Despite Claiming To Want To Negotiate A Net Neutrality 'Compromise,' Many Republicans Rush In To Kill New Rules

from the because-of-course dept

Collins said his resolution would be the quickest way to stop heavy-handed agency regulations that would slow Internet speeds, increase consumer prices and hamper infrastructure development, especially in his Northeast Georgia district. “Resources that could go to broadband deployment will go to federal taxes and fees,” he said. “We’ll all be paying more for less.”

Collins underscored that small Internet providers will be unable to compete in a shrunken marketplace, due to the FCC’s reclassification of broadband as a public utility. “The agency is stretching old definitions to fit its regulatory agenda,” he explained. “Only businesses with the greatest resources will survive Washington, D.C.’s latest bureaucratic expansion into a growing and dynamic industry, particularly mobile broadband.”

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It's getting rather ridiculous to have to keep repeating it at this point, but it's fairly ridiculous that net neutrality/open internet is a partisan issue at all. The public overwhelmingly supports net neutrality, no matter which party they're associated with. It's only the politicians who think this is a red team vs. blue team issue. But, for whatever reason (and much of it appears to do with campaign fundraising), net neutrality has become partisan, with Republicans "against" it and Democrats "for" it. So, with the rules now officially in the Federal Register , not only have the lawsuits begun, but so has the Republican wrangling in Congress to try to kill the laws.Specifically, Rep. Doug Collins has teamed up with a bunch of his Republican colleagues to put forth a "Resolution of Disapproval" to block the FCC's new rules from taking effect. This is a totally pointless move, as it would need President Obama to sign it -- something he wouldn't do. As some are quickly pointing out , this seems to go against the earlier claims from House Republicans that they really do "support net neutrality" with a flimsy bill that pretends to do that, while really undermining the FCC.But the real ridiculousness is in the claims made by Collins about this new bill, which don't make any sense at all:Except, none of that is true. Nothing in the FCC 's new rules will slow down speeds (quite the reverse from what we've seen, actually), and none of it will lead to new taxes.If that were true, then why are small ISPs like Sonic cheering on the rules, saying that they're only a burden if you're trying to do something bad ? There are conversations to be had about the best way to encourage more internet access -- but unfortunately it's all been destroyed by ridiculous partisan politics. If Collins wants to get the support of big funders, rather than the American public (who, Republican or Democrat, have overwhelmingly spoken out in favor of net neutrality), I guess that's one strategy. But it seems like a risky long term bet.

Filed Under: congress, doug collins, fcc, gop, net neutrality, republicans, resolution of disapproval