A quartet of Democratic reps whose constituents include
major Silicon Valley players issued a joint statement praising the
"robust" Internet freedom language in the Democratic Party's just-adopted
platform.
Last month, Reps. Anna G. Eshoo (D-Calif.), Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.),
Doris Matsui (D- Calif.) and Jared Polis (D-Colo.) had called on the party to
reaffirm its commitment to free online expression, privacy protections and
innovative services.
"I'm very proud that the Democratic Party has enshrined
in its platform our commitment to Internet freedom," said Eshoo, whose
district is home to Google and eBay. "A free and open Internet is a
hallmark of American ingenuity. Representing Silicon Valley in Congress, it's
especially gratifying to see a national party recognize that over the last 15
years venture capital funds have invested approximately a quarter of a trillion
dollars in industries reliant on the Internet, including $91.8 billion on
software alone."
Making good on President Barack Obama's pledge of Internet
freedom language, theDemocratic platform pledged to support "an open Internet that fosters
investment, innovation, creativity, consumer choice, and free speech,
unfettered by censorship or undue violations of privacy."
