Biden back to the drawing board

Biden FCC nominee withdraws, blaming cable lobby and “unlimited dark money”

Gigi Sohn gives up amid opposition from Republicans and Democrat Joe Manchin.

Jon Brodkin – Mar 7, 2023 3:34 pm | 209

Gigi Sohn testifies during a Senate Commerce Committee confirmation hearing on Feb. 9, 2022. Credit: Getty Images

President Biden’s nominee to the open seat on the Federal Communications Commission, Gigi Sohn, withdrew her nomination today.

“When I accepted his nomination over sixteen months ago, I could not have imagined that legions of cable and media industry lobbyists, their bought-and-paid-for surrogates, and dark money political groups with bottomless pockets would distort my over 30-year history as a consumer advocate into an absurd caricature of blatant lies,” Sohn said in a statement provided to Ars and other media organizations.

Sohn’s nomination was “met with homophobic tropes and attacks against herself and her family,” a recent letter from advocacy groups to senators said. Sohn’s statement said that “unrelenting, dishonest and cruel attacks on my character and my career as an advocate for the public interest have taken an enormous toll on me and my family.”

“It is a sad day for our country and our democracy when dominant industries, with assistance from unlimited dark money, get to choose their regulators. And with the help of their friends in the Senate, the powerful cable and media companies have done just that,” Sohn also said.

Manchin announced opposition today

Earlier today, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced that he would vote against Sohn. With Republicans lined up against the nominee, that meant she would need support from every remaining member of the Democratic caucus in order to be confirmed.

In a statement, Manchin criticized Sohn for “her years of partisan activism, inflammatory statements online, and work with far-left groups.” Manchin didn’t provide any examples of Sohn making “inflammatory statements.” The “work with far-left groups” may be a reference to Sohn being on the board of the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

“Especially now, the FCC must remain above the toxic partisanship that Americans are sick and tired of, and Ms. Sohn has clearly shown she is not the person to do that,” Manchin’s statement said. “For those reasons, I cannot support her nomination to the FCC, and I urge the Biden Administration to put forth a nominee who can bring us together, not drive us apart.”

The FCC has been stuck with a 2-2 partisan deadlock for Biden’s entire term as president. He nominated Sohn, a longtime consumer advocate and former FCC official, in October 2021 and again in January 2023 after the previous Senate didn’t vote on the nomination.

“I believe it is critical for at least one member of the FCC to be a consumer advocate who has spent a career not beholden to any interest but that of the public,” Sohn told the Senate Commerce Committee during a confirmation hearing last month.

Sohn: “Regulated entities should not choose their regulator”

As Sohn noted, the telecom industry would prefer a commissioner that doesn’t want to expand regulation of Internet providers. Comcast apparently lobbied against Sohn behind the scenes despite not publicly opposing the nomination.

“I believe deeply that regulated entities should not choose their regulator,” Sohn said during the confirmation hearing. “Unfortunately, that is the exact intent of the past 15 months of false and misleading attacks on my record and my character.”

In her statement today, Sohn warned that “the 2-2 FCC will remain sidelined at the most consequential opportunity for broadband in our lifetimes,” continuing:

This means that your broadband will be more expensive for lack of competition, minority and underrepresented voices will be marginalized, and your private information will continue to be used and sold at the whim of your broadband provider. It means that the FCC will not have a majority to adopt strong rules which ensure that everyone has nondiscriminatory access to broadband, regardless of who they are or where they live, and that low-income students will continue to be forced to do their school work sitting outside of Taco Bell because Universal Service funds can’t be used for broadband in their homes. And it means that many rural Americans will continue the long wait for broadband because the FCC can’t fix its Universal Service programs.

“I hope the president swiftly nominates an individual who puts the American people first over all other interests. The country deserves nothing less,” Sohn added.

Manchin’s statement on his decision to vote against Sohn said the FCC must focus on “updating broadband coverage maps, addressing compromised Chinese equipment and products that threaten the security of our communications infrastructure, and ensuring every American has access to affordable Internet services.” But he provided no evidence that Sohn wouldn’t be focused on those issues.

Sohn co-founded consumer advocacy group Public Knowledge in 2001 and led the organization until taking a position as counselor for then-FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler in 2013. While working for Wheeler, she played a role in developing net neutrality rules and common-carrier broadband regulations that were later repealed during the Trump era.

Democrats’ 51-49 edge apparently not enough

After two years with a 50-50 split in the Senate, Democrats now have a 51-49 majority, including three independents who caucus with Democrats. Without Manchin’s support, Sohn could still have been approved in a 50-50 vote with Vice President Kamala Harris providing the tie-breaker.

But that would require support from conservative-leaning senators like Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), who recently left the Democratic Party but still caucuses with the party as an independent. Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) also criticized Sohn for being a board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and for having “strongly advocated against law enforcement access to digital evidence.”

Craig Aaron, president of advocacy group Free Press, called Sohn’s withdrawal “a huge loss for the country.”

“They’re probably celebrating at Comcast and Fox today, and their lobbyists deserve most of the credit for concocting lies to derail her nomination,” Aaron said. “Republicans who willfully spread those lies must be thrilled, too. But they’re not the only ones to blame: The failure of Democratic leaders to stand up to industry-orchestrated smears cost the agency—and the nation—a true public servant.”

Public Knowledge CEO Chris Lewis called it “a failure by elected leaders in both parties to prioritize” the public interest.

“The incessant and appalling personal attacks against Ms. Sohn, the outright lies about her character, and the deceptive tactics used to bully her will have ripple effects for both the public and any other nominees the Biden administration may want to serve in their government. This sets a dangerous precedent,” Lewis said.

Listing image: Getty Images

Jon Brodkin Senior IT Reporter

Jon is a Senior IT Reporter for Ars Technica. He covers the telecom industry, Federal Communications Commission rulemakings, broadband consumer affairs, court cases, and government regulation of the tech industry.

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