The
congressman with another former Texas oilman. (Photo: House of Representatives.)
Barton, a ‘skeptic’ about pubcasting, expected to become its overseer
Rep. Joe L. Barton (R-Tex.), who has repeatedly opposed federal funding for public broadcasting, has won the recommendation of the House Republican Steering Committee to chair the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees media regulation and CPB, as well as many consumer and energy topics.
The former oil industry engineer said his first priority is to persuade the Senate to pass an energy bill already approved by the House, Reuters reported. The committee will also act on a bill to boost fines for indecent broadcasts, prompted by Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl stunt.
The former chairman, Billy Tauzin (R-La.), resigned effective Feb. 16 and was expected to take a high-profile lobbying job. He said he would leave Congress by the end of the year. Tauzin has been more supportive of pubcasting than Barton while sometimes critical of its performance.
The steering committee tapped Barton Feb. 11, and he’s expected to win a floor vote for the chairmanship next week.
Barton named himself “one of the skeptics about the need for public broadcasting today” after a blowup over NPR coverage of anthrax mailings to senators, Fox News reported in 2002.
Barton represents the Sixth District, which includes Fort Worth. He now chairs the House subcommittee on energy and air quality and serves on the House Science Committee and the House Republican Steering Commit-tee. He sponsored a constitutional amendment that would require a two-thirds vote by both houses of Congress to allow tax increases. Barton voted with his party 98 percent of the time in 2001 and 2002, according to Project Vote Smart.
Web page posted Feb. 18, 2004
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