Stearns's loss puts Oversight gavel up for grabs

Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) suffered a surprising defeat in the Florida GOP primary, putting a coveted chairmanship on the House Commerce Committee’s Oversight subcommittee up for grabs.

Rep Stearns has been active on tech and telecom issues, though he's grabbed more headlines for leading the Oversight panel's probes into Solyndra and Planned Parenthood. The congressman has been a staunch opponent of new Internet regulations and one of the House’s fiercest critics of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). He strongly opposed the FCC’s proposed net-neutrality rules and criticized the agency's handling of LightSquared's quest to build a high-speed wireless network, comparing the startup to bankrupt solar energy firm Solyndra. Outside the telecom realm, the 12-term Republican has been vocal on core tech issues such as online privacy. This spring, he held a series of hearings on how to defend the country’s critical infrastructure networks against the growing threat of cyberattack.