The Brief: Paxton Joins Cruz In Crusade Against ‘Internet Control’

By Alex Samuels

The Big Conversation
Another Texan has joined U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz’s crusade against the Obama administration’s “illegal internet giveaway,” as critics of the move describe it. 

On Wednesday, Attorney General Ken Paxton and three other lawyers filed a lawsuit seeking to halt the government’s plan to transfer the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to an international body. In a statement, Paxton argued the transfer violates the Property Clause of the U.S. Constitution by “giving away government property without congressional authorization, the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by chilling speech, and the Administrative Procedure Act by acting beyond statutory authority.” 

As the Tribune’s Patrick Svitek reports, the transfer has been years in the making, with Cruz making the halt of the transition a priority since May. However, his efforts haven’t gained much traction, and on Wednesday Congress passed legislation to keep the federal government open through mid-December without addressing the internet issue.  

Many proponents of the Obama administration’s proposal, including the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, said Cruz’s and Paxton’s concerns demonstrate a lack of understanding for how the internet works. The transfer is scheduled to go into effect Saturday.  

This article originally published by The Texas Tribune

To view a copy of the complaint, click here:
https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/files/epress/Net_Complaint_-_FILED.pdf?cachebuster:77