Obama's first congressional defeat: GOP defeats bill to delay digital TV broadcasting

WASHINGTON - Bucking the Obama administration, House Republicans on Wednesday defeated a bill to delay the upcoming transition from analog to digital television broadcasting to June 12 - leaving an estimated 6.5 million U.S. households unprepared for the switchover.

The 258-168 vote failed to clear the two-thirds threshold needed for passage in a victory for GOP members, who warn that postponing the transition from the current Feb. 17 deadline would confuse consumers.

House Republicans say a delay also would burden wireless companies and public safety agencies waiting for the spectrum that will be freed up by the switch, and create added costs for television stations that would have to continue broadcasting both analog and digital signals for four more months.


http://enews.earthlink.net/article/top?guid=20090128/497ff460_3ca6_155262009012834503320

I consider this whole digital thing nothing but a boom for the cable industry.

But at least they aren't malevolently incompetent like our Democratic Senators.

The bill, which passed the Senate on a voice vote, was put before the House under a streamlined procedure, called a motion to suspend the rules, which requires a 2/3 votes. All but 13 Democrats voted for the bill. But even if the 13 Democrats voting nay had vote aye, they would have fallen short because 155 repubs voted no.

How does that make the Democrats "worthless"?

The GOP did a polling after their current stimulus attacks.. The people are hopeless. Now,The public apparently thinks a couple extra dollars in their pockets is going to bring them jobs. So they can spend more at Wal Mart. Over funding renewable energy projects, mass transit, school renovations. Why do we bother. !

This: http://mobile.newsweek.com/detail.jsp?key=41957&rc=te&p=2&pv=1 may have something to do with it

This thing has dragged on long enough and the TV stations are ready for the switch.

Right now the TV stations are paying for analog and digital equipment and getting nothing in return.

The public's had more than 2 years to prepare for the switch.

You'll get the stations once they flip the switch.

Some stations have already gone digital and people are getting those stations with the converter.

Maybe it will be fixed by the time they go live.

Its a procedure used to push legsilation through quickly by cutting off debate and the ability of the other side to offer up amendments to tie up the bill.

Been used for a long time. But it requires a 2/3 vote.

:shrug:

Democrats won't try to get anything through without 2/3rds of the House.

The bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent. The House leadership also wanted to move the bill through quickly, since time is of the essence. So the used a common procedure, called a motion to suspend the rules, which cuts off debate and limits amendments. HOwever, it needs 2/3 support. Even though the bill got through the Senate, where a single repub could've objected and stopped it, the repubs in the House joined forces to stop the bill from moving quickly,figuring that would either kill it or give them an opportunity to offer stinkbomb amendments to it next week.

See how different things are when someone states what it was for?

lets get this conversion over with.

This bill came into being for two reasons, both related to repub incompetence and mismanagement.

First, the coupon program, which was budgeted to allow 33 million coupons to be redeemed, ran aground in early January after only 20 million coupons had been redeemed. Because the program was so screwed up by the repubs who ran it, there are currently over 3 million requests for coupons on a waiting list, with little chance that the coupons could be delivered and redeemed by Feb 17.

Second, the government has known for some time that on the day of the transition/day after, between 1 and 2 million people will call the call center numbers that the government set up to provide information. But the incompetent chairman of the FCC -- a cheney acolyte -- ignoring pleas from Mike Copps and Jon Adelstein -- didn't even award the contracts for staffing these call centers until a couple of weeks ago, virtually ensuring that they couldn't be adequately coordinated, staffed and trained in time for the transition.

But let's attack the Democrats for trying to address repub incompetence, and applaud the repubs!! Or not.

in households who don't have the thirty to sixty dollars for the converter? They can just stop watching tv or do without food for a week. That's what they get for being poor. After all, the republican's good friends in business want to divvy up those air waves for profit.

How does it hurt you to give time for the government to make more coupons available?

who have to choose between beans on the table or television? I work with families who will be without the use of their televisions next month. Any time you begin a sentence with those seven words, you need to check some facts.

do better in school. Maybe they will do their homework or read books.

Do they watch TV?

throw em under the bus -- the new DU mantra!!

will only have Republicans to blame? The Grand Old Pervs didn't think that one out too clearly, did they?

Turn off the squawking box for pete's sake! Then you won't care one way or the other!

The only respectable thing Martin could hang his hat on was that he oversaw the successful transition from Analog to DTV. Martin is GOP and for all they did wrong, the Digital Switch is one of the few things they thought they did right. Now Obama wants to mess with it. Those elephants can't be happy.

Martin has been a major reason for the screwed up situation that the transition finds itself in. The two Democrats on the FCC, along with the other repubs, have been pleading with him to be more proactive. It was only because of their demands that there was a test of the transition last September. And then Martin ignored the results of that test, which indicated that the FCC could expect to receive between 1 and 2 million calls on the help lines they have set up on the day of/day after the transition. While Martin solicited bids for the staffing of those centers in September, he didn't award the contracts until a week or two ago, thus ensuring that they will not be adequately staffed, trained or coordinated by Feb 17.

;)

Thanks for the info :hi:

I don't watch it much. I think they should just switch over, get it over with. Those who are not ready will catch up sooner rather than later. Delaying it wont help a thing. June around it will be the same situation. People wait till the last minute to change.

Get it over with. We have more important things to worry about, than some people not being able to watch CSI.

I too will get the box needed to make the switch. Not being able to watch tv for a while isnt going to kill us. Sheeeeeesh

There are no HD broadcast stations that can be received from where we live, only two that can be received at all and neither of them very well to tell the truth. We have the small dish and Direct TV but aren't willing to pay for the replacement HD equipment or the monthly HD charge to have it. Don't have a functioning DVD player either, probably should get one.

:thumbsup:

I believe the approval of Geithner for Treasury was his first "defeat."