Nation & World News
FCC will enforce rules barring telemarketers
The FCC Chairman asks
telemarketers not to call
the 50 million numbers
on the do-not-call list
By Frank James
Chicago Tribune (KRT)
WASHINGTON — With legal un
certainty hanging over efforts to rein
in annoying telemarketing calls, the
head of the Federal Communications
Commission said on Wednesday his
agency would enforce the new rules
barring most sales pitches to Ameri
cans on the national do-not-call list.
Chairman Michael K. Powell said he
was sending a letter on Wednesday to
the nation's major telemarketers asking
if they had access to the database with
more than 50 million phone numbers
on the list. The letter also asked the
companies to respect the wishes of
those on the list who don't want to re
ceive telemarketing calls.
*The FCC is very, very committed to
this database; very, very committed to
the protection of consumers under it,"
Powell said. "And (it) intends to be ex
tremely aggressive within whatever lim
its or parameters we can finely divine in
the legal quagmire to enforce it. *
The do-not-call effort became offi
cial on Wednesday after millions of
consumers, in an unprecedented re
sponse to an initiative by the federal
government, added their home and
cell phone numbers to a federal reg
istry created by the Federal Trade Com
mission to halt telemarketing calls.
But recent federal court decisions
raised questions about the authority
of federal regulators to impose the
rules as well as the constitutionality of
the telemarketing restrictions. A U.S.
District Court judge in Oklahoma
City ruled for telemarketers that the
FTC exceeded Congress's intent.
Spurred by the political message
sent by millions of Americans, Con
gress took just two days to draft, con
sider and pass through both cham
bers new legislation clarifying that it
supported the regulators' actions. The
bill was rushed to the White House
where President Bush quickly signed
it.
Then a U.S. District Court judge in
Denver ruled that the do-no-call list
violated telemarketers' First Amend
ment free-speech rights and ordered
the FTC not to enforce the rules.
Questions were raised about what
appeared to be discrimination against
telemarketers since the rule allowed
political pollsters and charitable or
ganizations to continue to make un
solicited calls.
The FCC has its own do-not-call
regulation; however, and decided to
push ahead despite the legal rulings.
But because of the action of the
courts, the FCC did not have access to
the database created by the FTC.
So on Wednesday, the FCC was in
the unusual situation of asking the
Direct Marketing Association, the
trade group that represents telemar
keters, to share its database of Ameri
cans not wanting to be disturbed by
telemarketing calls.
Powell said the do-not-call initia
tive was at the top of his agency's en
forcement agenda.
'We have tools available to us, up to
and including subpoena power if it's in
the context of an investigation, to po
tentially get the evidentiary informa
tion we need to prosecute;' Powell said.
Companies found in violation of
the rules could be faced with large
monetary fines.Powell also expressed
faith that any problems with the reg
ulations could be resolved, if neces
sary, by further congressional action.
(c) 2003, Chicago Tribune. Distributed
by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information
Services
U.S. officials offer resolution for withdrawing troops
No firm deadline has been
set for the removal of U.S.
troops, but an “end point”
has been established
By Warren P. Strobel
Knight Ridder Newspapers (KRT)
WASHINGTON — The United
States on Wednesday for the first
time explicitly described a procedure
for American combat troops to leave
Iraq after the conntry is returned to
its people.
The plan is part of a revised U.N.
resolution on Iraq that's designed to
attract greater international backing
for the U.S. position on the country
and to encourage larger contribu
tions of peacekeeping troops and re
building money.
I
It remains to be seen whether the
changes will be enough to assuage
the criticism, mostly from European
nations, that President Bush encoun
tered during his visit to the United
Nations last week.
Some countries want a clearer idea
of when the United States will exit.
The revised resolution; however, sets
no firm deadlines.
Senior administration officials
said the document, approved at the
White House on Sunday, says an
American-led multinational force
will leave Iraq after a new Iraqi ad
ministration is in place.
The document says the de facto
U.S. government in Iraq, the Coali
tion Provisional Authority, is "tempo
rary, until an internationally recog
nized government is established,"
said a senior American official, speak
ing on condition of anonymity.
It gives "not an end date, but an
end point," the senior official said.
Attempting to dispel the image of
the United States as an occupier, it
says "the sovereignty of Iraq resides
in the state of Iraq," he said.
State Department spokesman
Richard Boucher told a news briefing
that the changes are a response to
other countries' desire to see a clear
timeline and process for Iraqis to re
assert control over their country.
Secretary of State Colin Powell on
Wednesday telephoned colleagues
from Britain, Germany and other na
tions on the Security Council seeking
their support on the draft resolution.
There was no immediate public re
action from Security Council mem
bers, including France, which has led
international criticism of Bush's de
cision to go to war last March.
The United States has rejected
such demands as too hasty. Powell
last week urged the Iraqis to write a
new constitution within six months,
but members of the Iraqi Governing
Council in Baghdad said that
was unlikely.
American officials said on
Wednesday that they expected the
resolution to win the nine votes it
needs to pass when it's put before the
council. But they're hoping to maxi
mize the number of votes, to give
greater international legitimacy to
U.S. operations in Iraq.
Even if the resolution passes; how
ever, nations Washington has lob
bied for more peacekeeping troops
and rebuilding money have offered a
largely tepid response.
The new draft resolution also is
more specific about the planned role
for the United Nations in rebuilding
Iraq, it refers to a July 17 report by
U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan
that outlines which tasks his organi
zation can undertake in the country.
In that report, Annan proposed a
new U.N. mission in Iraq headed by
a special representative with respon
sibilities including humanitarian re
lief, human rights and assisting Iraq's
political process. But the United Na
tions has continued to reduce, not
increase, its Iraq staff since the Au
gust bombing of a U.N. headquarters
in Baghdad killed 22 people, includ
ing the head of the U.N. mission,
Sergio Vieira de Mello.
(c) 2003, Knight Ridder/Tribune
Information Services.
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