Republicans threaten to derail internet transition
IANA contract getting renewed attention
tangor
5:07 pm on May 20, 2016 (gmt 0)
Republican congressmen are increasing their efforts to delay transition of a critical piece of internet infrastructure from the US government to a non-profit organization based in California.
For the third time, a House Appropriations subcommittee has included a provision in a must-pass bill that would prevent the Department of Commerce from using any funds in the transition of the IANA contract from the department to non-profit California organization ICANN.
That approach comes in addition to a series of letters from a number of senators, including Ted Cruz, asking pointed questions of the organization and its links to the Chinese government.
The GOP is always trying to either privatize government services or get rid of them altogether. These attempts are nothing new, however it certainly is a concern.
Seems what was viewed as radical and no-chance-in-hell just a few years ago, now could actually happen given the climate in Washington these days. The results of the upcoming presidential election may solve it. Clinton is pretty savy when it comes to the internet... but not so much with email :)
Marshall
2:11 pm on Jun 4, 2016 (gmt 0)
Just remember, you are dealing with people with a "If it's on the internet, it must be true" mentality. Did not one of the presidential candidates say "everything I learned, I learned on the internet?"
keyplyr
2:25 pm on Jun 4, 2016 (gmt 0)
Sorry, don't know that reference. However, this has nothing to do with how well members of Congress understand the internet, it's about power; about who gets it and how it's managed.
toidi
2:58 pm on Jun 4, 2016 (gmt 0)
I don't know if icann is any better than some govt organization.
