Washington Examiner economics columnist Tiana Lowe Doescher weighed in on the shutdown of Spirit Airlines, suggesting the collapse highlights broader problems with government intervention in the airline industry.
“I’m trying to think of a better example of the overzealousness of [Joe] Biden blocking [mergers and acquisitions] and how we are all worse off,” she said Monday on Newsmax’s The Right Squad. “Because now you have, guess what? The big four, who have an even bigger consolidation.”
Doescher pushed back on calls for government bailouts and defended a market-driven outcome.
“The thing with the bailout that everyone needs to understand is that it would not only prolong the inevitable,” she said. “The federal government, even when it’s a president I like, does not do a better job than the stakeholders.”
Spirit Airlines announced its immediate shutdown over the weekend, after 34 years of operations, ending its run as one of the most recognizable ultra-low-cost carriers in U.S. aviation. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pointed to the Biden administration’s decision to block the proposed JetBlue-Spirit merger, suggesting the move may have contributed to the airline’s failure.
She also pointed to the role of private stakeholders in protecting workers, noting, “The bondholders said we need to give these people healthcare and severance if you’re going to be laid off.”
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Her comments come as the airline’s collapse has fueled a wider political debate over regulation, consolidation, and whether federal intervention helps or harms struggling industries.
The airline’s collapse is expected to fuel further scrutiny of past regulatory decisions and their economic fallout.