A 'Biden Win' Proves to be a Loss for Spirit Airlines

Corporate America has been witnessing a meteoric rise in mergers and acquisitions over the past couple of years. Megadeals have generated some finger-wagging in Washington. While consolidations can have drawbacks, they are often necessary. Case in point: Spirit Airlines. The ultra-low-cost budget airline shuttered its doors after a rescue plan fell through, but it did not have to be this way. A merger a couple of years ago could have saved the carrier, right, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)?

‘Biden Win’? Not for Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines announced on May 2 that it will shut down all operations after failing to secure a government bailout. “It is with great disappointment that Spirit Airlines has started winding down its global operations, effective immediately,” the budget carrier wrote on X. “All flights have been cancelled, and customer service is no longer available.”

The closure was not exactly surprising. It had been hemorrhaging cash since the coronavirus pandemic, losing approximately $25 billion, and filing for bankruptcy in 2024 and 2025. The stock has also cratered about 87% over the last five years, with a market cap of a paltry $29.6 million. The spike in jet fuel prices was speculated to be the final nail in the company’s coffin.

The only way Spirit Airlines could have been saved was through the federal government. In recent weeks, there had been hope Uncle Sam would come to its rescue. President Donald Trump teased on CNBC last month that Washington could aid the company, and the administration had drafted a $500 million plan to prevent the budget carrier from folding and save 14,000 jobs.

“We’re looking at trying to help them. It’s something we’re not looking to get involved with, but if we can, it’s 14,000 jobs,” President Trump told reporters before departing to Florida for the weekend. “I would say we are driving a tough deal, but it’s one of those things. We will do it or we won’t.”

At a Saturday press conference, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the president was examining all possible options to save the business, but a creditor issue had negatively affected a potential deal. However, even if this were not a roadblock, Duffy suggested it might not have even happened anyway due to the price tag.

"Also from the government’s perspective, we oftentimes don’t have a half a billion dollars laying around in a spare account that we can put into a bailout of an airline. So there was creative thinking on how it could happen. Those two things never materialized," he said.

Now, let the finger-pointing and blame game commence!

Elizabeth Warren’s Memory

Sen. Warren took the opportunity to blame President Trump for Spirit's collapse, forgetting about what she had said a couple of years ago. “Spiking fuel prices from Trump’s war was the nail in the coffin for twice-bankrupted Spirit airline,” Warren wrote in a May 2 post on X.

The former presidential candidate was quick to forget that she was vocal about blocking JetBlue's $3.8 billion merger attempt with Spirit Airlines. Warren, as well as the Biden administration, had argued that the move would have raised prices and reduced industry competition. A judge blocked the deal in 2024, with Warren calling it a "Biden win."

"I’ve warned for months that a @JetBlue-@SpiritAirlines merger would have led to fewer flights and higher fares," Warren wrote in a March 2024 X post. "@JusticeATR and @USDOT were right to stand up for consumers and fight against runaway airline consolidation. This is a Biden win for flyers!"

Republican lawmakers, from Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), were quick to point out the hypocrisy. "Electing left politicians, who have ZERO business experience, has consequences," Moreno said. The progressive senator pushed back, noting that the judge had ruled the merger illegal. "Republicans are desperate to shift blame from higher costs hitting families," she wrote on the social media platform.

Two Ears, One Mouth

The US economy thrives on its dynamism, with hundreds of thousands of businesses across the country. If you were starting a company today, you would aim to do it in the United States. This does not mean consolidation is contradictory to a free-enterprise system, though government intervention and regulation can create the need for consolidating. Over the years, a broad array of economic literature suggests that mergers and acquisitions typically support economies of scale, improve capital access, reduce productivity costs, and create value through synergies.

Politicians like to weigh in on every issue under the sun. It is what they do. Just because they have the means to do so, it does not necessarily mean they should. In an age where the internet is forever and every social media post lives on, elected officials might be better served staying quiet. Perhaps sticking to the good old-fashioned whataboutism back-and-forth game is best.