Image: blackburn.house.gov
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These are the states with laws against community fiber. Image: MuniNetworks
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What Blackburn did not mention in her statement was that the nation's largest cable and telecom companies, which have repeatedly funneled buckets of money through political action committees into her reelection campaign coffers, vehemently oppose community broadband efforts. These corporate giants, which already dominate most markets, claim that such initiatives represent unfair competition.Over the last decade, AT&T and Verizon have been Blackburn's second and third largest donors, pouring $66,750 and $59,650 into her campaigns, respectively, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. She's also received $56,000 from the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, an industry trade group, and $36,000 from Comcast, the nation's largest cable company.On issue after issue, Blackburn has sided with these corporate interests, frequently using conservative ideological principles like "states' rights" or "limited government" to justify her votes."Blackburn's positions line up very well with the cable and telephone companies that give a lot of money to her campaigns," said Mitchell. "In this case, Blackburn is doing what it takes to benefit the cable and telephone companies rather than the United States, which needs more choices, faster speeds, and lower prices."Mitchell says that he's sympathetic to the arguments against "preemption"—after all, he works for an organization called the Institute for Local Self-Reliance—but points out that while Blackburn opposes the federal government inserting itself into state law, she apparently has no problem with the states telling cities and municipalities what they can and cannot do."The argument that Blackburn puts forth is not coherent," Mitchell said. "It's just politics.""The argument that Blackburn puts forth is not coherent. It's just politics."