Today's Quote

House Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-TX) is ready to advance a telecommunications bill stripped of provisions that have raised strong objections from the cable industry. Rep Barton -- feeling press pressure from cable and conservative think tanks -- dropped two provisions he had accepted in principle two weeks ago in negotiations with the committee’s top Democrats, Reps. John Dingell (D-MI) and Edward Markey (D-MA). One provision would deny a national franchise for a cable incumbent until a phone provider had 15% of the local market, and another would bar cable operators from slashing rates only in those sections of a community where the phone company had initiated service. Industry and House aides said Barton’s decision to drop those two provisions while refusing to include buildout requirements has cost him the support of Reps Dingell and Markey, setting up a partisan contest when the committee meets to vote.