Free Internet = Sesame Street?

The Republicans are nothing if not consistent. They consistently overreach and fall in holes they themselves dug(*). They did it with impeachment. They did it with Terri Schiavo. They did it with Immigration Reform.

Now they may be doing it with Net Neutrality.

Matt Stoller finds that some candidates are starting to use the issue in their campaigns against supporters of the effort to hand the Internet over to Comcast and Verizon. And it may just work.

Which brings to mind another example of Republicans putting their foot in it. Back in the 90s the Republicans under Newt Gingrich targeted PBS for destruction. They have never liked the idea of public broadcasting, not least for the fact that it puts on programs that they just don't find acceptable.

The problem was the people like PBS. Especially its children programming. Thus it was easy for supporters of PBS to frame the Republican attack as being against Big Bird, not McNeil-Leher.

It's nice to see that there are some Democrats who recognize the potential political value of this issue.

(*) Unfortunately, Dems have a bad habit of helping them by throwing them a rope.