At the most basic level, lawmakers from both major political parties support the concept of net neutrality.

The free and open Internet is not only essential to the modern economy and marketplace of ideas, but is also increasingly used for educational and health purposes. There is bipartisan support for the idea that Internet service providers should not prioritize or block certain Internet traffic at the expense of other traffic. In fact, I have been pushing for bipartisan net neutrality legislation for years and believe there is strong support in Congress for legislation that fits this traditional definition.

But as is the case with many other usually non-controversial issues, Democrats have taken the idea of ​​net neutrality and turned it into a partisan excuse to tighten government control of the internet. . The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) uses rules designed for phone monopolies during the Great Depression to assert broad new government powers over the internet in his 2015 under President Obama. We did this when we passed the Open Internet Order.

The Obama-era rules opened the door to a slew of new internet regulations, including price controls. As a result, investment in broadband has declined, hitting Americans living in rural areas like South Dakota the hardest.

Getting broadband to rural areas is already harder than getting broadband to cities and suburbs, and it will become even more difficult if Democrats succeed. Re-enact Obama-era rules, as the Biden FCC plans to do this year.

The debate over the future of the Internet raises two important questions.

First, why should Americans trust Democrats to rewrite the rules of the internet when they have been proven wrong on this issue time and time again?

When Republicans repealed Obama-era coercive internet rules, Democrats warned that Americans would be using the internet one word at a time. The end of the internet as we know it was promised. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, Said It's about time that companies started restricting how consumers access their favorite websites. Obviously, none of these absurd claims were true.

Second, what exactly are the problems that Democrats are trying to solve by overhauling heavy-handed internet regulations?

The Internet didn't just survive, it thrived. New digital technologies reach Americans every day. The United States is now a leader in deploying next-generation communications services such as 5G and advanced WiFi. Even as internet usage exploded during the coronavirus pandemic, America's networks had no trouble keeping up with demand.

Compare this reality to the reality in Europe, where internet regulation is much stricter. While European service providers have taken the extreme step of slowing down their internet speeds to maintain connectivity, internet speeds in the United States continue to get faster and faster.

The Internet is too important to jeopardize its future through partisan politics and heavy-handed regulation. Rapid advances in technology and growing internet usage mean we must make smart investments to expand broadband access and keep America at the forefront of new technologies. We are beyond failed partisan “net neutrality” proposals that do nothing to move the ball forward.

If Democrats truly want a free and open internet, they will oppose the Biden FCC's heavy-handed power grab.

John Thune represents South Dakota in the United States Senate and currently serves as a member of the Senate Republican Party. From 2015 to 2019, Mr. Thune served as chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, which has jurisdiction over the FCC.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of The Daily Caller.