E Pluribus Unum and Universal Broadband

On April 6, House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC) joined a packed house at the First Congregational United Church of Christ in downtown Washington, DC to help the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society celebrate its 40^th anniversary. Congressman Clyburn (D-SC) is the third-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives, and also serves, importantly, as chair of the House Rural Broadband Task Force. Not only was his presidential endorsement credited with nearly single-handedly changing the trajectory of the presidential race in 2020, but his development of the Accessible Affordable Internet for All Act changed the trajectory of the infrastructure bill itself. His legislation incorporated a bold broadband vision and laid out a critical set of challenges, principles, and goals. Things that every state, local policymaker, every community leader, and every broadband provider could embrace and evangelize. And he helped build the critical momentum necessary to ensure broadband became a foundational pillar of the historic Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Representative Clyburn was joined by Maura Corbett, CEO and Founder of the Glen Echo Group, for a conversation on a range of issues. Corbett asked Congressman Clyburn about the divisions in our country and he immediately thought of the U.S Postal Service. He noted how it is in the U.S. Constitution of the United States to provide a service to connect communities. “That's what it's all about,” said Representative Clyburn. “Bring all the communities together—rural, and urban, and everything—so that we can fulfill our nation's motto: e pluribus unum. Out of many one.”