Political Quotes

“Madam President, the internet has been a part of our daily lives for quite a while now: Netflix, Twitter, and Amazon. The internet has taken on new importance during the coronavirus pandemic. It has become the main source of connection with friends and family. It has enabled many people to work from home to help reduce the spread of the virus. It is the main reason that schools and colleges have been able to continue teaching students. It has drastically expanded nascent services, like telehealth, which has allowed doctors and other medical professionals to provide patient care remotely. With all of this new internet traffic, of course, has come a much greater load on networks. Not all countries' networks have held up to the strain. In Europe, networks have had to slow streaming and ask providers like Netflix to diminish the quality of their videos. Here in the United States, our networks have faced very few problems, and there is a reason for that. Europe and the United States have very different regulatory regimes for the internet. In Europe, the internet has been regulated using outdated communications rules designed for telephone monopolies. This has resulted in heavyhanded regulation, which has discouraged companies from investing in communications infrastructure and broadband expansion. The resulting lack of reliable infrastructure is the primary reason internet performance in Europe has suffered during the pandemic.…”