Trump FCC’s Plan to End Net Neutrality Rests on Alternative Facts and Empty Promises

[Commentary] Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai plans to fast-track a proposal for the agency’s May meeting that would undermine this strong legal standing and undo the network neutrality rules completely. Chairman Pai wants internet users to believe that he supports the “principle” of net neutrality, just not the Title II authority on which the rules rest. But that’s nonsense: It’s like saying you like free speech but just aren’t a fan of the First Amendment. Whether the issue is the environment, health care, or worker safety, President Donald Trump and his lackeys like Pai manufacture data and lie about the downsides to disguise their real goals: taking away crucial protections and successful policies. The attack on net neutrality is no different.

Consider Pai’s other justification for launching this attack on internet users: the utterly false and repeatedly debunked claim that the FCC rules are dampening investment. In the two years since the FCC's 2015 vote, the industry has actually seen an explosion in over-the-top video competition as well as a dramatic increase in next-generation broadband-network deployment. Nobody will be fooled by Pai’s destructive plan or the empty promises of telecom executives. But millions of people will have to rise up again to stop it.

[Craig Aaron has led Free Press and the Free Press Action Fund since 2011.]