The U.S. Senate Friday confirmed telecom attorney Robert M. McDowell to fill
the fifth seat on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), restoring a
3-2 Republican majority on the panel.
McDowell replaces Republican Kathleen Abernathy, who resigned last year.
President Bush nominated McDowell in February, but Sen. Mary Landrieu
(D-La.) put a block on all non-judicial nominees until last week to protest
White House efforts in the Hurricane Katrina recovery.
Since Abernathy’s resignation, the FCC has operated with two Republicans,
Chairman Kevin J. Martin and Deborah Tate Taylor, and two Democrats, Michael
Copps and Jonathan Adelstein.
“Rob’s expertise and experience will be an asset to the Commission as it
tackles a variety of critical communications issues in the future,” U.S.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) said in a
statement.
“The FCC will be required to implement portions of our
communications bill, and it is essential it has a full complement of
commissioners.”
Stevens’ telecom reform bill is pending a committee vote and covers a wide
range of topics from national video franchising for IPTV, network
neutrality, mandatory E911 requirements for Voice over IP
carriers and reform of the Universal Service Fund.
“I am anxious to have him on board and look forward to working with a full
complement of commissioners to address the important issues before us,”
Martin said in a statement. “He has a wealth of knowledge and expertise in
the communications arena.”
In McDowell’s March Senate confirmation hearing, he promised to clear the
“cumbersome underbrush of unnecessary government regulation.” He also
promised to remove barriers to entry in telecom market.
“All Americans should be able to benefit from the digital revolution, and
the FCC should strive to help Americans realize that goal,” he said.
McDowell was most recently senior vice president and assistant general
counsel for COMPTEL, a trade group of competitive local exchange carriers.
Prior to that, he worked for a Washington telecommunications law firm.
In 2000, McDowell worked for the legal team representing then presidential
candidate George Bush in the disputed Florida recount proceedings.
In 2003, he unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the Virginia House of
Delegates. The next year, McDowell did advance work for President Bush in
the 2004 campaign.
