The FCC has work to do, and Ted Cruz isn’t helping

Fresh off his defeat over the government shutdown, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has blocked President Barack Obama's nominee for the chair of the Federal Communications Commission. At any other time, the delay might be written off as another cost of doing business in today's gridlocked Congress. But having just emerged from a 16-day closure, Washington's has a bunch of catching up to do -- and the FCC is no exception, meaning that the hold on Wheeler is likely to add even more to the backlog. What's at stake is a major government auction to improve the nation's mobile broadband and other wireless networks. It's the first of its kind, making the FCC a battleground for telecom companies, the TV industry and consumer advocates who are all trying to influence the rules behind the auction. All these groups are stuck in a holding pattern until the FCC makes a final decision on how the process will work.