Bob Kerrey: “I cannot support this bill. I do not believe it provides the kind of protection for consumers that needs to be provided.…”

“I cannot support this bill. I do not believe it provides the kind of protection for consumers that needs to be provided. I believe many of the statements that have been made thus far overestimate the impact upon the economy and underestimate the disruption that will occur to households throughout this country. No Member should doubt this. Any Member who doubts the impact of this legislation should go back and read clippings from 1984, when William Baxter and Judge Greene signed a consent decree, or when the U.S. Government and AT&T signed a consent decree in Judge Greene's court. Talk to consumers and talk to households and citizens in 1984 and 1985, and you will find an awful lot of those folks will say, 'Why don't you put the phone company back together?' I believe that action was good. That action was taken by the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. Justice is given a consultative role in this legislation. But they were the prime mover in breaking up the monopoly that many people cite as the reason for wanting to go even further today.”