McConnell pushes Trump nominee toward vote that would deadlock Biden FCC

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has moved to end debate over a Trump nomination that would deadlock the Federal Communications Commission, setting up a vote that could happen as soon as next week.

McConnell yesterday filed a cloture motion on Trump’s nomination of Republican Nathan Simington to the FCC. McConnell’s motion came one day after the Senate Commerce Committee voted 14-12 along party lines to advance the nomination to the full Senate.

“If Simington is confirmed, the FCC could initially be deadlocked 2-2 between Democrats and Republicans when Democratic President-elect Joe Biden takes office next month. Some officials think the Senate might not confirm [a Biden] appointee to the commission for months, if not longer,” Reuters wrote yesterday.

We asked McConnell’s office when the Simington vote will occur and will update this article if we get a response.

Simington backs Trump attack on social media sites

Simington, a Trump administration official who helped draft a petition asking the FCC to make it easier to sue social media companies like Facebook and Twitter, would replace Republican Michael O’Rielly. O’Rielly’s renomination was pulled by Trump after he did not support Trump’s attempted crackdown on Twitter and Facebook. O’Rielly said the First Amendment protects the editorial decisions made by Web platforms that host user-generated content.

With Chairman Ajit Pai planning to leave the FCC upon Biden’s inauguration, the Senate’s decision on Simington would make the difference between a 2-1 Democratic majority and a 2-2 deadlock. Biden should eventually be able to secure a 3-2 majority on the FCC, but it could be difficult if Republicans maintain Senate control after the runoff elections in Georgia. Republicans currently have a 52-48 Senate majority and will hold between 50 and 52 seats after the runoffs, depending on the results.

FCC Republican pushes for deadlock

A Democratic-majority FCC could reinstate net neutrality rules along with Title II regulation of broadband, a possibility that Republicans are trying to prevent or at least delay. FCC Republican Brendan Carr this week appeared on Fox Business and said, “It would be very valuable to get Simington across the finish line to help forestall what really would be billions of dollars worth of economic damage that I think a Democrat FCC would look to jam through from day one in January or February.” (Despite Carr’s claims, the Obama-era Title II regulation and net neutrality rules did not slow down investments in broadband networks, but major ISPs have cut back on network spending since the Pai-led FCC deregulated the industry and repealed the rules.)

Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) spoke out against Simington’s nomination at the Commerce Committee hearing Wednesday, saying that Simington isn’t qualified for the position and that he misrepresented his role in pushing Trump’s attack on social media companies. Blumenthal pledged to fight the nomination in the full Senate, saying, “I will continue to do everything I can to hold this nomination and to oppose it because I think Mr. Simington lacks the qualifications and independence that are required of an FCC commissioner.”

We asked Blumenthal’s and Cantwell’s offices about plans to fight the nomination on the Senate floor and will update this article if we get any response. Given the Republicans’ Senate majority, there probably isn’t much they can do unless some Republicans buck the party line.

https://arstechnica.com/?p=1727670