Photo Credit: Trump and Kid Rock in the Oval Office / The White House
Reports reveal that Donald Trump personally called around pushing the Justice Department to settle its Live Nation-Ticketmaster antitrust lawsuit.
After the Department of Justice suddenly reached a settlement with Live Nation and Ticketmaster in the federal antitrust lawsuit filed against the companies when Joe Biden was still in office, critics wondered what went wrong—especially when the trial’s first week seemed like a slam dunk. Rumors surfaced in the weeks leading up to the trial that a backroom deal was being negotiated, but now sources have revealed that it was Donald Trump himself who pushed for a settlement.
According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, Trump became particularly interested in the case after a call from Hollywood talent agent and former Live Nation board member Ari Emanuel, who told the president it should be settled. Notably, Emanuel is also the CEO of sports and entertainment company TKO Group Holdings, the parent company of mixed martial arts promotion UFC and wrestling promotion WWE.
Once the trial kicked off, Trump allegedly took Emanuel’s suggestion to heart and started calling around, asking why the case hadn’t been settled. Sources said that once both sides met at the White House on March 5, they reached a settlement that same day.
While the terms of the deal should make it easier for rival promoters to compete for business in the Live Nation-dominated market, it also prevented Live Nation and Ticketmaster from being forcibly broken up.
It also left musician Kid Rock with egg on his face after he rallied behind the president in what he thought was a movement against unfair ticketing practices. He even joined Trump in the Oval Office last year to sign an executive order to help mitigate ticket scalping. The “Bawitdaba” singer told The New York Times he was shocked by the Live Nation settlement.
“I don’t understand why they would negotiate a settlement,” he told the outlet. “Why not just let it see its course? Let’s see what 12 people decide.”
Naturally, lawmakers have been similarly taken aback by the deal, citing that such a settlement casts a shadow on the rule of law when it comes to antitrust cases.
“You really couldn’t send a clearer message that antitrust is dead at the federal level than settling this particular case,” said former Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission official John Newman.
