In 2021, President Biden announced a $42.5 billion investment in high-speed internet to connect all Americans. However, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), not a single American has received high-speed internet through this initiative. Not one, nothing, nada, zero.
In 2021, the Biden Administration got $42.45 billion from Congress to deploy high-speed Internet to millions of Americans.
Years later, it has not connected even 1 person with those funds. In fact, it now says that no construction projects will even start until 2025 at earliest.
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) June 14, 2024
Allegedly, they’re caught up in red tape. Since Democrats own the government, why don’t they cut the red tape?
The Commerce Department distributes the funds under the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. It is also attempting to regulate consumer rates, which puts it at odds with internet providers and congressional Republicans. They say the law prohibits such regulation. It does. They’re trying to pull a fast one, bowing to the god of wealth redistribution.
They haven’t built charging stations either, but they are destroying gas cars.
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr slammed the Biden administration on Friday. He wrote on X that President Joe Biden has yet to connect a single American with high-speed internet.
Where did the money go??!!
A lot of the money went to Ukraine. In two weeks, it was $250M, $444M, and $800M added as part of the endless $1.5 billion to Ukraine, and this will continue. They send money to them very quickly.
IT WENT TO DEI
According to The Washington Times, Senators have repeatedly written to Alan Davidson. He runs the program as head of the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
They have complained about funding requirements related to labor, climate change, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Senators said they were added to the BEAD program after it was signed into law. Why are they surprised?
“As numerous states and stakeholders have articulated, current BEAD rules divert resources away from bringing broadband service to rural America and are inconsistent with NTIA’s statutory authority in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” 11 Republican senators wrote to Mr. Davidson. “NTIA’s failure to resolve these concerns will prolong the digital divide and put billions of scarce taxpayer dollars at risk.”
The letter outlines a list of stipulations for obtaining the funds that lawmakers say are not part of the law and should be eliminated.
They include:
- Preference for hiring union workers, who are scarce in some rural areas.
- Requiring providers to prioritize “certain segments of the workforce, such as individuals with past criminal records,” when building broadband networks.
- Requiring eligible entities to “account not only for current [climate-related] risks but also for how the frequency, severity, and nature of these extreme events may plausibly evolve as our climate continues to change over the coming decades.”
Lawmakers also protested provisions in the BEAD program giving preference to government-owned networks, which critics say put taxpayers at risk and have sustained financial losses nationwide.
IT GETS WORSE
While the Biden Administration’s $42.45B plan from 2021 has not resulted in turning even a single shovel’s worth of dirt, the government revoked an award to Starlink in 2022 that would have delivered high-speed Internet to 642K rural locations.
It gets worse
While the Biden Admin’s $42.45B plan from 2021 has not resulted in even a single shovel’s worth of dirt being turned, the government in 2022 revoked an award to Starlink that would have delivered high-speed Internet to 642K rural locationshttps://t.co/Tp8nvHW40A
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) June 17, 2024
The Biden Admin’s failure to turn even a single shovel’s worth of dirt with this $42.45B is not just predictable; it was predicted. In 2022, Senators warned that Biden’s Byzantine process, excessive bureaucracy, & partisan policies would “delay connecting unserved… Americans.”
The Biden Admin’s failure to turn even a single shovel’s worth of dirt with this $42.45B is not just predictable, it was predicted.
In 2022, Senators warned that Biden’s Byzantine process, excessive bureaucracy, & partisan policies would “delay connecting unserved… Americans” pic.twitter.com/y49Vxzvwbj
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) June 18, 2024
Can’t make this up. Former Biden White House official says to blame . . . the 2021 Democrat-controlled Congress for the Biden Administration not connecting even one person to the Internet with the $42.45B years later. Interesting take, including b/c: 1. The White House said this was President Biden’s deal 2. The 2021 law did not require the Biden Administration to go into 2025 without a single shovel’s worth of dirt getting turned.
Can’t make this up.
Former Biden White House official says to blame . . . the 2021 Democrat-controlled Congress for the Biden Administration not connecting even one person to the Internet with the $42.45B years later.
Interesting take, including b/c:
1. The White House said… https://t.co/n3kAjNhvyM pic.twitter.com/8v0T2R7cS7
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) June 14, 2024
Emphasis added.
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