Congressman Loose Cannon responds

I received this response to yesterday’s e-mail. To his credit, he gave some thought to what I said and addressed the issues rather than offering “political speak” as to why he’s right and I should be thankful that he’s fighting to protect me from the world’s evil-doers. Here’s the e-mail:

I apologize for the mistake in responding to your previous e-mail.

I agree with your assessment that attempting to ban specific words could run into significant First Amendment issues. As you know, it has always been difficult to define obscenity and indecency, a fact illustrated by the FCC Enforcement Board’s October decision on Bono’s use of the F-word. Another historical example is U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s famous claim that while he could not describe obscenity, he would know it when he saw it.

I think the move to significantly increase fines for the broadcast of indecent material, as well as the public backlash against the Superbowl halftime show, and to a lesser extent Bono’s acceptance speech, will make networks reconsider whether pushing the envelope on decency standards is really in their best interests. That is why I chose to highlight some of the legislative developments with regard to these efforts in my previous email.

Regarding your specific oposition to H.R. 3687, I am not a cosponsor and do not foresee it coming before the House. I do, however, think there will be further reviews of the FCC’s oversight of decency standards in the appropriate committees of jurisdiction.

Again, I apologize for not closely reading your E-mail. Your anger is justifiable, however, I hope my past and future representation of you would give you pause to reconsider your opposition to my future service.

Sincerely,

Tom Davis
Member of Congress

As ridiculous as this situation got, it’s a reminder that this is a great country. I can deal directly with my elected government officials and not fear retribution. I highly recommend such an experience to everyone.