Democrats preview how they’d go after the Ticketmaster settlement if they regain power
Democrats preview how they’d go after the Ticketmaster settlement if they regain power
民主党人预演若重掌权力将如何处理 Ticketmaster 和解协议
A handful of Democrats called an unofficial hearing on Capitol Hill Monday to slam the Department of Justice’s “trivial” and “pathetic” settlement with Live Nation-Ticketmaster, previewing how they might go after Trump administration antitrust deals if they win back congressional power in November. 周一，几位民主党人在国会山召开了一场非正式听证会，猛烈抨击司法部与 Live Nation-Ticketmaster 达成的“微不足道”且“可悲”的和解协议，并预演了如果他们在 11 月夺回国会控制权，将如何针对特朗普政府的反垄断交易采取行动。
While the DOJ settlement with Live Nation, which came one week into trial and with a promise of up to $280 million, received copious pushback, Democrats don’t at the moment have the power in either chamber to set committee agendas. That meant that Monday’s so-called shadow hearing looked different than most official proceedings. 尽管司法部与 Live Nation 达成的和解协议（在庭审一周后达成，承诺赔偿最高 2.8 亿美元）遭到了大量抵制，但民主党目前在参众两院均无权设定委员会议程。这意味着周一这场所谓的“影子听证会”与大多数正式程序有所不同。
Instead of sitting at the elevated seats behind the dais, the lawmakers sat at tables below, eye level with witnesses including California Attorney General Rob Bonta, one of the AGs continuing the fight against Live Nation-Ticketmaster, ousted Trump administration antitrust official Roger Alford, and several entertainment industry players, including a member of the band The Hold Steady. Several artists asked to appear at the forum declined out of fear for their livelihoods, according to House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD), who co-hosted the forum with Senate Homeland Security permanent subcommittee on investigations Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). 议员们没有坐在讲台后的高位上，而是坐在下方的桌子旁，与证人平视。证人包括加州总检察长罗伯·邦塔（Rob Bonta，他是继续对抗 Live Nation-Ticketmaster 的总检察长之一）、被特朗普政府解职的反垄断官员罗杰·阿尔福德（Roger Alford），以及包括乐队 The Hold Steady 成员在内的几位娱乐业人士。据众议院司法委员会民主党首席议员杰米·拉斯金（Jamie Raskin）称，几位受邀出席论坛的艺人因担心生计而拒绝了邀请。拉斯金与参议院国土安全常设调查小组委员会民主党首席议员理查德·布卢门撒尔（Richard Blumenthal）共同主持了此次论坛。
While their statements won’t be formally entered into the congressional record, the forum gave Democrats a way to publicize their concerns, which included that the DOJ’s deal was the result of undue corporate influence. “This isn’t like some kind of pickup game,” Raskin told reporters. “The corruption permeates the administration so much that we have to start building the record because it’s such an overwhelming task. We will be using the products of all of these shadow hearings to figure out where to go.” As a signal of the significance of the forum, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) delivered opening remarks to kick it off. 虽然他们的陈述不会被正式录入国会记录，但该论坛为民主党人提供了一种宣传其担忧的途径，其中包括司法部的协议是不当企业影响的结果。“这不像是一场随意的比赛，”拉斯金对记者说。“腐败在政府中渗透得如此之深，以至于我们必须开始建立记录，因为这是一项艰巨的任务。我们将利用所有这些影子听证会的成果来决定下一步的行动。”作为该论坛重要性的一个信号，参议院少数党领袖查克·舒默（Chuck Schumer）发表了开幕致辞。
The lawmakers pointed to the states’ resounding victory in the jury verdict as evidence that the DOJ’s settlement fell far short of what a good faith deal would include, charging it was a result of corruption. On the 11-page verdict form, jurors checked “yes” on every question about whether the states proved their claims. The DOJ has stood by its deal as a win for consumers. The deal will still need to undergo a Tunney Act review, which is meant to ensure that it’s in the public interest. 议员们指出，各州在陪审团裁决中取得的巨大胜利证明，司法部的和解协议远未达到善意协议应有的标准，并指责这是腐败的结果。在 11 页的裁决书上，陪审员对关于各州是否证明了其主张的每一个问题都勾选了“是”。司法部则坚持认为该协议是消费者的胜利。该协议仍需经过《通尼法案》（Tunney Act）的审查，以确保其符合公共利益。
Judges are typically loath to reject a settlement, which is why Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) has proposed legislation to strengthen the standard. But Alford, who was fired from the DOJ and later spoke out about opposing lobbyist influence in antitrust deals, said this could be the rare case where the judge may reject the DOJ’s agreement, given that the same judge is now tasked with coming up with appropriate remedies to resolve Live Nation’s monopoly, potentially including a breakup. 法官通常不愿驳回和解协议，这就是为什么参议员艾米·克洛布查尔（Amy Klobuchar）提议立法以加强相关标准。但曾被司法部解雇、后来公开反对游说者对反垄断交易施加影响的阿尔福德表示，这可能是法官驳回司法部协议的罕见案例，因为同一位法官现在负责制定解决 Live Nation 垄断问题的适当补救措施，其中可能包括拆分。
“Divestiture, it’s the nuclear option” “资产剥离，这是核选项”
Bonta said the states’ breakup request, expected to be formally submitted this week, may go beyond a separation of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. They’re also considering asking for at least partial divestitures of parts of Live Nation’s venue or artist management businesses. “Divestiture, it’s the nuclear option. We believe it’s warranted, but we want to be thoughtful how we ask this judge for an appropriate remedy,” he told reporters. 邦塔表示，各州预计将于本周正式提交的拆分请求可能不仅限于将 Live Nation 和 Ticketmaster 分离。他们还在考虑要求至少部分剥离 Live Nation 的场馆或艺人管理业务。“资产剥离是核选项。我们认为这是有必要的，但我们希望在向法官请求适当补救措施时保持审慎，”他告诉记者。
“Opinions shared yesterday misrepresent how the live events industry operates,” Live Nation’s executive vice president of corporate and regulatory affairs, Dan Wall, said in a statement. “Secondary ticketing and high-demand onsales are industry-wide challenges that exist across every promoter, venue, and ticketing platform. That’s precisely why Live Nation and Ticketmaster have long supported industry-wide resale reform, including price caps and stronger consumer protections, while continuing to invest in tools that help artists manage demand and protect fans.” Live Nation 企业与监管事务执行副总裁丹·沃尔（Dan Wall）在一份声明中表示：“昨天分享的观点歪曲了现场活动行业的运作方式。二级票务和高需求销售是整个行业面临的挑战，存在于每一家推广商、场馆和票务平台中。这正是 Live Nation 和 Ticketmaster 长期支持全行业转售改革的原因，包括价格上限和更强有力的消费者保护，同时继续投资于帮助艺人管理需求和保护粉丝的工具。”
Live Nation has promised to appeal the jury verdict, and even before it does it’s possible the judge will deny the states the full extent of the remedies they ask for. But Monday’s forum showed that even if that happens, Democrats will likely remain fixated on how the deal came together in the first place. Live Nation 已承诺对陪审团的裁决提出上诉，甚至在提出上诉之前，法官也可能拒绝各州要求的全部补救措施。但周一的论坛表明，即使这种情况发生，民主党人很可能仍会紧盯着该协议最初是如何达成的。