Key Hill Aides Share Insight Into Telecom Debate

The staff director of the Senate Commerce Committee told communications attorneys that Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, is still talking one-on-one with senators to secure the votes needed to debate telecommunications legislation. Lisa Sutherland said at a Capitol Hill briefing that since Stevens returned to Washington this week, he had been busy with floor debate of the fiscal 2007 Defense appropriations bill. But she added, "That's not such a bad place to talk with people... Sen. Stevens remains optimistic he can get 60 votes. He's working with Sen. [Daniel] Inouye to get the bill up." James Assey, the counsel for Hawaii's Inouye, the ranking Democrat on the committee, did not sound as optimistic that a vote would happen this session, saying it is such a multifaceted version compared with the House's. "We just have to wait and see," Assey said. Rumors have circulated that Stevens may try to divide the bill and attach it to different appropriations bills. "If he's doing that, it's news to me," Sutherland said. "Sen. Stevens isn't going to do something Sen. Inouye has major heartburn with." She said if some senators do not like sections of the entire bill, they can offer amendments then.