{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/booker-klobuchar-blumenthal-urge-federal-trade-commission-to-investigate-proposed-kroger-albertsons-merger", "Booker, Klobuchar, Blumenthal Urge Federal Trade Commission to Investigate Proposed Kroger-Albertsons Merger", "2022-10-18", "2022", "2022-10", "Democrat", "Senate", "NJ", "Cory A. Booker", "B001288", "www.booker.senate.gov", "booker", "https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) has joined Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights, and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) to urge the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate the proposed merger between Kroger and Albertsons, voicing concern about this transaction\u2019s potential implications for consumers.\n\n\u201cWe write to express our serious concern about the recently announced merger between Kroger and Albertsons and to ask for your assurance that this proposed deal will be carefully and thoroughly investigated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC),\u201d wrote Senators Booker, Klobuchar, and Blumenthal in a letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan. \u201cAs food prices remain elevated, too many American families are struggling to put food on the table for their families. These issues are worse for families in areas without access to affordable, nutritious food. And across the country, more than six million American children suffer from not having enough food.\u201d\n\n\u201cAgainst that backdrop, last week the nation\u2019s two largest grocery chains, Albertsons and Kroger, announced a proposed $25 billion merger. This merger raises considerable antitrust concerns. The grocery industry is essential to daily life, and Americans need the benefits that robust competition brings, namely lower prices, higher quality, and innovation,\u201d the Senators continued.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T03:20:33Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/booker-klobuchar-blumenthal-urge-federal-trade-commission-to-investigate-proposed-kroger-albertsons-merger"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6614759806543589, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}