John Ashcroft blasts Sirius-XM merger, but wait…

Cory Bergman March 5th, 2007

Former Attorney General John Ashcroft is working as a lobbyist for the NAB in an effort to stop the merger between Sirius and XM Satellite Radio. He even sent a letter to his successor Alberto Gonzales explaining that it “raises most serious competition concerns.” But wait, XM says Ashcroft approached them first. “After the merger was announced, Mr. Ashcroft’s firm contacted us about hiring him to assist us,” said Nathaniel Brown, a spokesman for XM. “We declined. Apparently the National Association of Broadcasters opted to pay him to parrot their views.” (WSJ sub. req.)