Martin Appears to be Front Runner for FCC Chairman

Martin has strong political credentials, having left a position as a legal advisor to Harold Furchtgott-Roth at the FCC to move to Austin to work for the Bush campaign as deputy gen. counsel, long before Bush won the nomination. “It was risk,” said a source who has been active in Republican politics. “Kevin Martin is very highly regarded inside the White House. There are a lot of reasons why it would be an easy choice for President Bush to make.”

“It looks right now like the race is Martin’s to lose,” said a 2nd industry lobbyist with Republican ties. “But then again you never know. Martin has the contacts. He was in Florida with Bush and that counts for a lot. Will that translate into their thinking he should be named chairman of the FCC? You never know.”

However, Bush has been known to make unexpected appointments. And more generally, nominations are sometimes awarded to individuals from outside the communications arena, most recently ex-FCC Chmn. Reed Hundt and Powell himself. “The front-runner doesn’t always get it,” said a lobbyist. Sometimes the front- runner becomes a target for those who want the job instead, he said. “Lots of things could happen,” said an analyst.

The consensus on candidates for 2 vacant commissioner spots -- Powell’s and Comr. Abernathy’s when she leaves -- seems to be (1) Attorney Earl Comstock, former aide to Sen. Stevens (R-Alaska) and Stevens choice for a spot on the Commission and (2) Rebecca Klein, ex-Tex. PUC chmn. and an ally of President Bush when he was Tex. governor. As an Hispanic, Klein by herself would continue the convention of having at least one minority and one woman on the Commission. Klein’s ties to the administration go back to a position as assoc. dir. in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel under President George H.W. Bush.

Sources mentioned Comstock and Klein far more frequently than other potential candidates such as NTIA Dir. Michael Gallagher, Patrick Wood, chmn. of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission who also was Tex. PUC chmn., and former NTIA Dir. Janice Obuchowski.

Gallagher has developed a relationship with key officials within the White House but doesn’t have the same history, which could be a disadvantage, sources said. “Gallagher came off the Hill and has had to develop relationships with the Administration,” said one lobbyist. “He has done a good job but Martin’s ties run further back.”

FERC Chmn. Pat Wood has a personal relationship with President Bush. Wood and his wife have spent time with the Bushes at Camp David. Martin’s ties are more to top advisor Karl Rove and White House Counselor Dan Bartlett, as well as to Kenneth Mehlman, chmn. of the Republican National Committee and manager of the 2004 campaign. But Wood has riled some in the energy industry through his aggressive moves to develop a standardized market design and to force electric utilities to join regional transmission organizations (RTOs), which enforce open access to utility lines. In angering the big electric utilities he has attracted critics in the Senate such as Sen. Shelby (R-Ala.) who don’t want him to serve another term on the FERC. Wood was considered a telecom expert when he was chmn. of the Tex. PUC.

“There are 2 schools of thought,” said a gas industry lobbyist. “One is that people in the Senate that hate Wood would gleefully move him over to the FCC to get rid of him. The other school is that he’s burned so many bridges they can’t wait to screw him.” An electric industry lobbyist said talk that Wood may be named to the FCC is likely “wishful thinking on the part of energy executives.”

Abernathy’s departure also has become a subject of speculation among policy insiders. She was rumored to be planning to announce her departure this week, but a close aide said that’s not true. If both her position and Powell’s were vacant at the same time, the FCC could be left with 2 Democrats and only one Republican, something those close to her say she wouldn’t do. Fueling the rumor was speculation that one of her aides, telecom advisor Matthew Brill, was preparing to leave soon. Brill said that also isn’t true. He said the speculation apparently stemmed from his decision not to take the lead in helping frame Abernathy’s policy on intercarrier compensation (ICC), instead bowing to Abernathy’s wireless advisor Jennifer Manner. Brill said Manner’s lead made sense because the issue has a wireless component, but he also acknowledged he plans to leave if and when his boss does, so he was hesitant to undertake long-term projects such as the ICC item. If Abernathy sticks around, she could serve as interim chairman if for some reason Martin were offered a Bush Administration job outside the FCC, one source said. Asked about that, Brill said Abernathy wouldn’t be opposed to filling in.

Still another wild card is FCC Comr. Copps’ seat; his term expires in June. Although Copps appears to be highly regarded by Democrats, his patron, ex-Sen. Hollings (D-S.C.), has retired. “Will the Democrats want another individual,” asked a former FCC insider. “Will they want a female, perhaps?”

With the impact of Powell’s planned departure already felt at the staff level with Media Bureau Chief Kenneth Ferree’s departure announcement on Mon. (CD Jan 25 p1), more high staff members are expected to follow suit. Gen. Counsel John Rogovin, a personal friend of Powell’s, announced he was leaving a few weeks ago. It’s not a forgone conclusion that high-level staffers leave when a new chairman takes over, one insider pointed out. Dorothy Attwood, now an SBC executive, remained FCC Wireline Bureau chief under Powell although she was appointed under Democrat William Kennard. There’s been some speculation about whether Jeffrey Carlisle will remain as Wireline Bureau chief once Powell leaves, but Carlisle has told his staff he doesn’t plan any “surprise announcements” in the near future.

History would favor a Martin chairmanship in one important respect -- of the 9 chairmen of the modern era, going back to Dean Burch in 1969, 4 had previous service as members. They are Richard Wiley, Dennis Patrick, James Quello and Michael Powell. In that group only Quello had served a significant number of years while the others had been comrs. for much shorter lengths of time - just more than 2 years in the case of Wiley, 4 years for the others. Martin will hit the 4-year mark in July.

In addition to not needing Senate confirmation, Martin’s White House ties appear to give him an advantage. Reed Hundt was a close friend of Vice President Al Gore before being named chmn. Patrick worked for the White House personnel shop before moving to the FCC. Mark Fowler came off the Reagan campaign in 1980 and helped develop the Reagan communications platform. Wiley worked for the 1968 Nixon campaign where he made contacts that led to his being named gen. counsel and then a member of the FCC.

But NTIA can also be a stepping stone and Capitol Hill ties also sometimes play a role. Former Chmn. Alfred Sikes was NTIA dir. before being named chmn. Patrick was an assistant at NTIA. Charles Ferris was named chmn. after being gen. counsel to the Senate Democratic Policy Committee. Burch was a top advisor to former Sen. Goldwater (R-Ariz.).