I honestly don't know what's better: screwing everyone altogether + Intel job losses, or screwing everyone except another already big fish?

A better alternative would be for another interested buyer to appear at the negotiating table, presumably that would require the price to somehow magically come down.

Edit: @DannyBee above has already helpfully commented that the FTC has previously required that the buyer continues to sell to / support customers for some time period following the purchase.