Conyers: Netroots helps ensure net neutrality victory

A very important victory was won today for the rights of internet consumers. The Judiciary Committee today approved a bill, the Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act, to preserve net neutrality. This bipartisan bill would prevent corporate executives from determining what content you are allowed to view on the internet.

Some companies that provide the lines through which internet traffic travels are seeking the ability to discriminate against certain content providers, charging higher rates and providing different levels of service. Having this ability to charge different rates to different types of content providers would allow the entities that control 98 per cent of internet traffic to restrict your access to certain competing sites wherever it chose.

This bill was a big challenge to some very powerful lobbies on Capitol Hill, but a massive grassroots operation coordinated by MyDD.com and MoveOn.org helped put enough pressure on Judiciary lawmakers to ensure a comfortable victory. Members of Congress heard from plenty of their constituents about the importance of this bill and not one Democrat voted against it. While this was a critical success, we still have more to do. This bill may or may not come to a vote on the house floor. It may take similar efforts from the netroots to be ultimately successful on this issue.

http://www.conyersblog.us/default.htm

Net Neutrality Bill Crosses House Hurdle
A proposal that would ban broadband providers from favoring one Web site over another moved closer to becoming law Thursday after the House Judiciary Committee approved legislation from committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., and Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., the committee's ranking minority member. The measure, called the Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act, passed on a 20-13 vote, with a majority of the committee's Republican members voting no. The bill essentially specifies that antitrust laws apply to the broadband arena, ensuring what has come to be known as "network neutrality" among broadband providers.
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=10078

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=1268943&mesg_id=1278526

Viva La FREE ACCESS FOR EVERYONE!!

:)

Update on Net Neutrality: We WON THE VOTE!!!
by Matt Stoller
Thu May 25, 2006 at 08:40:47 AM PDT

Update: We won the vote, 20-13-1, with all Democrats voting the right way except Delahunt who voted 'present'!!!

The net neutrality issue vote is today in the House Judiciary Committee. I just received an updated whip list of Democratic members of the Judiciary Committee and where they stand. This is for support of the Sensenbrenner-Conyers bill HR 5417 supporting net neutrality. If one of these is your representatives, especially the leaners, please pick up the phone. If not, please just recommend the diary. This is crunch time. You are moving votes.
Matt Stoller's diary :: ::


YES VOTES

Conyers YES
Boucher YES
Nadler YES
Lofgren YES
Sanchez YES
Wexler YES
Wasserman Schultz YES

LEANING YES VOTES

Bobby Scott Leaning Yes (202) 225-8351
Maxine Waters Leaning Yes (202) 225-2201
Marty Meehan Leaning Yes (202) 225-3411
Anthony Weiner Leaning Yes (202) 225-6616
Adam Schiff Leaning Yes (202) 225-4176

UNDECIDED VOTES

Howard Berman Undecided 202-225-4695
Mel Watt Undecided (202) 225-1510
Sheila Jackson-Lee Undecided (202) 225-3816
Chris Van Hollen Undecided (202) 225-5341

LEANING NO VOTE

William Delahunt Leaning No (202) 225-3111

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/5/25/114047/768

what would we do without this marvelous thing we call the internet...now we just have to keep the feet to the fire.

:applause:

In an unusual twist, many members of the committee said they were voting for the legislation not because of strong concerns over Net neutrality--but instead because of a turf battle. They said they were worried that a competing proposal already approved by a different committee last month would diminish their own influence in the future.
(http://news.com.com/Democrats+lose+House+vote+on+Net+neutrality/2100-1028_3-6065465.html?tag=nl)

That other bill, called the Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement, or COPE, Act, says the Federal Communications Commission "shall have exclusive authority" to investigate violations of Net neutrality principles. It's backed by Rep. Joe Barton, a Texas Republican who heads the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and does not include strict Net neutrality mandates.

Because the FCC is overseen by Barton's committee, that proposal would effectively cut off Judiciary Committee members from being able to hold hearings on Net neutrality antitrust violations, give speeches about corporate malfeasance and solicit campaign cash from affected companies--the lifeblood of modern Washington politics.

That resulted in an unusual situation in which politicians who weren't enthusiastic about the Judiciary bill nevertheless voted for it on Wednesday. "I think the bill is a blunt instrument, and yet I think it does send a message that it's important to attain jurisdiction for the Justice Department and for antitrust issues," said Rep. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat.

http://news.com.com/House+panel+votes+for+Net+neutrality/2100-1028-6077007.html?part=dht&tag=nl.e433

:headbang: :applause: :woohoo: :toast: