It's pretty stunning. The Washington Post reports that Henry Waxman has been stymied in his effort to push a net neutrality bill through the House. The game was declared over by Joe Barton, the guy who loves corporations. Like, remember Barton's efforts to defend BP? Lately it's been broadband networks.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) confirmed Wednesday afternoon that his net neutrality bill was effectively scrapped after Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tex.) declined to support the legislation.
In a statement, Waxman urged the Federal Communications Commission to reassert its authority to regulate broadband access providers. Doing so would allow the FCC to create its own net neutrality rules -- an effort that was thrown into doubt when a federal court ruled the agency overstepped its authority by sanctioning Comcast for allegedly violating broadband rules.
Waxman said he and his staff had worked with public interest groups, Internet service providers and Web content companies to try to reach an agreement around a bill that all parties could support. Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said he had also kept Republican members on the committee abreast of his work. He said it was essential to gain Republican support for the bill.
"With great regret, I must report that ranking member Barton has informed me that support for this legislation will not be forthcoming at this time," Waxman said in a statement.
"This development is a loss for consumers and a gain only for the extremes...."
And that's pretty much it. Game over.
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