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Net Neutrality Repeal Will Get a Senate Vote In the Spring, Democrats Say (arstechnica.com)
Congressional Democrats today introduced legislation that would prevent the repeal of net neutrality rules, but they still need more support from Republicans in order to pass the measure. According to Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), they will force a vote on the Senate version of the resolution sometime this spring. Ars Technica reports: Democrats have been promising to introduce a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution ever since the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal its net neutrality rules in December. But lawmakers had to wait for the FCC's repeal order to be published in the Federal Register, which only happened last week. The CRA resolution would nullify the FCC's repeal order, allowing net neutrality rules that were passed in 2015 to remain in place. The resolution has public support from 50 out of 100 senators (all Democrats, all Independents, and one Republican), putting it one vote shy of passage in the Senate.
"The grassroots movement to reinstate net neutrality is growing by the day, and we will get that one more vote needed to pass my CRA resolution," Markey said. "I urge my Republican colleagues to join the overwhelming majority of Americans who support a free and open Internet. The Internet is for all -- the students, teachers, innovators, hard-working families, small businesses, and activists, not just Verizon, Charter, AT&T, and Comcast and corporate interests."
"The grassroots movement to reinstate net neutrality is growing by the day, and we will get that one more vote needed to pass my CRA resolution," Markey said. "I urge my Republican colleagues to join the overwhelming majority of Americans who support a free and open Internet. The Internet is for all -- the students, teachers, innovators, hard-working families, small businesses, and activists, not just Verizon, Charter, AT&T, and Comcast and corporate interests."
Congress brought this silliness on themselves by devolving much major de facto lawmaking power onto regulatory agencies, which constitutionally means the President as part of his power to "execute" the laws.
Golly! Some are upset by it!
Golly! "Regulatory agencies remove the politics from it is a feature, not a flaw!"
Until it isn't and you need outrage.
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
True, this is evidence that parties matter. But it's also evidence that opposition parties matter.
Even though the effort by the Democrats to call a vote is Quixotic, it puts both parties on record as to where they stand.
Both parties do this, and generally it's a good thing -- unless it's overdone. For example, Republicans voted to repeal Obamacare over 60 times, knowing full well it would never happen. That was abusive of the process.
If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.