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DSL Prime News: The Politics of DSL

The payoff list for Tauzin-Dingell is huge. Congressman Elliott Engel took $19,000 directly from Verizon. The New York Times estimates the Bells bought Congress for about $20 million.

by Dave Burstein DSL Prime [February 28, 2002]

Tauzin-Dingell will pass, has failed
Only message: Congress for sale
Barring a miracle, Tauzin-Dingell, the telco deregulation bill, will pass the House after an acrimonious process, although everyone thinks it will fail in the Senate. Ivan Seidenberg explained the passage would be important, because it would "send a message" to the FCC. If that's the purpose of the vote, then the bill has clearly failed. The Bells provided millions to Billy Tauzin and his campaign to elect a Republican Congress. Democrat John Dingell accepted hundreds of thousands as well, and Democratic Congressman Elliott Engel took $19,000 directly from Verizon. Tens of millions more have gone directly into lobbying.

Ivan Seidenberg said it was important to get T-D through the house, to "send a message to the FCC." But unless the FCC commissioners are blind, they can see this was a purchase. Everyone not paid or partisan opposes the bill. You don't need DSL Prime to repeat the arguments. Go beyond my reporting and everybody else's. Read the bill, and think what the consequences are of near total deregulation of the Bells.

Here's Paul Coe Clarke from D.C.:
"The 'debate' should be interesting, as it's clear that few House members, outside the relevant committees, have the slightest idea of what the bill would do, other than what Tauzin, Dingell, Bell lobbyists and extremely cryptic television ads tell them. Hard to believe telecom policy has reached parity with Doritos and Dodge Ram Trucks on national television."

(Paul is just one of the commentators in Carol Wilson's The Net Economy, which has become the liveliest and most outspoken magazine in our business.)

Billy Tauzin will introduce a meaningless amendment, in the spirit of "compromise." Ed Towns of New York has a further (telco-backed) "compromise" ready to go. Lots of debate likely, results pre-ordained. Two cheers for American democracy.

Black ninjas may find a way in the Senate
"The 'black ninjas' sometimes take over this town. They work by night, and are very, very good." was FCC Chair Bill Kennard's way of describing telco lobbyists. Hollings runs the committee, and several Republicans in the Senate also understand and oppose the bill. So the common wisdom is the bill is dead in the Senate. Pete Blevin of Qwest told Telephony "You would have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to realize T-D probably isn't going anywhere in the Senate." But Seidenberg spoke with some confidence of finding a way, presumably because he knows how things like this sometimes miraculously sneak through.

Actually, I've met several of the individuals Kennard calls "black ninjas". They aren't superheroes, and these days are mostly afraid of losing their own jobs. They have the power of $400B companies behind them, however.

House Speaker Hastert: Money rules
In one of the most telling indictments of the financial corruption of the U.S. political process, the New York Times reports House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert "warning that campaign finance reform could lead us to lose control of the chamber." The implication: his side would lose, except for the $50M collected for their campaign.

Times: "big bucks bill of the year"
Steve Labaton reports: "the House is expected to approve a telecommunications bill that is largely shaped by the huge campaign contributions it has generated. ... it will continue to be lucrative for lawmakers for years to come, encouraging the telecommunications industry to find ways to make tens of millions of dollars in contributions long after Congress completes its work on the campaign finance legislation." He identified over $20M in contributions.

Copyright 2001 Dave Burstein.
The DSL Prime Newsletter is reprinted with permission.

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