11.14.07

Maria's Monday Memo

 
Consolidating America’s Media is the Wrong Direction  
 
Last Friday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) held a public hearing on media ownership. At the hearing, I questioned the wisdom of the FCC’s rush to judgment and warned the FCC that the Senate will act if the FCC’s final media ownership rules encourage media consolidation. While increased media consolidation might be good for Wall Street, it is certainly bad for Main Street.
 
Our democracy is strengthened when diverse voices have access to the airwaves, print, television and the Internet.  Congress should look at the Constitution and make sure Americans’ rights to access a diverse array of opinions are protected. No one should be allowed to corner the marketplace for ideas. 
 
One day earlier, the Senate Commerce Committee held a hearing on pending proposals to change FCC media ownership rules, government efforts to promote localism and diversity in the media marketplace. After this hearing, I joined Senators Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Trent Lott (R-MS) in introducing the Media Ownership Act of 2007 to restore a deliberative process to the FCC’s rulemakings on localism and media ownership and give the public enough time to comment on the proposed rules. Specifically the bill would require:
  • 90 days for the public to comment on any proposed media ownership rules put forward by the FCC;
  • the FCC to complete a separate proceeding to evaluate how localism is affected by media consolidation,  completed prior to a vote on proposed media ownership rules; and
  • establishment of an independent panel on female and minority ownership and for the FCC to provide the panel with accurate data on female and minority ownership.
  • This panel must issue recommendations and the FCC must act on them prior to voting on any proposed ownership rules.
 
 
 
Opposed Mukasey’s Nomination for Attorney General
 
Last week, I decided I could not support the nomination of Judge Michael B. Mukasey as Attorney General of the United States. Our country has been through a period where this Administration’s over-reaching use of executive power has not only been called into question, but has been reversed by the courts. America deserves an Attorney General who will restore confidence to an office that has been hurt by politically influenced firings. Judge Mukasey’s answers to questions about executive power, especially regarding surveillance of U.S. citizens, were particularly troubling.
 
 
Honoring Our Nation’s Veterans
 
This past weekend we recognized Veterans Day.  On this day, and every day, we honor the millions of Americans who put their lives on the line for our country. We honor those who have fought to keep us safe, defend our freedom, and protect our liberty. Their devotion has made our nation what it is today. As a nation, we have a responsibility to make sure service members, veterans, and their families receive the benefits and recognition that they have earned and so greatly deserve. We must keep our commitment to our veterans. 
 
This year, Congress has passed the largest funding increase in the history of the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure our troops coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan get the care they deserve, while continuing to meet the needs of veterans from previous wars. This funding will help improve conditions at veterans’ military facilities, enhance VA health care services, improve veterans’ access to critical benefits, decrease VA waiting times and bureaucratic obstacles, safeguard veterans’ personal data, and fund research for illnesses like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury.  But we need to make sure this critical funding for our veterans gets signed into law by the President. 
 
Let us celebrate the service of America’s military personnel and remember the many who have given their lives for our country. Their sacrifice is immense and our gratitude is profound.
 
 
Congress Overrides Bush’s Water Resources Veto
 
Last week, the Senate voted by a margin of 79-14 vote to override President Bush's veto of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). WRDA authorizes America's essential flood control, navigation, and ecosystem restoration projects in a way that is fiscally responsible and technically sound.  With the Senate and House voting to override the president's veto, the bill now becomes law.  This is the first update in seven years.
 
WRDA provides tools to enhance transportation via the Columbia River and will help expedite the Army Corps of Engineers’ permitting process for local projects.   Additional projects are contained in the bill that will improve inland waterways and ports, water quality and storage, and begin necessary environmental remediation and watershed planning throughout the United States. Washington's farmers, in particular, need the help contained in this bill because they depend on easy transportation of their crops along the Columbia River. The much-needed improvements to vital infrastructure and projects contained in this bill will grow our economy and strengthen our environment.
 
 
The Need to Protect Our Nation’s Watersheds Grows Stronger
 
Right now, America spends about $3 million annually on road maintenance in Washington state's National Forests, but the backlog jumps by $8 million each year. The Forest Service’s backlog nationally is now over $10 billion. Deteriorating forest service roads block access to our public lands, cause environmental damage, and degrade our water supply.  It's time to end years of underfunding and neglect, and get this problem under control. 
 
Last Friday, with Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ken Salazar (D-CO) and Russ Feingold (D-WI), I asked the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee to include $65 million to address the environmental effects of deteriorating forest service roads in the 2008 Interior Appropriations Bill. The funding will enable the Forest Service to tackle the backlog of road maintenance in the existing road system in a manner that is both environmentally sound and fiscally responsible to better protect our nation’s drinking water, watersheds, and wildlife.