Political Quotes

“There is a commercial nexus here. No, not every time one turns on the radio and someone else listens does one have to pay the fee. If one turns on the radio in one's office and people wander in to talk, one does not owe them a thing, and that is the point that some of the opponents I think are missing here. This is a charge for people who are charging the public to come in. Owners of businesses are not irrational, they do not do things randomly, at least not as a whole. When the owner of a restaurant plays music, he or she does it to enhance the attractiveness of the restaurant; it is part of the package of things that bring people in. And what we are saying is, yes, if you are going to use other people's work product to enhance the attractiveness of your commercial establishment, you should pay them something. I was surprised to hear this referred to as a tax. I thought a tax was when one collected the money for the government. I do not think enforcing an obligation that one private owner owes another is a tax.”