[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 176 (Wednesday, November 19, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2261]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    THE FAIRNESS DOCTRINE IS UNFAIR

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                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 19, 2008

  Mr. POE. Madam Speaker, it seems that some in Congress are trying to 
call back the speech police and reinstate the Fairness Doctrine again. 
Although the Fairness Doctrine was abolished over 20 years ago, some of 
our colleagues just can't let it go.
  This time they want to police and control the radio airwaves. I'm not 
talking about the former Soviet Union that controlled what Russians 
listened to on the radio, I'm talking about the American speech police.
  The so-called ``Broadcast Fairness Doctrine'' is an attempt by the 
Feds to force private radio stations to be fair and balanced by forcing 
broadcasters to air opposing views of public importance. Sounds good, 
but who's going to determine what fair is, the Federal fair police?
  Are we going to let a bunch of Potomac River bureaucrats determine if 
a radio station in Tomball, Texas is being fair when it discusses 
politics? Sounds like government control of speech to me.
  It is actually totalitarian state control of speech. And what does 
``fair'' mean? Fair means different things to different folks. In some 
places in the country like Texas, fair is where you take your chickens 
to. That's why the word ``fair'' is not in the Constitution. The 
Constitution protects free speech, not fair speech. It says ``Congress 
(that's us, folks) shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech.'' 
And the Constitution applies to the thieves of free speech and the 
government's speech police whether they like it or not.
  And that's just the way it is.

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