Rep. Pence to reintroduce Broadcaster Freedom Act

Former House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence (Ind.) said today that he would soon reintroduce the Broadcaster Freedom Act, and that Congress should reject the idea of regulating political speech in the wake of the Arizona shooting over the weekend. Pence, who spoke on C-SPAN this morning, said his bill would prevent the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from regulating content on the airwaves.

In the last Congress, Pence introduced the Broadcaster Freedom Act of 2009, which would have prevented the FCC from requiring broadcasters to present opposing points of view, a concept known as the Fairness Doctrine.

Pence said he does not want free political discourse to be "another casualty" of the Arizona shootings.