There's some really interesting news on the open internet front. First of all, FCC Chair Kevin Martin is now under genuine political attack. He's been setting himself up for a political run with his current tenure at the FCC for some time, buttering up powerful industries and acting as a Bush loyalist. And so this criticism from the North Carolina Democrats is a big deal.
The North Carolina Democratic Party today filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Office of the Inspector General to obtain a detailed list of Chairman Kevin Martin's recent travel.
The request comes in the wake of numerous news reports that Chairman Martin may be using public funds and his position as Chairman of a large government agency to seek elected office in North Carolina.
"Members of Congress who are running for office are closely regulated to ensure that they are not campaigning on the taxpayer dollar - why shouldn't Kevin Martin be held to the same standard?" said NCDP Chair Jerry Meek.
"Our citizens deserve to know whether their taxpayer dollars are being used for Kevin Martin's political gain," Meek said....
Chairman Martin has a long history within the Republican Party. He served as lawyer on Kenneth Starr's Whitewater investigation team and was a key player in the 2000 Bush-Gore election recount where many African American votes were systematically discounted. Martin also served as deputy general counsel for the Bush 2000 campaign; and led the transition team's effort to pick new FCC Commissioners, including himself on the short list of potential nominees.
"Mr. Martin has been a longtime crony of the conservative movement and the Bush Administration," Meek said. "We are concerned this conservative operative may be misallocating public funds to seek higher office and we want to get to the bottom of it."
In the past month, the U.S. Congress has also launched an investigation into Mr. Martin's stewardship of his agency. Other FCC Commissioners have commented that Martin has failed to inform them or the public of proposed agenda items and rules, creating an agency that lacks transparency, arrives at predetermined conclusions and completely disregards public commentary.
Jerry Meek at the North Carolina Democratic Party has reinvigorated that party. It's a fascinating use of leverage.
Meanwhile, Connect Kentucky is being damaged by Art Brodsy's earlier revelations about the organization. Their latest bill went down to defeat.
The telecoms have not had a good week. They've had to deal with us pesky bloggers on FISA, which they thought they'd have quietly by now. They lost their champion in the CBC, largely because of his support for their agenda and his . Their pet project Connect Kentucky is getting smacked. And now their owned and operated FCC Chair is feeling heat because he's associated with them.
I wouldn't want to be in their very expensive shoes right now.
As an anti-spam measure, there is a 24-hour waiting period after registering before new users can comment. blog advertising is good for you
blog advertising is good for you
