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Senators, including Republican Presidential candidate Marco Rubio, have signed a letter to the Federal Communications Commission opposing municipal broadband:
In a rare senatorial act, full-time Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio joined with a handful of fellow legislators on Friday in an attempt to block local municipalities from undercutting big telecom companies by providing cheap, fast internet service.
Rubio, who is raising campaign cash from the telecom industry for his presidential campaign, fired off a letter to the Federal Communications Commission asking the agency to allow states to block municipal broadband services. The letter was the latest salvo in a long-running effort by the major telecom companies to outlaw municipal broadband programs that have taken off in cities such as Lafayette, Louisiana, and Chattanooga, Tennessee, because they pose a threat to a business model that calls for slow, expensive internet access without competition.
In Chattanooga, for instance, city officials set up a service known as "The Gig," a municipal broadband network that provides data transfers at one gigabit per second for less than $70 a month — a rate that is 50 times faster than the average speed American customers have available through private broadband networks.
AT&T, Cox Communications, Comcast, and other broadband providers, fearing competition, have used their influence in state government to make an end-run around local municipalities. Through surrogates like the American Legislative Exchange Council, the industry gets states to pass laws that ban municipal broadband networks, despite the obvious benefits to both the municipalities and their residents.
[...] Rubio's presidential campaign has relied heavily on AT&T lobbyist Scott Weaver, the public policy co-chair of Wiley Rein, a law firm that also is helping to litigate against the FCC's effort to help municipal broadband. As one of Rubio's three lobbyist-bundlers, Weaver raised $33,324 for Rubio's presidential campaign, according to disclosures. Rubio's campaign fundraising apparatus is also managed in part by Cesar Conda, a lobbyist who previously served as Rubio's chief of staff. Registration documents show that Conda now represents AT&T.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @07:54PM
Mofo will force me to vote for Clinton. I am beginning to see why some stick up for that trump clown.
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Tuesday December 15 2015, @08:39PM
I still don't see how people would want someone like Trump in as president. He seems entirely too volatile and some of his (all of his?) views are pretty whack.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @09:42PM
Honestly I think he is running just for hits and giggles. I don't even think he really wants the job, and if he is as smart as his proponents claim I would guess that he is saying all the off the wall things just to see how much the public will take and still support him. Have you noticed he has been ramping up the crazy slowly?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 16 2015, @02:06AM
You have a strange notion of "ramping up the crazy slowly". In Trump's public announcement that he was running for President he had this to say (among other things):
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @10:35PM
I still don't see how people would want someone like Trump in as president. He seems entirely too volatile and some of his (all of his?) views are pretty whack.
He's the american version of the new european right like Le Pen's national front in france and the UKIP in the UK.
It's about social programs for the poor plus raving nativism.
That's why his support is strongest among the poorest and least educated in the GOP.
At least the democrats can no longer accuse them of voting against their own economic interests.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by anubi on Wednesday December 16 2015, @08:22AM
Right now, I think so little of our Congress that I would vote for almost anybody that is not a career politician.
The career politicians all claim they will "fight for me", then once granted authority, they have a terrible record of selling me out.
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
(Score: 5, Insightful) by PinkyGigglebrain on Tuesday December 15 2015, @08:44PM
Clinton is as much in the Telcoms pocket as Rubio. You might want to consider Sanders, even if he doesn't get the nomination if enough people write him in it will send a clear message that NONE of the Dem/Rep candidates are acceptable.
Remember: Your vote is like a coupon for a free dinner at your favorite restaurant, the only way to "throw away your vote" is to NOT use it.
"Beware those who would deny you Knowledge, For in their hearts they dream themselves your Master."
(Score: 3, Informative) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday December 16 2015, @01:15AM
Clinton is as much in the Telcoms pocket as Rubio
This may well be right, but due to the corrupt nature of US politics, everyone is in someone's pocket
If a candidate has a position on a subject, chances are someone's paying them to hold it.
(Score: 2) by shortscreen on Wednesday December 16 2015, @07:10AM
Free dinner? Why, that's communism! I'm going to skip this restaurant and head straight for the dumpster (TM) out back, where one hundred million of my fellow citizens and I will commence the search for the second-least edible thing to be found within.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by ikanreed on Tuesday December 15 2015, @09:20PM
I think only a very few actually want Clinton, but it's hard not to look at the current crop of republicans and go "Vermin Supreme is the crazy unnecessary candidate" anymore.
(Score: 4, Funny) by Anal Pumpernickel on Tuesday December 15 2015, @09:50PM
No one will force you to vote for Clinton or anyone else. You are personally responsible for taking foolish actions like voting for Republicans or Democrats.