Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., is under fire after Spirit Airlines abruptly shuttered, with critics citing her claim that blocking a merger that could have saved the struggling carrier was a “Biden win for travelers.”
Spirit announced early Saturday that it would cease operations immediately, cancel all flights and close customer service, leaving many travelers stranded.
The collapse reignites debate over whether federal regulators made a mistake in blocking the proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit, with opponents now arguing that the decision may have reduced competition and contributed to the airline’s downfall.
“I’ve warned for months that the @JetBlue and SpiritAirlines merger would have resulted in fewer flights and higher prices,” Warren wrote in a March 2024 post on
Biden administration officials made similar arguments at the time. “The Department of Justice demonstrated in court that the merger between JetBlue and Spirit would have caused tens of millions of travelers to face higher prices and fewer choices,” former Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a March 2024 statement. “Today’s JetBlue decision is another victory for the Department of Justice’s work on behalf of American consumers,” he added.
Then-Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter also framed the ruling as a win for consumers: “Our victory in court is a victory for American travelers who deserve lower prices and better choices.”
The US Department of Transportation, led by former Secretary Pete Buttigieg, also supported the decision earlier in the process.
In the 2023 statementThe agency said it “fully supports the Department of Justice’s lawsuit… to block the proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit,” arguing that the deal “would eliminate…[e] “larger, more aggressive, very low cost competitor” and “significantly reduced.”[e] a race.”
Warren defended her position after Spirit’s collapse in a new post on X.
“Rising fuel prices from Trump’s war were the nail in the coffin for Spirit Airlines, which has gone bankrupt twice.” I wrote. “The FWIW-JetBlue merger failed because a judge appointed by Ronald Reagan said the deal was illegal. Republicans are desperate to shift blame for high costs to families.”
Warren’s office cited rising fuel costs as a major factor in Spirit’s collapse in an email to FOX Business.
Spirit’s restructuring plan assumed jet fuel costs of about $2.24 per gallon in 2026, but prices rose to nearly $4.51 per gallon by the end of April, Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, wrote on X.
A community note on X, written by users of the platform, responded to Warren’s claims.
“Senator Warren previously helped block the merger of JetBlue and Spirit that would have created a fifth major airline and more competition against the major airlines.”
Transport Minister Sean Duffy criticized the previous decision to block the merger.
“This merger should have been allowed,” Duffy said Saturday. “This is not better for travelers. This is not better for pricing. This is not better for competition…it’s worse. It’s a broken airline,” Duffy said.
Spirit’s closure has left travelers scrambling, with major airlines restricting fares and offering limited relief options to stranded passengers, while displaced workers are being directed to rent pipelines at competing carriers, as FOX Business previously reported.
The Justice Department sued to block the JetBlue-Spirit deal under antitrust law, arguing that it would eliminate a major low-cost competitor and raise prices on overlapping routes.
A federal judge eventually agreed to block the merger after a trial that lasted several weeks.
Spirit has struggled financially for years, and previously filed for bankruptcy as it sought to stabilize its business.
The Trump administration said it explored options to keep Spirit afloat, but a proposed rescue plan failed to materialize before the airline shut down operations, as FOX Business previously reported, leaving an ongoing debate over whether previous regulatory decisions played a role in its collapse.
Fox News Digital’s Robert McGreevey, Fox Business’ Sophia Compton, Michael Sienkiewicz and Matthew Kazin contributed to this report.