GOP senators to feds: Leave the Internet alone

Federal regulations threaten to strangle the growth of the Internet economy, Republican lawmakers warned. Speaking at the 10th annual State of the Net policy conference, Sen John Thune (R-SD), the Senate Commerce Committee’s top ranking Republican and co-chairman of the Congressional Internet Caucus, challenged federal officials to stop meddling online. “There are exceptions of course, but far too often, when you hear someone say, ‘We need regulations to protect the Internet,’ what they’re actually saying is they don’t really trust the entrepreneurs and Internet technologists to create the economic growth and to increase public welfare,” Sen Thune said.

Also at State of the Net, Sen Rand Paul (R-KY) said that while the government might have helped create the Internet, the rapid explosion of online companies was only possible because federal officials got out of the way. “It was a place where people went where they weren’t told what to do,” Sen Paul said. He said other sectors of the economy have been hurt by regulations that have prevented companies from thinking outside the box. “That’s what we need to protect against with the Internet, is that it’s been a very free and open place, but we don’t want to let government get too involved with it, because I think that will stifle innovation,” he said.