Democrats, Republicans butt heads over net neutrality

WASHINGTON, D.C. (NEXSTAR) —Democratic lawmakers say they plan to “save the internet” — but Republicans say Congress should leave the internet alone.

The House should debate and vote on a bill Tuesday that would re-instate the Net Neutrality rules that the FCC recently deleted. Net Neutrality requires that all content gets equal treatment — preventing internet service providers from slowing down some services and speeding up others.

Democrats like Pennsylvania Congressman Mike Doyle say consumers need protection from big internet companies.

That’s why he has introduced the “Save the Internet Act” — which aims to restore the Net Neutrality rules the FCC recently repealed and to ensure that internet providers treat all web traffic equally.

Doyle said:

“So what this bill would do is restore those protections. No blocking, no throttling, no paid prioritization, but more importantly we put a cop on the beat for future behavior that we don’t even know about yet. No unjust, unreasonable, or discriminatory behavior. If we just do the three things everyone agrees to it’s like locking your front door but leaving your back door wide open.”

But Georgia Republican Rob Woodall says he thinks Congress should delete the bill, saying:

“It’s unfortunate that so many people are afraid of internet freedom, that we need to find a way to clamp down on internet freedom and bend the internet to the will of the government. I would argue the Wild West innovation style that has driven the internet in tech companies from day one shouldn’t be boxed in by the government. And certainly shouldn’t be replaced with a 1930s era mob bell telephone regulatory scheme”

Burgess’ bill would also require the FCC to police potential future broadband abuses.