[advance_copy]

The settlement of the antitrust case (The Modification of Final Judgment or "MFJ" as it became known) occurred under Reagon's DoJ, but the case was actually filed under Carter.

The initial lawsuit was filed in 1974 by the Ford DOJ. It was the result of a 1969 Nixon administration investigation of the FDR legacy telephone monopoly. Carter continued it (he would have paid dearly if he had withdrawn it because Americans were sick of AT&T by then). But the MFJ would likely NOT have broken up the monopoly (just as the 1949 lawsuit didn't) without Reagan's DOJ. The 1982 agreement, which ended the lawsuit, between AT&T and the U.S. was a voluntary one, that Judge Greene encapsulated in the final order (MFJ).

[Martin Tell]

Thanks for refreshing my recollection that the antitrust suit was earlier (these suits can stretch for many years); I think it may have even started under Nixon's DoJ. There was bad blood between Nixon and AT&T going back to the 1968 campaign. The Humphrey campaign had run up a hugh (huge) telephone bill that AT&T subsequently forgave. Nixon wanted revenge and hence the antitrust lawsuit. At least that's what I heard.

The politics of the phone wars are often hard to figure. The most anti-Bell politician I was aware of was Senator Hollings (D-Disney & WorldCom). Other Dems are pro-Bell. Senator Stevens (R-Alaska) is seen as pro-Bell. John McCain has taken money from all sides. An examination of the donations reported on opensecrets.org is very interesting.

[Martin Tell]

I found the following about the date of the antitrust suit in the debate on the 1996 Act, (from Senator Dorgan (North Dakota)):

The fact is the Department of Justice has promoted competition in the telecommunications industry under both Republican and Democratic administrations. The AT&T investigation began under the Nixon administration. The suit was filed under the Ford administration. It was pursued through the Carter administration, and it was settled during the Reagan administration. On a bipartisan basis, the Department of Justice, I think, has stood up for the interests of the American consumer, attempting to require and impose a competitive test.