Does XM-Sirius Still Have a Pulse?

Is Sirius (SIRI - commentary - Cramer's Take) and XM (XMSR - commentary - Cramer's Take) a done deal? This morning, a huge profile of the FCC's commissioner in chief, Kevin Martin, hails him and his work. What does Martin cite as part of his success? The brokering of a successful deal to lower the price of the features of a combined XM-Sirius.

To quote The Washington Post: "Martin cited a DEAL [my emphasis] he brokered between the satellite radio operators XM and Sirius as proof of his service to consumers. He got the two companies to agree to a list of conditions that would keep prices from rising and create opportunities for minorities in exchange for his blessing on their creation of a monopoly."

My question is, why point this out as an accomplishment if it isn't a done deal? Why not say, "I tried to do right for the consumer?" Why make this the hallmark of his tenure? He sure didn't have to say it. The piece is a puff piece, and I doubt he was sandbagged here.

You know I am on the fence about the prospects of this combined company because of the decline in the auto build, which is so crucial to sales of the satellite companies' future.

But this story is a positive for the merger, no doubt about it, and it's an important change from the notion that the deal is dead as a doornail.

Random musings: This red hot chile contamination is killing Chipotle (CMG - commentary - Cramer's Take). If we can get our arms around that, it might be a buy, a la what happened with Taco Bell last year with E. coli -- quick snapback. ... I am buying Wal-Mart (WMT - commentary - Cramer's Take) for Action Alerts PLUS. Too cheap not to.

At the time of publication, Cramer was long Wal-Mart.

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