Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, will hold a hearing Feb. 16 on cracking down on online piracy even as the White House signaled it is on the sme page.
The hearing essentially speaks for itself given that it is entitled "Targeting Websites Dedicated to Stealing American Intellectual Property." Leahy has pushed legislation in the last Cognress, the Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act, to give the government more power to go after infringing Web sites.
The White House also last June launched Operation In Our Sites and has since closed down "dozens" of Web sites.
Separately, the President Tuesday established an Intellectual Property Enforcement Advisory Committee comprising the heads of deputy heads of State, Treasury, Justice, Agriculture, Commerce, HHS, Homeland Security, OMB, and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
Its mission will be to advise on formation and implementation of the triennial strategic plan mandated by the Pro IP Act, which was also pushed by Leahy.
