Ajit Pai-Trump Meeting Might Set Stage for FCC Chairmanship.
Inside the Beltway, expectations are FCC commissioner Ajit Pai will be named interim chairman of the agency later this week when Tom Wheeler steps down tomorrow. The clearest signal that’s likely to happen came when incoming White House spokesman Sean Spicer confirmed on a call with reporters that Pai met with the president-elect in Trump Tower on Monday. Spicer offered no details but a slip of the tongue may have foreshadowed Friday’s announcement as he referred to Pai as “the current FCC chairman.”
Pai is predicting a “more sober” regulatory approach after President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in, saying in a recent speech that the FCC will be “guided by evidence, sound economic analysis, and a good dose of humility” under its new leadership.
While undoing some of the actions taken by the FCC during the past eight years is likely to be the initial focus of the Trump administration in the coming months, Pai said when attention is turned to new regulations the bar will be set high. “Proof of market failure should guide the next Commission’s consideration of new regulations,” he told the Free State Foundation. “And the FCC should only adopt a regulation if it determines that its benefits outweigh its costs.”
Having served as a Republican commissioner since 2012, Pai has won near-universal praise from broadcasters for his efforts to revitalize the AM band and a willingness to devote resources to radio-related issues. One Washington insider tells Inside Radio he believes the Commission—with Pai and fellow Republican Michael O’Rielly and Democrat Mignon Clyburn—could prove to be highly productive in the coming months. The first item up for a vote is doing away with a regulation mandating broadcasters to keep hard copies of emails and letters sent to the station in their public inspection file. The FCC is scheduled to vote on the change on Jan. 31.
Your Editor Assumes: If Pai was chairman yesterday, he’ll be confirmed tomorrow
