Milkman Named FCC Chief of Staff, Sherman Acting Chief of Wireless Bureau

Milkman, once a top aide to then-Chairman Reed Hundt, has done two stints as Wireless Bureau chief under Julius Genachowski and then acting Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn. House aide Roger Sherman, formerly a lawyer for Sprint, was named acting chief of the Wireless Bureau. Wheeler also appointed former State Department official Philip Verveer senior counselor. Verveer worked as a top aide to Wheeler when Wheeler was president of NCTA. Widely viewed as one of the top communications lawyers in Washington, Verveer earlier was head of three FCC bureaus, including the former Common Carrier Bureau. All three had been rumored as candidates for top spots at the Wheeler FCC.

Diane Cornell is leaving a vice president post at Inmarsat to become special counsel. Cornell had been a top lieutenant to Wheeler at CTIA and had been helping him put together his leadership team, industry officials said. Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, is leaving that job to become special counsel for external affairs. Rumors swirled last week that Sohn was headed to the FCC.

Industry officials said Wheeler appears to still be settling on who his bureau chiefs will be, especially at the Public Safety and Media bureaus. Among other staff appointed Monday is Jon Sallet, longtime telecom lawyer, who will be interim director of the Technology Transitions Policy Task Force and become acting general counsel when Sean Lev leaves before year’s end. Wheeler also named Jon Wilkins of McKinsey & Co. acting managing director and adviser to the chairman for management. Renee Gregory, a former aide to Genachowski, will be Wheeler’s wireless adviser. Daniel Alvarez is leaving Wilkie Farr to become Wheeler’s wireline aide and Maria Kirby, who worked for Milkman at the Wireless Bureau, will be Wheeler’s media adviser.

"To have someone come in and name almost all their staff on the first morning shows a lot of organizational skill,” said former FCC Chairman Richard Wiley. The pool of candidates for staff positions at the FCC is smaller than it was when he had to staff the commission, because attorneys who have been doing lobbying work for companies aren’t as politically palatable in the current climate, he said. That means a new chair can’t simply start recruiting from the leading communications law firms, Wiley said. “It’s very hard. We all have conflicts.”

Sascha Meinrath, a self-acknowledged “vocal skeptic” of the Wheeler nomination, said he’s impressed by the choices announced Monday. “The true measure will be what he does going forward, not his past as chief lobbyist for the telecom corporations,” Meinrath said. “I've worked with Gigi Sohn for years and was extremely pleased to see Wheeler appoint her. ... Gigi has proven a stalwart defender of consumer rights and long-standing advocate for the public interest.”

Stifel Nicolaus said the Sohn appointment “likely raises the most eyebrows” for industry. She “has headed the liberal communications policy public-interest group Public Knowledge since 2001, often taking positions that were critical of large corporate interests,” the firm said in a research note. “But, she has also shown a pragmatic streak and was an important backer in the public-interest community for Mr. Wheeler’s chairmanship."

Free State Foundation President Randolph May was cautiously optimistic on the appointments. “On the whole, it looks like a set of appointments with a pretty high degree of competence and experience,” he said. “Whatever the level of experience and competence, though, ultimately the philosophical and policy direction comes from the top, or at least it should. So we all will be watching intently for whatever signals Tom Wheeler sends early on regarding his predilections as to whether to take a more or less regulatory stance. I hope it is the latter."

Wheeler “will bring one of the most seasoned, well respected, competent groups of telecom professionals to the FCC that has been assembled in recent history,” said Competitive Carriers Association President Steve Berry, who worked for Wheeler at CTIA. “What this says about Mr. Wheeler is that he is ready, in short order, to engage in all the critical policy issues confronting the FCC and the nation. ... They not only enjoy stellar reputations but have distinguished themselves as advocates for pro-competition policies.”

Other industry officials also noted the amount of experience Wheeler is assembling at the commission. “The depth of his team’s policy and political expertise is striking,” said Guggenheim Partners analyst Paul Gallant. “It’s hard to look at his top advisers and conclude anything other than he’s thinking big and has hired people who can deliver on it.” T-Mobile Senior Vice President Tom Sugrue said Wheeler has assembled “an All Star team.”

"They are all major-leaguers,” said public interest lawyer Andrew Schwartzman. They are “knowledgeable, effective and experienced,” he said. “This is a group of people who will get things done."

Several industry commenters praised Sherman’s appointment as head of the Wireless Bureau. Along with knowing wireless policy, Sherman has connections in Congress and “can help the chairman on the Hill,” said a communications attorney. However, many of the new staff have a background in telecom, which could be a cause for concern among broadcasters that might fear those officials would be more focused on telco and wireless needs over that of stations, a broadcast executive told us.

To leave her prominent position at Public Knowledge for the FCC, Sohn must expect to have significant influence in Wheeler’s administration, said several broadcast and cable executives. “People at this point in their career don’t like to move down,” said Mediacom Vice President-Legal and Public Affairs Tom Larsen. CEA President Gary Shapiro in an email hailed Sohn as “an inspiration as a leader creating one of the most effective public policy consumer groups in Washington.” She “knows the issues, thinks strategically and can disagree without being disagreeable,” Shapiro said. “She will be an asset to the FCC.” Public Knowledge will need “to act smartly and quickly to attract an effective leader” to succeed Sohn, he said. “They have a talented team and are on the right side of many issues, but Gigi will be a tough leader to replace."

"The slew of staff announcements made by ... Wheeler should not surprise,” said Jeff Silva, Medley Global Advisors. “It fits his reputation as being organized, prepared, well-staffed and very driven. He obviously wasn’t twiddling his thumbs all these months while awaiting Senate action on his nomination. At a minimum, I think you'll see under Wheeler a highly energized FCC that’s results-orientated and keenly attuned to the political temperature on Capitol Hill. I also believe the Wheeler FCC will be big on outreach in pursuing middle ground on the many contentious issues currently before him and new ones that surface. The job of FCC chairman has become more difficult in light of the higher stakes, owing in part to fast-moving changes in technology and markets, the 24/7 news cycle and the highly charged state of American politics.” ,