[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 207 (Tuesday, December 8, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Page S7261]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   Nomination of Nathan A. Simington

  Ms. CANTWELL. Madam President, I come to the floor today to urge my 
colleagues to vote against the nomination of Nathan Simington to be a 
member of the Federal Communications Commission.
  We definitely want the FCC to focus on commonsense consumer 
protections, universal broadband, and the survival of our news and 
local journalism industry as it faces unbelievable and unfair 
competition and practices by the tech sector, and we also want to make 
sure that the next President of the United States also gets to choose 
their member and representation to the FCC.
  The Senate has a tradition of confirming Commission nominees in pairs 
to ensure equality on both sides of the aisle. I think moving this 
nominee without that democratic paring is contrary to what we have 
usually operated under in good governance.
  Every Member of this body should be concerned about setting a 
precedent and what it will mean in the future if we don't have 
essential consumer protections and oversight in this important 
institution.
  We need high-quality, affordable broadband for the underserved and 
the unserved. That includes Tribal country.
  We need to make sure that we are working hard as a result of the 
pandemic and for people to understand that broadband is now essential 
to our healthcare, to being able to work, and certainly to the 
education of our children. According to the AP, 16 percent of families 
with children have no access to broadband, and we need to make sure 
that all students have the tools for distance learning.
  We need to make sure that Washingtonians have access to broadband for 
healthcare centers and clinics and to make sure that their initial 
contacts can be done online, just to help us in fighting the pandemic.
  Especially, we need to preserve a free and open internet that is not 
divided into haves and have-nots.
  The innovation economy is so important to my State, but it is 
important to the entire United States, and we need to have nominees who 
will fight for these policies, to get them implemented. That is why it 
is important that we look at FCC Commissioners.
  Mr. Simington was before our Commerce Committee. We had another 
nominee whom the White House abruptly, unexpectedly pulled from its 
renomination--Commissioner O'Rielly--just days after the committee 
reported that nomination to the Senate, allegedly because he spoke his 
mind and because he did not agree with the President of the United 
States. Mr. Simington was nominated instead just a few weeks later, 
coming from NTIA, which asks the FCC to issue rules.
  It raises questions in my mind about the White House's choice in Mr. 
Simington, particularly given these issues as it relates to the FCC and 
key responsibilities. I have questions about his neutrality and 
independence on issues before the Commission and about whether he 
aggressively and actively sought the media attention to personally and 
explicitly direct pressure onto the FCC. This involvement might sound 
insignificant or just partisan to some, but it is so important for the 
FCC to continue to play an important and independent role from the 
President of the United States.
  So I hope we will not pass the Simington nomination. But I am 
emphasizing to my colleagues that the President will deserve his 
nominee as well, and I hope our colleagues will move quickly to confirm 
them once they are nominated.