Congressman Bill Pascrell (D – NJ) appears to be siding with former
President Bill Clinton and Republicans on Capitol Hill who are concerned
about the administration’s plans to cede U.S. oversight of the internet
to an international body.
“I haven’t come to any conclusion. I think it’s an interesting concept, but I don’t know if I’m supporting it. I’m not leaning in favor of it–right now,” Pascrell told Breitbart News on Monday.
According to recode.net,
Clinton bucked the Obama administration and told an audience at a
meeting sponsored by the Clinton Global Initiative last Friday, “A lot
of people who have been trying to take this authority from the
U.S. for the sole purpose of cracking down on Internet freedom and
limiting it and having governments protect their backsides instead of
empowering the people.”
The former president also said, “Whatever you think our country has done
wrong, the United States has been by far the country most committed to
keeping the Internet free and open and uninterrupted.”
Rep. Tom Price (R – GA) agreed telling Breitbart News,
responsibility for an internet that actually functions and works for
people.” He added, “Other nations don’t necessarily have the best
interests of citizens at heart–they have their country’s best interests
at heart but they don’t have the citizens best interest at heart, so I
think it’s a terrible idea.”
Other Democratic members on the hill
appeared bewildered about the issue refusing to comment about the
conflict between the administration and Clinton. When
informed about Clinton’s stance, Sen. Joe Manchin (D – WV) only
responded, “I have to talk to Bill about that one.”
The
Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) maintains
website domain names and is a nonprofit with an international hierarchy
of “stakeholders.” This is essentially an organization that includes
governments, businesses, and others. However, ICANN has always been
under a contract from the U.S. Department of Commerce. The Commerce
Department announced on March 14 that it would give up control over
the remaining domain names next year. In its stead, a new system of
global web governance would take over the operation.
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