The message coming from T-Mobile US and Sprint executives as they work to convince legislators that their proposed merger will be of benefit to U.S. consumers seems to largely come down to this: if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.  

T-Mobile US CEO John Legere has made criticism of the two largest U.S. carriers, AT&T and Verizon, a staple of his strategy and industry commentary. Sprint has gone so far as to hire Verizon’s former spokesman for its advertising. But both companies now say that unless they have comparable scale to their larger competitors, they won’t be able to compete against those companies effectively.  

Here are five takeaways from Legere and Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure’s Senate testimony this week.