Republicans are expected to have picked their chairmen for House committees and subcommittees by Wednesday night (Dec. 8), including the powerful Energy & Commerce Committee and Communications Subcommittee, which oversee broadcasting and cable issues.
The Republican Steering Committee meets Tuesday afternoon to make its recommendations for whom to install as chairmen when the Republicans take over that body in January.
That is according to Michael Steel, press secretary for future House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). Those recommendations go to the full House Republican Conference for a vote Wednesday.
One of the more heated races has been the Energy & Commerce chairmans race between, most prominently, Joe Barton (R-Tex.), ranking member and former chair, and Fred Upton (R-Mich.), former chair of the Communications Subcommittee.
Upton has been most critical of the FCC's proposed network neutrality rule vote, saying he would try to block it whether or not the FCC had the legal authority to impose it. But Barton also weighed in last week with concerns the FCC was painting too rosy a picture of industry response to his compromise network neutrality proposal. Both have promised vigorous oversight of the agency if they are picked for the post.
