Ajit Pai Profile picture
Former @FCC Chairman, now Partner at Searchlight Capital Partners. Indian-American, Kansan, dad, fan of Super Bowl 54, 57, 58 champs @Chiefs. I own a big mug.
Magdi Shalash Profile picture Nockit (dregs) Profile picture Desperado (2015 Remaster) Profile picture Sheri Jennings Profile picture 🇺🇸 WenJE 🇺🇸 Profile picture 6 subscribed
Jan 27, 2022 6 tweets 3 min read
It feels like a major demarcation point in one's life when one's first boss passes away. RIP Martin Feldman, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana. A great jurist, a good friend, and a man who epitomized so much of New Orleans. 1/ 🧵 Born in 1934, Martin Feldman grew up in St. Louis and was a St. Louis Browns fan. In the 1950s, he moved to New Orleans to attend @Tulane, and then @TulaneLaw, from which he graduated in 1957. He then became the first law clerk to legendary 5th Circuit judge John Minor Wisdom. 2/
Nov 10, 2021 12 tweets 6 min read
I met a hero.

This is Drew Meyerowich. He's a successful businessman in Kansas City. In 1993, he was a @USArmy Captain, commanding Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry, @10MTNDIV in the Battle of Mogadishu. If you saw "Black Hawk Down," you should hear his—the real—story. When two Black Hawks were shot down in Mogadishu on October 3, 1993, Alpha and Charlie Companies were deployed as part of the Quick Reaction Force a rescue mission to the crash sites. @Meyerowich's Alpha Company faced an unbelievable series of challenges to get to Crash Site 1.
Sep 12, 2021 5 tweets 3 min read
In 1849, 4 slaves escaped from a Maryland slaveowner. He later heard they were hiding in Pennsylvania and got a warrant in Philadelphia to recapture them, per the Fugitive Slave Act. OTD in 1851, he, a marshal, and others approached the suspected safe house in Christiana, PA. 1/4 The slaveowner's party attempted to raid the house, owned by William Parker (himself an escaped slave). Parker's wife blew a horn, signaling to the area the need for help. Soon, many local white and free black men arrived, most armed and determined to protect the escapees. 2/4
Jun 19, 2021 4 tweets 3 min read
In 2019, the @FCC took decisive action to secure the communications supply chain, barring companies from using FCC subsidies to buy equipment from entities deemed national security threats. Pleased 5th Cir. today rejected #Huawei's appeal of our decision. ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/1… Today's decision by the 5th Cir. closes part of the circle that began in 2018, when I promised @SenTomCotton and others that "I intend[ed] to take proactive steps to help ensure the integrity of the communications supply chain in the United States." transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases…
Mar 11, 2021 8 tweets 4 min read
A thread on #suicideprevention and #mentalhealth based on an event that happened on this date in 2005. npr.org/2015/03/06/390… 1/8 Kevin Berthia lived in the SF Bay Area. His family had medical and financial difficulties. Berthia was depressed and went to the Golden Gate Bridge. "Before March 11, 2005, I never even went to the bridge. ... I didn't even know how to get there. I had to ask for directions." 2/8
Jan 5, 2021 4 tweets 5 min read
Promoting supply chain integrity. Advancing strong, secure #5G networks. Taking action on Chinese firms' U.S. market access. Working with counterparts abroad.

This @FCC has made historic strides to protect national security. My remarks @CSIS/@CyberCSIS: docs.fcc.gov/public/attachm… Image Our engagements abroad have been quite productive. It hasn’t been easy. It’s taken a lot of time. And it’s often been without immediate apparent effect. But now we're seeing the results of our work. And the tide has turned significantly toward the U.S. position on #5G security. ImageImageImage
Oct 12, 2020 10 tweets 7 min read
Wow! @NobelPrize in Economics goes to Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson, whose “best-known contribution is the auction they designed the first time the US authorities [the @FCC!] sold radio frequencies to telecom operators.” Very well-deserved recognition. nobelprize.org/prizes/economi… For years, the @FCC allocated frequencies using what were called “beauty contests.” Applicants would lobby the agency on why their proposal was superior and merited a license. Highly inefficient, no revenue to @USTreasury, and companies “spent huge amounts of money on lobbying.”
Jun 30, 2020 4 tweets 2 min read
BREAKING NEWS: The @FCC has designated #Huawei and #ZTE as companies posing a national security threat to the United States. As a result, telecom companies cannot use money from our $8.3B Universal Service Fund on equipment or services produced or provided by these suppliers. 1/5 In making this decision, @FCC took into account input from Congress, Executive Branch, intelligence community, allies, and communications service providers. Overwhelming weight of evidence supported designation of Huawei and ZTE as national security risks to U.S. networks. 2/4
Jun 18, 2020 9 tweets 2 min read
A somewhat delayed sigh for today’s dad joke. I’ll take it.

Why is the artichoke the most emotional vegetable?

Because it has a big heart. Hit it out of the park this evening. I was making some chimichurri kebabs, and it came to me. (Not to them—yet—but give it time.)

Why was the meat so afraid?

Because it was chicken! 🍗
Jun 15, 2020 84 tweets 36 min read
You don't say.

China investing $1.4T in "next-generation technologies as it seeks to catapult the communist nation ahead of the U.S. in critical areas. ... Beijing seeks a global edge in construction of superfast cellular networks known as #5G."

wsj.com/articles/china… You don’t say.

https://t.co/zZHZoGg5HT
May 26, 2020 87 tweets 37 min read
You don’t say.

“Chinese internet giant Tencent has reportedly been surveilling content posted by foreign users on its wildly popular messaging service WeChat in order to help it refine censorship on its platform at home.“ — @CNBC @ArjunKharpal

cnbc.com/2020/05/08/ten… You don't say.

"YouTube is automatically deleting comments that contain certain Chinese-language phrases [like '共匪' or '五毛'] related to criticism of the country’s ruling Communist Party (CCP)."

theverge.com/2020/5/26/2127…
Mar 18, 2020 5 tweets 5 min read
Pleased to announce key changes to @FCC's Rural Health Care and #ERate programs that'll make it easier for broadband providers to support #telehealth and #remotelearning. These services are more critical than ever given the #coronavirus pandemic. 1/4 Specifically, the #FCC has waived the gift rules until August 30, 2020 to enable service providers to offer, and RHC/#ERate program participants to solicit and accept, improved connections or additional equipment for #telemedicine or #remotelearning during this pandemic. 2/4
Feb 17, 2020 114 tweets 50 min read
You don’t say.

“Quite simply, you don’t get to do business in China today without doing exactly what the Chinese government wants you to do. Period. No one is immune. No one.” — former Apple exec in @supchinanews.

supchina.com/2020/02/12/the… You don't say.

#Huawei "funded a @Cambridge_Uni college study on global governance reforms in communications and technology" and a Cambridge forum, and "[t]he forum led to a white paper, published online this week, that referred favourably to Huawei."

thetimes.co.uk/article/huawei…
Feb 16, 2020 112 tweets 50 min read
@TheJusticeDept @Equifax You don't say.

China's embassy in Denmark called a cartoon "an insult to China" and demanded paper/cartoonist "publicly apologise to the Chinese people." Danish Prime Minister's response to China: "we have freedom of expression in Denmark—also to draw."

bbc.com/news/world-eur… @TheJusticeDept @Equifax You don't say.

"The disclosure of his speech indicates top leaders knew about the [#coronavirus] outbreak’s potential severity at least two weeks before such dangers were made known to the public."

apnews.com/194c2fc481010f…
Jan 28, 2020 107 tweets 53 min read
@WHO @LiYuan6 You don't say.

"Chinese officials arrested citizens they accused of spreading rumors about the [#coronavirus] illness online. Journalists have also reported being detained and threatened by Chinese authorities while covering the outbreak." @acollman:

businessinsider.com/china-informat… You don't say.

"The chair of Harvard University’s chemistry department was arrested Tuesday on charges of allegedly lying to the U.S. about millions in Chinese funding he has received," misleading about "participation in China’s Thousand Talents Plan."

wsj.com/articles/harva…
Jan 14, 2020 106 tweets 55 min read
You don't say.

New regulations from China's education ministry "stipulate that authors and editors of teaching materials must 'hold a firm political stance' in line with that of the Communist Party of China." @SixthTone's @YujieXuett:

sixthtone.com/news/1005052/c… Stellen Sie sich vor.

"'Für jedes chinesische Unternehmen, privat oder staatlich, gilt: Wenn die chinesische Staatsführung Druck ausübt, wird man diesem nicht standhalten können.' Ob mit oder ohne Sicherheitsgesetzgebung." @SZ:

sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/han…
Dec 24, 2019 88 tweets 43 min read
You don’t say.

Govt is “deleting data, destroying documents, tightening controls on information and has held high-level meetings in response to leaks of classified papers on its mass detention camps for Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities.” apnews.com/c1d08873154907… You don’t say.

https://t.co/E09PNNA1Ow
Nov 26, 2019 39 tweets 21 min read
Nov 18, 2019 4 tweets 3 min read
I've outlined four principles that the @FCC must advance regarding C-band spectrum: we must (1) free up significant spectrum for #5G, (2) do so quickly, (3) generate revenue for the federal government, and (4) ensure continued delivery of services currently using the C-band. @FCC After much deliberation and a thorough review of the extensive record, I've concluded that the best way to advance these principles is through a public auction of 280 megahertz of the C-band conducted by the @FCC's excellent staff.
Dec 30, 2018 4 tweets 2 min read
1) At the heart of so many small, rural towns is a cadre of citizens willing to sacrifice personal time to participate in civic life: heading school boards, serving as @boyscouts leaders, helping local community colleges. My hometown of Parsons, KS just lost such a citizen. 2) Robert "Bob" Brandenburg led an extraordinary life. In 1950, at 12, he contracted polio. He never let it limit him. (And Parsons rallied around him, e.g., carrying his wheelchair up & down stairs during his school years.) He became a community mainstay in every way possible.