Telecom players divided on Gigi Sohn's FCC prospects as August recess looms

Time is not on the side of Gigi Sohn, the White House's embattled pick for the open seat on the Federal Communications Commission. Tapped in October of 2021 to help carry out the Biden administration's broadband policy agenda, Sohn [Senior Fellow and Public Advocate at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society] has faced two Senate hearings that examined her social media activity and her recusals from key FCC business items. While public interest groups and industry authorities on both sides of the aisle support her, a mix of poor timing, bad luck and opposition from some lawmakers and industry players has elongated the process to a point where her confirmation becomes less likely with each passing day, sources say. It has been more than 500 days since the five-seat FCC had a full slate of commissioners. Even for those who support Sohn's confirmation, the delay in voting is proving worrisome given the congressional calendar. Ernesto Falcon, policy counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said he was disappointed the Biden White House named broadband competition as a major policy priority but then delayed in choosing an FCC nominee. Though the seat became open in January 2021, Sohn's nomination did not come until October. "I do not think there has been a sufficient case made by the White House to the Democratic caucus to explain the stakes here," Falcon said. "I think it is Gigi or bust in terms of having a governing FCC."