Pressure Mounting to Name a Woman as Next FCC Chairman

FCC chairmen appointed in a president’s first term in general have left early in the second term, and with the announcement Friday of FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz that he will leave this month (CD Feb 4 p3), Genachowski is one of the last administration holdovers from the first term not to leave or lay out his plans. FCC and industry officials say Genachowski likely has shared his plans with no one or almost no one.

Decisions on replacements are made at the highest levels within the White House, where officials also historically have had little to say publicly, industry officials and government officials said in recent interviews. Several industry officials noted that FCC chairmen in a President’s second term generally are people already familiar to the administration and the White House insiders who will help make the call. President George W. Bush designated Kevin Martin, who had worked on the Bush 2000 campaign, a sitting commissioner, as his second FCC chairman. Eight years earlier, President Bill Clinton elevated William Kennard, then FCC general counsel.

Larry Strickling, NTIA administrator and a veteran of the 2008 Obama campaign, has long been widely viewed as a front runner (CD Oct 31 p4). Among women candidates, both of the other two Democrats on the commission have strong ties to Capitol Hill. Jessica Rosenworcel was an aide to Senate Commerce Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.-Va., and Mignon Clyburn is the daughter of Congressional Black Caucus Chairman James Clyburn, D-S.C., also the assistant Democratic leader in the House.

Karen Kornbluh, ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, has also been widely viewed as a likely candidate. Kornbluh was an advisor to President Barack Obama during the 2008 campaign and an aide to Obama when he was senator from Illinois. If Obama designates Democratic FTC commissioners Julie Brill or Edith Ramirez to become the next chairman there, that could take some of the heat off him to appoint a woman to head the FCC, industry officials said.

Public Knowledge Co-founder Gigi Sohn (http://xrl.us/bod6hn) and the co-founders of the Women’s Media Center (http://xrl.us/bod6gy) recently noted there’s never been a female chairman in the 80-year history of the FCC. Two former Obama administration officials told us they believe that even before the departure of Clinton and Solis, the administration was seen by many Democrats as not having enough women in top positions.

Tom Wheeler remains another leading male candidate, telecom lobbyists said. Wheeler, a former president of NCTA and CTIA, is chairman of the FCC Technological Advisory Council. He became managing director of Core Capital Partners, a venture capital firm, after he left CTIA. Obama previously tapped Wheeler for the Obama-Biden Transition Project’s Agency Review Working Group and as a member of the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board. Wheeler did not comment. Also in the running is National Economic Council Deputy Director Jason Furman, sources said.

One longtime telecom lawyer said that unless Obama designates Rosenworcel or Clyburn as chairman, the FCC will likely be under an acting chairman for some time. A Kornbluh or Strickling nomination could move faster because each had already been through a background investigation for their current jobs, the lawyer said. “Even if [Genachowski] were to announce he was leaving tomorrow, I think we would not have a new chairman ... until probably late summer or fall,” the lawyer said. “There'll have to be a nomination. There'll have to be a hearing. That new person will have to go through background checks.”

"I know that women have been considered for that spot as long back as 1992,” said David Honig, president of the Minority Media and Telecommunications Council. “But it certainly, as a general matter, makes sense that given the perception that has arisen from the batch of appointments that politically it might be an especially good time” to appoint a woman as FCC chair, he said. “There are large agencies that have vacancies, the Federal Trade Commission being the other one, and it’s widely speculated that one of the commissioners of the FTC could step up” to run that agency, Honig said.

"There does seem to be pressure on the Obama administration to appoint a woman, although it is not clear how much the Obama administration is concerned with that kind of outside pressure. Obama has shown a preference so far for selecting people personally close to him for these kind of leadership positions,” said Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld. “Rosenworcel and Clyburn are both well qualified and have powerful political patrons, but neither one has the same level of personal relationship that Genachowski had” with Obama, Feld said. Kornbluh makes sense as chairman, Feld said. “She’s also been previously confirmed for her job as OECD ambassador, so they know she is confirmable. But if Obama decides to ignore the pressure to appoint a woman, it could easily be someone else from his inner circle."

An important consideration could be that it’s easier to designate a sitting commissioner as chairman than a face a fight on a new contender, Feld said. “But that would leave the FCC deadlocked at 2-2 until a new commissioner was appointed and confirmed,” he said. “Given that Tea Party rhetoric around net neutrality has made Genachowski enormously unpopular with Republicans, I do not think they will delay his departure by holding up confirmation of his replacement. But they could well hold up a third Democrat on the principle that 2-2 deadlock freezes the agency."

Free Press President Craig Aaron, a sometimes critic of Genachowski, said the choice of chairman is critical. “Chairman Genachowski has left much work undone, and we need a leader at the FCC who can navigate complex issues and politics with an eye toward the greatest public benefit,” Aaron said in an email Monday. “The next chair should be more than a referee between big corporations. He or she will have a crucial opportunity to correct the mistakes of past chairmen and use the powers of the agency to safeguard the open Internet and the public interest for a generation."

But Free State Foundation President Randolph May hopes Obama chooses the best candidate for the job, regardless of other considerations. “My experience is that sometimes the chair pick seems to come out of the blue, so betting on picks can be hazardous to your wallet,” he said. “My hope is that the President will resist pressures to check off a particular box of one type or another. Instead, he ought to look for someone who combines an understanding of the rapid changes occurring in the communications marketplace with an appreciation for the costs and benefits of regulation and the need for real policy reform.”

Speculation has also focused on senior Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell, who has also been quiet on his plans. McDowell’s term ends July 1, 2014. Some industry officials speculate McDowell and Genachowski may leave the commission roughly in tandem. “It makes some sense that they would both leave together, because I think their replacements are going to have to be paired in order to get confirmation” in the Senate, said a GOP industry source. “That’s the way the world goes today on Capitol Hill."

"I continue to believe that the chairman will not leave so long as there would be a divided commission,” said lawyer Andrew Schwartzman, who represents public interest clients. “So, unless Commissioner McDowell decides to leave, the chairman will remain in place for some time.” Schwartzman agreed Obama faces pressure to appoint more women to key posts. “This may apply to the FCC choice,” he said. “Having three female commissioners at once would be very impressive.” An FCC official noted Monday that eight years ago, former Chairman Michael Powell left the agency, leaving behind a 2-2 split on the commission. The official said there has been no dialogue between McDowell and Genachowski on coordinated departures.