Ashcroft offered services to XM - WSJ

NEW YORK, March 5 (Reuters) - Former Attorney General John Ashcroft, who sent a letter this week to his successor Alberto Gonzales blasting the proposed merger of Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (SIRI.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. XMSR.O, approached XM in the days after the merger was announced offering the firm his consulting services, a spokesman for XM said, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

The spokesman said XM declined Ashcroft's offer to work as a lobbyist for the company, the Journal reported.

Ashcroft was subsequently hired by the National Association of Broadcasters, which is fiercely opposed to the merger. On its behalf, he conducted a review of the effects on competition if the two satellite radio companies were allowed to merge, the Journal reported.

In a letter sent to Gonzales Feb. 27, Ashcroft concluded the merger would have a significant negative impact on competition in the market and urged the current attorney general to withhold approval for the merger, the Journal said.