(The Center Square) – States should be able to step in and protect consumers where the federal government has not, North Carolina’s attorney general says of a $14 billion settlement involving Hewlett Packard Enterprises’ acquisition of Juniper Networks.
First-term Democratic Attorney General Jeff Jackson, a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, said the government should “fight for Americans, not put the interests of corporate lobbyists ahead of consumers.”
“If,” he said, “as public reports suggest, the federal government has failed in its duty to protect competition and prevent monopolies, then the court should let the states step in to protect consumers.”
Known as United States of America v. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. and Juniper Networks Inc., the intervention filing seeks to stop a merger approved by the Department of Justice led by Attorney General Pam Bondi. Jackson said it could raise network infrastructure costs for businesses up to 14%.
Bondi’s department initially said it was bad for consumers and sought to block it. The reports Jackson refers to paint a picture of corporate lobbying on senior officials contradictory to career staff recommendations.
If the deal goes through, projections are for Hewlett Packard to be a better rival to market leader Cisco. North Carolina has a significant technology sector, including the largest campus of its kind in the nation in the Research Triangle Park.
A dozen other attorneys general are aligned with Jackson, including California Attorney General Rob Bonta. The intervention is filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California San Jose Division.
