Net Neutrality Looms at Kavanaugh Hearing

The Senate formally kicks off the confirmation battle over Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh with lawmakers poised to grill the judge for several days on a host of issues. Key among them for the tech and telecom crowd: Kavanaugh’s dissenting opinion in a 2017 ruling that upheld the Obama-era net neutrality rules. “Kavanaugh’s position goes against a free & open internet,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) tweeted, adding that the judge’s rationale for his dissent in United States Telecom Association v. Federal Communications Commission “is bordering on absurdity, and shows that he might not understand what #NetNeutrality actually means.” He’s not the only Democrat ready to pounce on the subject. “I will be asking him tough questions on this topic and ... to justify that dissent and his distorted view of the First Amendment,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said.

Another topic to watch: Kavanaugh’s skepticism of the Chevron doctrine, the precedent that judges should defer to agency interpretations on statutes. Though less attention-grabbing than the judge’s past comments on presidential immunity or his views on Roe v. Wade — two hot-button issues expected to draw intense scrutiny — his stance on agency deference could be a critical one, given the Supreme Court’s sweeping influence over how courts handle initiatives across the federal government. (For a refresher on Kavanaugh’s views on all things tech and telecom, read up here and here.)