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After Clinton: Rogan Tapped For PTO Post
by Bara Vaida
Former Rep. James Rogan, one of only two of the 13 "managers" in the impeachment of former President Clinton to lose an election in 2000, has found a new home in the Bush administration. President Bush last week officially nominated Rogan to be the Commerce Department's undersecretary for intellectual property and the director of the Patent and Trademark Office.
Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, Calif., defeated Rogan in a race where both sides raised more than $10 million was raised. Rogan has been working at a Baltimore-based law firm since then. Rogan gained national attention for his role as a House impeachment manager, and he blamed his role in the impeachment for his defeat.
Rogan is a former member of the House Judiciary Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property Subcommittee. His stance on the diversion of patent fees to fund other government programs is unclear. Every year, appropriators divert funds raised through patent application fees. Opponents of the practice argue that the PTO needs the money to hire more staff to review applications. According to Tech Law Journal, Rogan missed the only House roll-call vote on the issue.
Democrats, meanwhile, added Schiff and Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., to the membership of the Courts Subcommittee. Schiff's Los Angeles district includes content providers in Hollywood, while Weiner's district abuts Silicon Alley, the Internet community in New York City.
More Nominations ... And Confirmations
Elsewhere on the nomination front, Bush on May 21 tapped Sharon Prost, chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee, to be a U.S. circuit judge for the Federal Circuit. Based in Washington the court has appellate jurisdiction based on subject matter rather than territory. It hears appeals on patent, trademark, customs and other issues.
Late last week, the Senate confirmed several Bush nominees of interest to the technology community: Timothy Muris as FTC chairman, Michael Powell to a five-year term as FCC chairman, and Democrat Michael Copps and Republicans Kathleen Abernathy and Kevin Martin as FCC commissioners. The Senate also confirmed candidates for three trade-related posts: Thelma Askey as director of the Trade and Development Agency, and Peter Allgeier and Linnet Deily as a deputy U.S. trade representatives.
The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, meanwhile, approved on a 9-3 vote the nomination of Harvard professor John Graham to head the White House Office of Management and Budget's regulatory affairs department. Graham's nomination has sparked complaints from consumers' groups worried that his academic work has been influenced by industry contributions to the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis, which he directed.
Educational Technology Expert Goes To Washington
John Bailey, director of Pennsylvania's Office of Educational Technology has been tapped to become a special assistant to the undersecretary of Education. "I do believe that I will be using much of my experience with educational technology policy in this new position," he said in an e-mail to colleagues. The federal Education Department has yet to name someone to replace Linda Roberts, who headed the Office of Educational Technology under Clinton.
In other department news, William Hansen officially became deputy education secretary last week. Hansen previously was executive director and CEO of the Education Finance Council. Before that, he served in several positions with the department, including assistant secretary for management and budget, and chief financial officer.
The Politics Of Science
The long wait for a Bush nominee to head the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), meanwhile, has sparked a partisan skirmish on the Hill.
Last week, Rep. Joe Baca, D-Calif., issued a press release noting that the Bush administration has taken longer than any administration since that of Ronald Reagan to nominate an OSTP director. "The president has sent the very clear signal that he does not value objective scientific input," said Baca, a member of the House Science Committee.
Not so, answered committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y. Bush's father, former President George Bush, actually took longer than former President Reagan -- until Aug. 4, compared with July 1 for Reagan. "While I support the minority's desire to have a science adviser, I'm concerned by their attempt to turn this into an excuse for a partisan attack," Boehlert said. "It is not uncommon for the administration to be conducting a search for a science adviser at this point."
Former President Clinton nominated his first science adviser, John Gibbons, four days after his inauguration.
Telecom Comings And Goings
FCC Commissioner Harold Furchtgott-Roth has announced that after leaving the FCC this year, he will join the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) as a visiting fellow. At AEI, he will write a book on telecommunications policy and pursue other interests.
In other FCC news, FCC Commissioner Gloria Tristani said her senior legal adviser William Friedman, and legal adviser Sarah Whitesell will depart in June. Former advisers Paul Gallant and Deena Shetler will rejoin Tristani's staff. Gallant will serve as legal adviser for mass media and cable issues, and Shetler will serve as legal adviser for common-carrier issues. Adam Krinsky, who covers wireless and international issues for Tristani, will replace Friedman.
Elsewhere, the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA) has hired Diane Cornell, formerly the FCC wireless telecommunications bureau associate chief. As CTIA's new vice president for regulatory policy, Cornell will manage the relationship with the FCC and is working in conjunction with Steve Berry, senior vice president of CTIA's government affairs.
CTIA also announced the addition of Christopher Guttman-McCabe as director for regulatory policy. He joined CTIA on May 9. Guttman-McCabe was an associate for the communications practice group with the law firm of Wiley, Rein & Fielding in Washington.
Setting The E-Book Standard
Scott Edwards, general counsel at the Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA), has been named chairman of the Rights and Rules Working Group of the Open eBook Forum, an international coalition working on an open e-book standard. Edwards said he was "clearly committed to protecting the value of online content, thereby developing new markets and Internet-based revenue streams for member companies."
Scholarships For Scientists
National Science Foundation (NSF) Director Rita Colwell announced the NSF's first scholarship for service program awards to six institutions as part of an interagency, public-private effort to meet the nationwide needs for computer security and information assurance professionals. The new scholarships will be awarded through Carnegie Mellon, Iowa State and Purdue universities, the universities of Idaho and Tulsa, and the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterrey, Calif.
The scholarships will provide more than $8.6 million to develop the new professionals for careers in the government or private sector. The students will intern with federal agencies and then, upon graduation, work for the federal government for one year per each year of scholarship funding.
Taking Checks ... And Talking Broadband
Finally, a few social events have been added to the tech community's calendar. On May 30, tech executives such as Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers will join the New Democrat Network and Silicon Valley lobbying group TechNet in hosting a fundraiser for New Democrat Coalition co-Chairman Calvin Dooley, D-Calif.
On June 13, meanwhile, TechNet will host a breakfast in Palo Alto, Calif., with Doug Rothwell, CEO of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation on Broadband Infrastructure. He will discuss the state's role in broadband deployment. And on June 25, TechNet CEO Rick White and Floyd Kvamme, a co-chairman of the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology, will be among the participants in an all-day forum on broadband policy in Palo Alto.
TechNet is creating and an advisory group to develop broadband policy recommendations.
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