Sen. Dan Sullivan refused to allow FCC nominee to answer his questions, then accuses her of filibustering

Sen. Dan Sullivan, at his boarding-school whiniest, comes across as if someone took his puppy in his inquisition of lawyer Gigi Sohn, nominated by President Biden to the Federal Communications Commission in October 2021 and opposed by all Republicans.

Sullivan, citing a few tweets by Sohn, said they prove she is a far-left partisan who lacks the judgment, temperament, professionalism and candor to serve on the FCC. He accused her of filibustering, but barely allowed her to speak at all.

Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell said “Sohn has been a consistent advocate for pro-consumer common sense policies such as lowering the cost of broadband and working towards universal connectivity.”

Sohn, a lawyer and former counselor to former FCC chairman Tom Wheeler, said that 11 tweets out of 18,000 are being used against her and she wouldn’t have chosen all the same words in retrospect.

Sullivan, who makes occasional appearances on Fox News, claimed to be offended by a Sohn tweet that called Fox News “state-sponsored propaganda.”

“If they came before you as a commissioner you certainly would recuse yourself, wouldn’t you?” Sullivan asked form his bully pulpit.

“The FCC doesn’t have jurisdiction over Fox News,” Sohn said. It is on cable, not over the air. But Sullivan cut her off and did not allow her to continue.

“If the FCC or any of its entities came before, if Fox News or any related entity came before the FCC would you recuse yourself?”

“No,” she said. Sullivan tried to cut her off again as she continued. “No, No, answer the question,” Sullivan said, not giving her a chance to speak.

“I helped Fox Network actually get on the air,” she said. He cut her off again.

“You know when you call something state-sponsored propaganda isn’t that a little bit of a bias?”

Sullivan refused to wait for her answer and gave his own: “The answer is yes,” said Sullivan, chiding her for not being direct with the committee.

She asked for a chance to reply.

She said the tweet was in the context of a hearing about federal regulation and the problem of disinformation on platforms such as Facebook. She said the point she was making in that tweet was that if the government is going to look at platforms, then “they also need to look at Fox News.”

Sullivan cut her off again. He said he would try to be respectful, but ”if I think you’re filibustering, I’m gonna cut you off.”

He wasn’t respectful. Sullivan, playing his part in the coordinated GOP attack on Sohn. just wanted to hear himself talk.

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