You may have heard about the controversial $85.4 billion merger between cable provider Time Warner (TWX) and telecom giant AT&T (T). U.S. Lawmakers have heard about it, too, and are eager to put scrutinize the proposed deal in a hearing—but they have to get the right people to their chambers first.
A bipartisan group of senators on the Judiciary Committee called on former Time Warner Cable CEO Robert Marcus to attend a Dec. 7 hearing on the merger, which has raised anti-trust concerns and elicited a fair amount of criticism. But, as the Wall Street Journal notes, there’s one major problem with that: Time Warner Cable isn’t the right company.
The senators actually meant to invite Time Warner Inc. CEO Jeff Bewkes. What’s worse, Marcus hasn’t been Time Warner Cable’s CEO since the firm’s sale to Charter Communications (CHTR) in May.
But that didn’t stop Sens. Chuck Grassley, Patrick Leahy, Mike Lee, and Amy Klobuchar from sending out the following missive when announcing the hearing: “Both Randall Stephenson, the CEO of AT&T, and Robert Marcus, the CEO of Time Warner, will testify.”
It’s an honest mistake. But it’s probably something you want to double check right before a major antitrust hearing.