Bob Dole: “TV broadcasters have broken their trust with the American people. For more than 40 years, the American people have…”

“TV broadcasters have broken their trust with the American people. For more than 40 years, the American people have generously lent TV station owners our Nation's airwaves for free. Now some broadcasters want more and will stop at nothing to get it. They are bullying Congress and running a multimillion-dollar scare campaign to mislead the public. The reason is simple: Why pay for something when you can get it for free? But there is one small problem. The airwaves are the Nation's most valuable natural resource and are worth billions and billions of dollars. They do not belong to the broadcasters. They do not belong to the phone companies. They do not belong to the newspapers. Each and every wave belongs to the American people, the American taxpayers. Our airwaves are just as much a national resource as our national parks. Enter the TV broadcasters. Earlier this year, I blocked their legislative efforts to get spectrum for free. At my request, Congress is now holding open hearings on reforming our spectrum policies. Apparently, the democratic process is not good enough for most broadcasters. So TV broadcasters are now running ads and so-called public service announcements, claiming that TV will die without this huge corporate welfare program, this billions and billions of dollars they want to take away from the American taxpayers. Of course, they do not call this giveaway welfare; they call it a tax. Imagine calling a giveaway a tax.…”