DO YOU KNOW WHICH CONGRESSMEN WANT TO GIVE AWAY THE ONCE-FREE INTERNET TO THE BIG TELECOMS?

A couple weeks ago I reminded DWT readers that there is another crucial reason for everyone, not just New Hampshire residents, to get actively involved in Paul Hodes' campaign to get the low-down, rubber-stampin' right wing varmint, Charlie Bass out of Congress. Aside from just sleep-walking through the last 2 sesssions of Congress and basically giving Bush and DeLay a green light on every far-fetched, hare-brained scheme they come up with the wreck our great nation, Bass has joined a vile coalition of corrupt and reactionary Beltway Insiders (of both political parties) to give away the internet to their corporate paymasters.

Common Cause has been warning us about this plot in no uncertain terms. "The Telecommunications Act of 1996 promised more competition, more diversity, lower prices, more jobs and a booming economy. Instead, the public got more media concentration, less diversity and higher prices. Now Congress is poised to take up new telecom legislation, and special interests are once again mounting a campaign focused on almost complete deregulation of the telecommunications industry. It is vitally important that history does not repeat itself. What is at stake is not just how much consumers pay for access to the Internet or their cable TV, but rather the fabric of American civic discourse--how ideas get communicated or are stifled, whether citizens will have a way to get the information they need to govern themselves."

Now Sean Paul at The Agonist and Matt Stoller at MyDD are banging (loudly) on the chimes of freedom. We're in trouble-- big trouble-- and these congressional creeps are trying to ramrod this through without anyone knowing. Matt and Sean Paul are part of an ad hoc Save the Internet Coalition which is seeking 3 simple things:

The freedom to go where we want

      The freedom to say what we want

      And the freedom to innovate

Every politician who votes to give away the free internet to their contributors in the telecom industry should be defeated-- and that includes corporate Democrats as well as Republicans. Monopolies stifle freedom and innovation; they are inherently un-American. Or maybe you agree with Ed Whitacre, an avaricious pile of stinking shit on two legs who is also the Chairman of AT&T when he says that "the Internet can't be free." Do you?

Art Brodsky at Talking Points Memo Cafe has all the background and paints a clear picture of why this could be a catastrophe, a bipartisan one, like so much of the worst of Bush. We've come to expect Republican to take bribes from corporations and then let the corporations write the laws that affect their businesses. Six sleazy Democrats, on the House Telecommunications Subcommittee, all of whom deserve to be defeated, joined the GOP mad rush for telecom bribes. The Democrats taking bribes from Verizon and the other telecoms are Eliot Engel (NY-17), Bart Stupak (MI-01), Ed Towns (NY-10), Al Wynn (MD-04), Charlie Gonzales (TX-20) and Bobby Rush (IL-01). The Democrats on the Subcommittee who fought to preserve net neutrality are Ed Markey, Rick Boucher, Anna Eshoo, Jay Inslee, John Dingell, Mike Doyle, and Frank Pallone. All but one of the Republicans-- as usual in the back pocket of Big Business-- voted to kill net neutrality. The enemies: Fred Upton (MI), Michael Bilirakis (FL, who is resigning but is trying to get his equally horrible son into Congress in his place), Cliff Stearns (FL, who has a great Democratic opponent this year in Dave Bruderly), Paul Gillmore (OH), Ed Whitfield (KY), Barbara Cubin (a vulnerable Repug who deserves to be and can be beaten in November by Gary Trauner), John Shimkus (IL), the abominable "Chip" Pickering (MS), Staten Island anomaly Vito Fossella(NY), George Radanovich (CA), the aforementioned piece of crap from New Hampshire, Charles F. Bass, Greg Walden (OR), Lee Terry (NE), ultra-corrupt Mike Ferguson (NJ, whose progressive challenger this year, Linda Stender deserves maximum support), John Sullivan (OK), Marsha Blackburn (TN), and, probably the worst of all, a man God has shown us He hates, Joe Barton (TX).

Matt at MyDD is bloggin' up a storm on this and he's got all the low down as well as action points we can all take. We need to-- NOW.


TUESDAY MORNING UPDATE: ACTION ALERT

First thing this morning I was on the phone calling Tammy Baldwin and Henry Waxman about Interet Neutrality vs corporate monopolies. Very strange. But I had an e-mail from Joseph at CannonFire warning me that TODAY IS THE DAY! "Tuesday is THE only day to act if we want to save the internet. We must try to mount a huge one-day phone campaign. Calling the undecided congressman on the committee directly MAY do the job." Joseph did it; I started and he's already called 'em all. It was easy. You just need to say six words into the answering machine: 'KEEP THE INTERNET AS IT IS,' although the assistants I spoke to on the phone were friendly and easy-going. This threat is very real.

The undecideds:

Lois Capps 202-225-3601
Henry A. Waxman 202-225-3976
Mary Whitaker Bono 202-225-5330
C.L. (Butch) Otter 202-225-6611
Diana DeGette 202-225-4431
Ralph M. Hall 202-225-6673
Gene Green 202-225-1688
Jim Davis 202-225-3376
Nathan Deal 202-225-5211
Ted Strickland 202-225-5705
Michael J. Rogers 202-225-4872
Tammy Baldwin 202-225-2906
Janice Schakowsky 202-225-2111
Tim Murphy 202-225-2301
Joseph R. Pitts 202-225-2411
Thomas H. Allen 202-225-6116

Strike a bell for liberty by calling the congressmen today and letting them know this is important to you.


WEDNESDAY ACTION UPDATE: WHAT YOU CAN DO TO SAVE THE INTERNET NOW

Today there's a key vote in the Energy and Commerce Committee on net neutrality and internet freedom. Our goal is to keep the vote close and show that there's public outrage about letting big companies control the internet. Here are four Democats on the Energy and Commerce Committee who are not totally wedded to the Telecoms. They can be convinced to vote with us if we apply some pressure. If you live in one of their districts, YOU can be key in saving the Internet.

Bart Stupak (D- Michigan, 1st, the western part on the other side of Lake Michigan + Petoskey and Alpena)
phone: (202) 225 4735
fax: (202) 225 4744

Tom Allen, (D - Maine, 1st, the southwestern part of the state that includes Portland and Augusta)
phone: (207) 774-5019
fax: (207) 871-0720

Mike Ross (D - Arkansas, 4th, the southern part of the state including Hot Spings, Pine Bluff, Mena, Hope and El Dorado)
tel: 1-800-223-2220
fax: (202) 225-1314

Jim Davis (D - Florida, 11th, Tampa and St. Petersburg but Davis will be attentive to ALL Floridians since he is leaving Congress and running for Governor)
tel: (202) 225-3376
fax: (202) 225-5652


WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: BETRAYED BY BOUGHT AND PAID FOR REPUBLICRATS

The Markey Amendment failed in committee 22-34. All the Democrats you called today voted against the Telecom monopolists. GREAT JOB! But corporate Democrats Bobby Rush (IL-01), Al Wynn (MD-04), Gene Green (TX-29) and Charlie Gonzales (TX-20) all voted no on the amendment and betrayed the netroots. Please don't forget these men's names; when we needed them desperately, they decided to stick with Joe Barton and abandon the netroots and progressives.

The fate of the Internet will now rest in the hands of the Republican-dominated Senate. I'll keep you updated. Oh, by the way, Matt at MyDD has done some great research and has come up with the amount the Telecom companies have bribed contributed to each of the Democrats who joined the Republicans today.

Ed Towns- $22,000
Al Wynn- $19,100
Charlie Gonzales- $16,500
Bobby Rush- $21,000
Gene Green- $12,000