WASHINGTON D.C. — The White House is defending an extra fee it wants added to your cell phone bill that will be used to pay for high-speed internet access in schools.
The fee would be three to five dollars a year for most cell phone users and would add another line to the long list of government fees and regulatory surcharges on your cell phone bill.
“You would think that connecting schools to the information superhighway would be a pretty noncontroversial topic, particularly when it’s something that could be accomplished through a relatively modest investment,” said Josh Earnest, Deputy White House Press Secretary.
Opponents are not necessarily opposed to the goal or the tax, but the method the President is using. They question is whether the President has the authority to bypass Congress and institute new taxes on his own.
While Congress is supposed to sign off on any new taxes, opponents say the President will instead lean on his appointees to the Federal Communications Commission to unilaterally impose the tax.
“This is not the way that we govern. And this is about the tenth time in his administration that he has gone around the Congress in ways that are clearly unconstitutional,” said Charles Krauthammer, FOX News contributor.
According to FOX News’ Doug Luzader, much of this may hinge on the White House convincing the Senate to sign off on a new FCC chairman. The candidate is a former telecommunications lobbyist who was also a fundraiser for the President.
