C. lobbying firm Ballard Partners.
The senators wrote in a letter to Bondi that since her nomination as attorney general, “Ballard has taken on both Netflix and Paramount as clients. Disclosures from as recently as October confirm that Ballard continues to lobby for both companies, and the lobby shop was reportedly involved in the Paramount-Skydance merger earlier this year. Now, as both Netflix and Paramount vie for Warner Bros., Bondi is set to have significant involvement in the Trump administration’s review of either deal.”
They cited an ethics agreement that Bondi signed before she took the post. According to the document, Bondi agreed that, for a period of one year following her resignation from Ballard, she would “not participate personally and substantially in any particular matter involving specific parties in which I know Ballard Partners is a party or represents a party, unless I am first authorized to participate.” According to the letter from Warren and Blumenthal, that portion of the agreement expires on Feb. 4.
“DOJ must guarantee that any review of a potential Warner Bros. transaction is decided based
upon the law, not perverted by political favoritism and cronyism—particularly given the stakes
of this case for consumers,” the senators wrote.
The Antitrust Division, led by Gail Slater, will review any transaction. In a press release, the senators noted that a DOJ spokesperson indicated that Bondi will lead the Trump administration’s review of the merger, alongside Slater.
A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Warren has been a critic of Paramount and Netflix plans for an acquisition of all or part of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Warner Bros. Discovery agreed to sell its streaming and studio assets to Netflix. Paramount has launched a hostile offer for all of WBD, but the WBD board on Wednesday recommended that shareholders turn it down.
