| SEPTEMBER 2, 2011 -- The day after the U.S. Dept. of Justice filed suit against wireless provider AT&T, the National Grange has reaffirmed its commitment to AT&T's proposed acquisition of T-Mobile, citing the benefits to rural Americans with such a merger.
On Thursday, National President Ed Luttrell said at a time when the nation’s economy continues to struggle and unemployment remains at 9 percent, the National Grange believes that the Dept. of Justice has erred in determining to file a lawsuit against the AT&T and T-Mobile merger.
“Yesterday, AT&T announced returning 5,000 new jobs back to the U.S. and protecting current AT&T and T-Mobile call center jobs," Luttrell said.
"AT&T has made a commitment to building out its network to reach more than 97 percent of Americans and expand coverage to many rural communities and small towns. We believe this merger will increase affordable broadband access to our rural customers just as much today, as we did when the merger was announced," Luttrell said.
"We trust that in reviewing the proposal, the Federal Communications Commission will see that same validity.”
Established in 1867, the National Grange has more than 200,000 members in 2,700 communities throughout 40 states of the United States. The organization meets annually to develop its legislative policy for the coming year, and to recognize the talents of its members. This year, the national convention will be held Nov. 8 to 11 in Tulsa, Okla. |
