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Senators Smack Down WIPO Broadcast Treaty
Tighthead writes "Two influential US senators want the US to support a pared-down version of the WIPO Broadcast Treaty that is still being negotiated. In a letter sent to the US delegation, Sen. Patrick Leahy, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and the ranking Republican member, Arlen Specter, expressed their concerns that the Broadcast Treaty 'would needlessly create a new layer of rights that would disrupt United States copyright law.' They instructed the US delegates to work towards a treaty that is 'significantly narrower in scope, one that would provide no more protection than that necessary to protect the signals of broadcasters.' The next meeting of the WIPO Standing Committee will be in June."
Well, there's a lot of give-and-take, since the Senate must ratify any treaty before it goes into effect. Just like judicial nominations, the Executive Branch needs to consider whether a treaty or nominee will be confirmed before they issue their own stamp of approval.
In essence, these Senators are sending a message to the Executive Department that the treaty faces a tough time in the Senate unless it is narrowed in scope.
FYI, this is how the legislative and executive branches have worked out compromises in all but the most dysfunctional presidencies (Jackson is a notable exception -- the Senate and he couldn't get on the same page at all).
On the flip side, you could ask how the Executive Branch can ask the Senate and House to focus on certain issues, since theoretically they have no input into the functions of those bodies, only a veto power on the output. But it's surprising how much the two branches depend on eachother, and it's only recently that the Executive Branch has held so mouch power that it's been able to dictate actions in the Legislature -- and what we are witnessing here is an example of the pendulum swinging back to more Legislative influence (I hope).
"Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
Oh, wait, I forgot - it's Slashdot.
I'll forgive your ignorance, but it's even more disconcerting that the mods apparently just as ignorant.
Here's a clue - this is a *good* thing. If you think you can get an angry mod together to protest that broadcasters should be able to claim copyright on public domain works, then, please, go right ahead. Frankly, I would prefer that more limits were imposed on the rights of copyright owners and broadcasters, not more.
"Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
--- Jerry Garcia
How blind can you be. The only people who lived in peace under Saddam were his tribal Sunni cronies. If you were a Kurd or a Shi'ite, you could be killed for no good reason. You didn't hear about it much was because it was a cause the western press could get behind. Oh, but let those naughty Americans call Saddam on it and then the Americans are terrorists.