By- Suzie-Q @ 10:00 AM MST
So now we know what McCain has been doing while missing all those votes in the Senate. He’s been moonlighting as a Canadian MP — RIM, the company that makes the Blackberry, is headquartered outside Toronto.
How John McCain Invented Cell Phones and WiFi
Daily Kos- by Devilstower
Tue Sep 16, 2008 at 09:30:12 AM PDT
Now that John McCain has at last turned in his answers to Science Debate 2008 (after peeking at Barack Obama’s answers for a couple of weeks) there are some interesting tidbits hidden among his rambling responses.
Take this reply to a question about maintaining America’s lead in innovation.
I am uniquely qualified to lead our nation during this technological revolution. While in the Navy, I depended upon the technologies and information provided by our nation’s scientists and engineers with during each mission.
Let’s stop there for a second. Here John McCain insists he’s uniquely qualified to discuss technology because… he used some. Forty years ago. This is the same kind of high standard by which he assured us that Sarah Palin knew more about energy than anyone else in America, and Phil Gramm was one of the smartest people in the world on the economy. At least he didn’t claim any MacGyverite tech affinities developed in Hanoi.
Okay, let’s continue.
I am the former chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. The Committee plays a major role in the development of technology policy, specifically any legislation affecting communications services, the Internet, cable television and other technologies. Under my guiding hand, Congress developed a wireless spectrum policy that spurred the rapid rise of mobile phones and Wi-Fi technology that enables Americans to surf the web while sitting at a coffee shop, airport lounge, or public park.
And, stop. There you have it, people. John McCain not only invented cell phones, he tossed in wifi as an afterthought.
Let’s go back and see how McCain’s hand guided that development.
With the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Senate passed the first major revision to telecommunications law in 62 years which provided the foundation for much of the cell phone and Internet regulation over the next decade. The bill passed 81-18 and was signed into law by President Clinton. McCain voted against the act.
In 2002, McCain authored the “Consumer Broadband Deregulation Act of 2002” which eliminated the requirement of the 1996 law that telecommunication companies provide access to competitors. It didn’t pass.
In 2003, the Internet Tax Freedom Act was passed, putting in place a moratorium on taxes for activities on the Intenet. The bill had 11 cosponsors – McCain wasn’t one of them. He did vote for the bill, but since it passed 97-3, that’s definitely “guiding” with a small ‘g.’ Granted, this wasn’t directly a bill about wireless, but since McCain doesn’t seem to have authored any law on wireless technology, I’m having to search for connections.
Of pending legistlation, McCain is not a sponsor of the “Connect the Nation Act” – though Senator Obama is. McCain is not a sponsor of Senator Rockefeller’s call for a universal next generation broadband by 2015 – though Senator Obama is. And of course, McCain isn’t a sponsor of the “Internet Freedom Act” that would ensure net neutrality – though Senator Obama is. That last is no surprise. McCain has repeatedly opposed net neutrality, saying that companies have a right to restrict speed or even limit access to sites “when you control the pipe you should be able to get profit from your investment.”
So, McCain’s “guiding hand” seems to consist of opposing the legislation that laid the groundwork for the communications we have today, and authoring failed legislation designed to benefit big carriers. Of course, we should probably be glad that John McCain really didn’t invent the cell phone or wifi, otherwise we’d all be getting our wireless services from one monolithic company free to restrict our access to only the pages that pay for the privilege. And we’d all be using “Jitterbugs.”
Update [2008-9-16 12:36:29 by Devilstower]: Not only did John McCain invent the cell phone and wifi, he was the first to tie them together in his other invention the Blackberry.
“He did this,” Douglas Holtz-Eakin told reporters this morning, holding up his BlackBerry. “Telecommunications of the United States is a premier innovation in the past 15 years, comes right through the Commerce committee so you’re looking at the miracle John McCain helped create and that’s what he did.”
So now we know what McCain has been doing while missing all those votes in the Senate. He’s been moonlighting as a Canadian MP — RIM, the company that makes the Blackberry, is headquartered outside Toronto.
All that and the man cannot even operate a computer. Gotta laugh at the old guy. 🙂
What can I say? The man who cannot type on a keyboard is a wizard!
ROTFLMAO
We typed the same thoughts at the same time Teak! LOL
This morning while I was watching McCain on CNN, I realized how much McCain bluffs his way through interviews (and most likely life).
I’d choose the smart guy any day than the guy who bluffs or throws a fit if he gets caught doing it.
He’s amazing – simply amazing….what’s worse? He believes he actually DID this…
and NO ONE seems to question his sanity???
If he is elected, you have seen the last of our country – we cannot afford to have a mentally defective idiot at the helm (been there done that) during our current financial crisis that is roaring down the tracks.
When does it go from Recession to Depression?
Here are some other McCain inventions you may not have known about:
http://thebruceblog.wordpress.com/2008/09/16/adviser-declares-mccain-helped-create-the-blackberry-view-the-gallery-of-other-mccain-inventions/
Roflmao, Bruce!
Hey, Bruce you forgot a couple of his inventions…
😆 😆
ThinkProgress received a response today from former FCC chairman Reed Hundt, who sharply criticized Holtz-Eakin’s claim:
John McCain is so out of touch with America his economics adviser says he deserves credit for creating the Canadian company that invented the Blackberry. Message to Republicans: it’s American entrepreneurship our President is supposed to encourage.
Update–As Matt Yglesias points out, McCain was one of just five senators to vote against the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/16/hundt-mccain-blackberry/
What does Al Gore have in common with John McCain ?
This is McCains “Al Gore” technology moment.
“Al Gore” Invented the Internet and now for the world to see John McCain Invented the Blackberry and WiFi.
You guys remember John Kerry’s technology moment or How about Mike Dukakis technology moment ?
Let McCain enjoy this blunder… It’s all his!
LOLMAO*)
😉
In response to the story about McCain inventing the blackberry, you may be interested in learning that he also think that he was responsible for passing legislation that led to the Do Not Call Registry.
As Peter Swire, Chief Counselor for Privacy under President Clinton, discovered on August 14th, the McCain campaign released its first policy paper on the internet, privacy and security.
Within that paper was this claim:
“2003 – McCain led in creating the FTC’s ‘Do-Not-Call’ telemarketing registry to allow consumers to opt out of receiving telemarketing calls. And, when the law was challenged in court, McCain led the effort to ensure that it was upheld.”
This claim is ridiculous for anyone aware of the Do Not Call regulations. Indeed, according to Peter Swire, “FTC Chairman Tim Muris announced in October, 2001 that the FTC was going to do the Do Not Call list. Yet somehow McCain magically caused the Do Not Call list in 2003. And, given the independent agency status of the FTC, it is a stretch to say that “McCain led the effort to ensure that it was upheld.”
The funny thing is this: neither the McCain campaign nor the Obama campaign respect the privacy of voters. Both robo call voters without asking their permission before calling. Both send door to door volunteers to find out who households are voting for.
Neither respects the rights of voters to have their privacy protected.
Regards,
Shaun Dakin
CEO and Founder
The National Political Do Not Contact Registry
StopPoliticalCalls.org
[…] McCain, trailblazing inventor of other technological marvels including cellular phones, WiFi, and the BlackBerry, has not yet officially announced whether the campaign will use its […]
The comment by bruce is priceless.