Poor Tom Daschle.
First, the Senate minority leader from South Dakota is handily rebuffed by the GOP in a high-profile fight over managed health-care reform. A big sticking point: Liability protection for HMOs. Sound familiar?
Then Daschle gets deluged with criticism from D.C. and surrounding local governments, citizens, lawmakers, bird watchers, environmentalists, Hollywood and The Washington Post for a stealth amendment gagging the National Capital Planning Commission on Bell Atlantic Mobile’s five-year quest to build two cell towers here in Rock Creek Park.
In an ironic twist, some citizen activists now believe Daschle is the best thing going. “Daschle has done us a great service by coming up with this colossal imperative. Because it’s so outrageous, it has resulted in a lot of good education on the issue,” said Libby Kelly, head of Wireless Technology Impacts. “Radiation without representation!” decries Kelly.
Daschle needn’t worry about the latest dustups, though. He has political cover plenty for saving Clinton’s chops in l’affaire Lewinsky. For that, we are at war with Australia over U.S. lamb import restrictions. Aussie sheep farmers say it’s “BAAAAAAAD” policy.
… It’s Istanbul. The ITU Council voted to keep WRC-2000 in the Turkish capital, notwithstanding possible lack of accommodations and security risks.
… Rep. Michael Forbes, a GOP congressman from Long Island, N.Y., and member of the House appropriations panel that oversees the FCC’s budget, is jumping ship for the Democratic Party.
… CTIA lobbyists and CEO members met with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman (and self-described GOP fall-back prez hopeful) Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) in hopes Senate will follow House’s lead and extend CALEA carrier reimbursement cut-off date of Jan. 1, 1995, to June 30.
House Commerce appropriations subcommittee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) is said to be still fuming from industry end-around on CALEA in the House. There are growing signs of strain within the coalition of wireless operators, landline carriers and manufacturers over CALEA strategy.
… “Larry King Live” toyed with airing another cellular phone-cancer program last Monday, but events of the day (and possibly the lack of a ratings-enhancing antagonist) pre-empted it.
You see, real news was taking place. The heir to Camelot, his wife and sister-in-law had died. A tragedy beyond words, even those of Robert Frost-another bygone native son of Massachusetts who wrote inaugural passages spoken by JFK Jr.’s father 38 years ago that inspired a nation to a greatness in democracy and technology that we know today.
