In mid-June, the tension increased as the Commission refused a series of concessions by
GE, which then called on its political connections. Representatives of the US
government, including President George W. Bush, pressed the issue in public statements
and in conversations with their European counterparts. Monti responded: “I deplore
attempts to misinform the public and to trigger political intervention. This is entirely out
of place in an antitrust case. … This is a matter of law and economics, not politics.”
(Washington Post, June 19, 2001.)