Ajit Pai Renomination Vote Delayed—And Could Get Ugly.
Staff | Inside Radio | September 25, 2017
He bathed in adulation from broadcasters at this month’s Radio Show, but not everyone in Congress has similar feelings for Ajit Pai. It’s why the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is reportedly headed for a “messy” floor vote in the Senate, which has yet to approve his new term at the agency. Supporters of approving Pai will likely need a cloture vote to break a hold on his re-nomination, which is an extremely rare requirement for FCC nominees who are typically approved on a voice vote.
The Senate Commerce Committee gave its nod to Pai in early August. But Committee chair John Thune (R-SD) tells Politico that Senate Democrats are set on making it “difficult” for Pai. “They wanted to drag this out or they would have let him go before the August break when we approved the other package of nominees,” Thune said.
The hold-up on Pai is tied to his support for rolling back Obama administration net neutrality regulations as well as changes to the television UHF discount that have set the table for Sinclair Broadcast Group to buy Tribune Broadcasting, allowing the conservative-leaning company to grow its footprint to more cities. Critics of the deal, including Allied Progress, IBEW Broadcasting, Latino Victory Project and Common Dreams, say there are “so many unanswered questions” about the merger and they’re pushing the Senate to delay a vote on Pai until it becomes clear how the FCC will play the deal. “Democrats should oppose the Republican efforts to rush Pai’s reconfirmation and continue to push for Congressional hearings to understand the impact of this proposed merger and other critical issues under the FCC’s control,” they said in a joint statement. Washington insiders say the delay for Pai is likely to mean that he will take a go-slow approach to making any big moves that would further upset some members of Congress. They say that includes taking action on pending media ownership petitions, including to abolish the AM/FM subcaps.
The Senate failed to take up Pai’s pending re-nomination before breaking for its annual summer vacation despite approving the nominations of commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Brendan Carr. Then it went on its break for Rosh Hashanah last week with the move still on the Senate’s list of pending nominations. Pai’s previous term expired on June 30, 2016 and if approved his new five-year term would retroactivelycover the past year that he’s been at the agency. Without a vote he’d be required to leave the Commission in December. But Thune told Politico he hopes the nomination doesn’t go down to the wire. “I want to get it done as soon as we can,” he said. “I don’t want to push this to the end of the year. I think [Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell] shares that view.” Pai, 44, has served at the FCC since 2012.
Thune also told reporters that a vote on Pai isn’t the only FCC-related item that’s been tied up in Congress. Legislation which would formally reauthorize the agency for the first time since 1990 also remains far down on a list of congressional priorities. “That probably doesn’t happen this year,” Thune said.
Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), who chairs the House Communications and Technology Subcommittee, expressed similar doubt earlier this year. “I don’t know if we’ve got enough bandwidth to do it this year—that might be something for next year,” she said.