WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator John Thune (R-SD), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, issued the following statement today after Federal Communications Commissioner Robert McDowell announced he will step down in the coming weeks:

“Rob McDowell has spent the last seven years diligently fighting to promote free markets and the free expression of ideas, and I thank him for his service. As we have seen with his recent leadership on efforts to prevent foreign government intervention in the operation and use of the Internet, Rob has been a consistent voice cautioning against unnecessary governmental regulations. I hope the president’s nominee to replace him will approach the job with the same passion and energy that Rob exhibited and will be similarly committed to finding market-based solutions to our nation’s communications challenges whenever possible. I wish Rob all the best in his future endeavors.”

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