A new FCC member who terrifies Big Tech liberals has been confirmed in the eleventh hour of President Donald Trump’s first term.
Senate Republicans successfully confirmed National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) senior adviser Nathan Simington as a new commissioner for the Federal Communications Commision (FCC). “The chamber backed Simington on a 49-to-46 vote,” The Washington Post reported Dec. 8. The same article noted Simington “expressed an openness to using the agency’s rulemaking powers to explore the way social media sites handle political speech.”
Much like the vote itself, the reaction to Simington’s confirmation has differed sharply along party lines. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai congratulated Simington and declared, “I am confident that Nathan too will enjoy the challenges and rewards of the job.” FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr also voiced his support for the new member of the board: “Once he is sworn in, I look forward to working together with him and my other colleagues on the Commission on common sense policies that will advance the public interest.” FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel expressed optimism that the board is ready for the challenges of the modern age: “I look forward to working with him as we take on our nation’s most pressing digital age communications challenges."
Meanwhile, Democrats were outraged by his confirmation. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) suggested Simington is “wholly unqualified to help lead this agency” and shared a “#StopSimington” hashtag in a Dec. 8 tweet. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) lamented: “I voted no on Nathan Simington’s nomination to the Federal Communications Commission. Americans need a champion for consumers at the FCC, not an unqualified Trump acolyte who wants to create federal speech police.”
“[T]he implications could stretch through all of Biden's term. If they play hardball, Republicans could prevent Biden from ever securing the partisan majority that presidents typically achieve on the five-person commission,” Politico observed Dec. 8. The same article quoted Republican strategy firm Targeted Victory Vice President Nathan Leamer, who suggested Simington’s confirmation “resets the game,” and “really does open up the entire table for potential deals and opportunities.”
Like Trump himself, Simington has terrified both the far left that dominates Big Tech and the left-enabling establishment right who oppose government involvement in regulating social media companies.
Simington “played a significant role in the agency’s social media regulation agenda,” Benton Institute for Broadband & Society reported. The Institute suggested that, if confirmed, “the nomination would represent a significant blow to Republicans who favor a light-touch approach to telecom policy.”
The Institute added that “his nomination would be a victory for Republicans who want to see the FCC take a larger role in regulating social networks.” It also noted that “In Aug, President Donald Trump abruptly withdrew Commissioner O’Rielly’s nomination after O'Rielly gave a speech opposing making changes to Section 230.”
Conservatives are under attack. Contact your local representative and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “hate speech” and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us at the Media Research Center contact form and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
