Rep. Bobby Rush has gotten a strong vote of confidence from some big-name groups for his bid to be ranking member on the House Communications Subcommittee. Current chairman Rick Boucher (D-Va.) was defeated for re-election.
In a letter dated Tuesday, the NAACP, Urban League and Rev. Jesse Jackson's Rainbow PUSH Coalition were among the almost two dozen signatories to a letter expressing their "strong, unwavering support" for Rush as ranking member.
He is arguably the leading candidate for the post, though Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) and Mike Doyle (D-MA) are also in the conversation.
"Congressman Rush's legislative track record includes fifteen years of service as a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee - when, during his first term, the Democratic House leadership selected him as a conferee of the Energy and Commerce Committee on the Telecommunications Act of 1996. His selection as conferee on this landmark piece of communications legislation enabled the ultimate reconciliation of the differences between the House and Senate versions of this contentious bill," they wrote in a letter to current Speaker and soon-to-be minority leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
"Congressman Rush understands and is able to balance the concerns of traditional and emerging communications technology with the need for strong consumer protections," they wrote.
