Message-ID: <15282310.1075843083169.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 02:09:00 -0800 (PST) From: scott.bolton@enron.com To: sue.nord@enron.com, susan.landwehr@enron.com, jeff.dasovich@enron.com, marchris.robinson@enron.com, lisa.yoho@enron.com, aleck.dadson@enron.com, cynthia.sandherr@enron.com, jeffrey.keeler@enron.com Subject: Political/Telecom News Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ANSI_X3.4-1968 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable X-From: Scott Bolton X-To: Sue Nord, Susan M Landwehr, Jeff Dasovich, Marchris Robinson, Lisa Yoho, Aleck Dadson, Cynthia Sandherr, Jeffrey Keeler X-cc: X-bcc: X-Folder: \Jeff_Dasovich_Dec2000\Notes Folders\Eci X-Origin: DASOVICH-J X-FileName: jdasovic.nsf =09 =09 =09 =09 =09People: November 23, 1999 ? =09 =09 =09 =09 =09 =09 =09 =09 =09Meet And Greet The Chiefs=20 ?????"People are very confused out there in America today about their=20 choices," said Federal Communications Commission Chairman William Kennard= =20 before presenting the staffs of the agency's nascent bureaus Friday. "It's= =20 important to reconnect with the consumers and get a feedback loop." And in = an=20 attempt to clear up this confusion and streamline the agency's function ove= r=20 the next five years, Kennard has enlisted a top-notch staff for the Consume= r=20 Information and Enforcement Bureaus.=20 ?????Coming from the Federal Trade Commission where she was the director of= =20 the Office of Congressional Relations, Lorraine C. Miller was named the=20 Consumer Information Bureau's chief.=20 ?????"I had to almost wrestle Bob Pitofsky for her out at the FTC," Kennard= =20 said. "She has a Rolodex second to none in the area."=20 ?????Joining Miller as deputy chiefs are Karen Peltz Strauss and Pam=20 Hairston. On the enforcement side, David Solomon, who was formerly the FCC'= s=20 deputy general counsel, will head the bureau.=20 ?????"He is one of the most disciplined people I know," Kennard said,=20 reflecting on the days he worked with Solomon in the general counsel's=20 office. "I remember every day at 6:30 he would water his plants."=20 ?????Jane Mago and Brad Berry will assist Solomon as deputy chiefs of the= =20 enforcement bureau.=20 =09 ?????Sen. Chuck Robb, D-VA, stole the show Friday at a technology forum=20 hosted by CapNet. As the guest speaker, Robb led the discussion on such=20 topics as R&D tax credits, workforce shortages (Robb worked with CapNet on= =20 his H-1T visa proposal) and the ways technology can stimulate the economy.= =20 ?????The forum was held at the offices of Reed, Smith, Hazel and Thomas in= =20 Falls Church, VA, and those attending the event included Susan Defife,=20 president and CEO of womenCONNECT.com, Scott Silverthorne and Covad lobbyis= t=20 Tim Powderly. Representatives from America Online and Dittus Communications= =20 were also in attendance.=20 ?????Also on CapNet's plate is an educational tour of Northern Virginia=20 companies with Congressional Black Caucus members. The tour has been in the= =20 making for a few months, as organizers on both sides hoped to meet before t= he=20 new millennium. But that was not in the cards, as technology executives and= =20 CBC members have had difficulty coordinating their busy schedules, resultin= g=20 in a post-New Year's tour date. CBC Chairman Rep. James Clyburn, D-SC,=20 continues to work on making the tech tour a reality as soon as possible.=20 ?????"He has identified the need to engage the corporate community in a=20 better working relationship with the Caucus," said CBC Policy Director Andr= ea=20 Martin. "He will often ask do we want headlines or headway. He's a behind t= he=20 scenes kind of guy and a take charge kind of guy."=20 =09 ?????Who keeps whom waiting? Rep. Tom Davis, R-VA, was seen pacing outside = a=20 hotel ballroom last Tuesday before a Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce=20 technology breakfast. He said he came to the 7:30 a.m. event so he could=20 catch Federal Communications Commission chief William Kennard before the=20 chairman addressed the Virginia high-tech business community. Davis wouldn'= t=20 specify what he needed to discuss with Kennard beyond saying that a number = of=20 his Northern Virginia constituents have business pending before the FCC.=20 Kennard showed up late and Davis had to wait out the entire breakfast until= =20 after the speech to get a word in with the communications chief.=20 =09 ?????Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore, fresh from a sweeping GOP victory in the Ol= d=20 Dominion's November elections, was elected vice-chair of the Republican=20 Governors Association on Friday. Gilmore, the chair of the Advisory=20 Commission on Electronic Commerce and an outspoken anti-Internet tax=20 advocate, recently led the GOP's takeover of the state Legislature for the= =20 first time since Reconstruction. In his new role of vice-chairman, Gilmore= =20 will help campaign nationwide in support of Republican gubernatorial=20 candidates and increase his fundraising efforts, RGA spokesmen said. North= =20 Dakota Governor Ed Schafer was elected as chairman, a role Gilmore will=20 overtake after his yearlong stint in the second-man spot.=20 =09 ?????Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, D-CA, has decided what's good for the East= =20 Coast is good for the West Coast. Dipping into her current pool of employee= s,=20 Lofgren promoted special counsel John Flannery to Washington chief of staff= =20 and hired Sandra Soto as her District chief of staff in San Jose. "John has= =20 been an invaluable asset over the past year as Special Counsel, particularl= y=20 on technology issues so important to Silicon Valley as well as during the= =20 impeachment proceedings," Lofgren said in a statement. "My office has truly= =20 benefited form his extensive legal and legislative experience=01(on everyth= ing=20 from encryption to Y2K." Flannery joined Lofgren's staff last fall after=20 several years of serving as special counsel to the House Education and Work= =20 Force Committee, House Judiciary Committee, former Sen. Howard Metzenbaum,= =20 D-OH, and the Senate Labor Committee over a 16 year period. As for Soto,=20 Lofgren expects her to be "a key figure in bridging the gap between=20 neighborhoods in need and Silicon Valley."=20 =09 ?????Technology Network Texas corralled a group of high-tech cowboys for=20 another one of its recruitment breakfasts Friday Nov. 12. The event, hosted= =20 by Texas Instruments CEO Tom Engibous, drew Sabre General Counsel Andy=20 Steinberg, venture capitalist Steve Papermaster, iSong CEO Guy Hoffman,=20 Austin Ventures principal Brian Goffman, iStation.com CEO George Grayson an= d=20 about 30 others to discuss the condition of education in the Lone Star stat= e.=20 =09 ?????The final chapter in the Justice Department's antitrust case against= =20 Microsoft won't necessarily be Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson's final ruling= .=20 Publisher McGraw-Hill is prepared to release the premiere book on the case= =20 the moment the trial is complete, Publishers Weekly reported. In=20 collaboration with The New York Times' book development unit, McGraw-Hill h= as=20 commissioned the Times' two chief Microsuit correspondents to pen the=20 account. As the trial has unfolded Steve Lohr and Joel Brinkley have been= =20 working on the project. But for now the publishers and authors will have to= =20 exercise patience and see how the story is going to end before the books ar= e=20 bound.=20 =09 ?????It's official. Commerce Secretary William Daley has sworn in Greg Rohd= e=20 as assistant secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and= =20 administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information=20 Administration. "Greg Rohde's vast experience in the legislative arena,=20 particularly his significant experience in dealing with telecommunications= =20 and technology issues, will decidedly be an asset to me and to the Commerce= =20 Department as we work towards the administration's goals of bringing the=20 benefits of Information Technology to all Americans," Daley said in a=20 statement. Formerly the chief policy advisor to Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-ND,=20 Rohde will be responsible for designing policies to stimulate the growth of= =20 telecommunications and information industries.=20 =09 ?????Clarence Crawford is agency hopping from the Office of Management and= =20 Budget to the Patent and Trademark Office. Formerly the OMB's associate=20 director of administration, Crawford has been pegged associate commissioner= =20 and chief financial officer at the PTO. Newly-appointed PTO Commissioner an= d=20 Assistant Secretary of Commerce Q. Todd Dickinson noted that Crawford's=20 "superlative record of government service" will be of great use to the agen= cy=20 as it faces future challenges. While at the OMB, Crawford was the key advis= or=20 to OMB Director Jacob Lew on internal management issues and working on such= =20 programs as the budget and information technology. Crawford's road to the P= TO=20 has been an interesting one holding a multitude of positions with the Gener= al=20 Accounting Office, the Internal Revenue Service and where he began his care= er=20 as an officer of the law: the Washington, DC Metropolitan Police Department= .