Headed to the Senate for a vote in 2010 is the CALM Act- Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act- HR 1084. This bill was proposed by a brave California congresswoman who was tired of being assaulted by obnoxiously loud TV commercials, and felt it was time to act. Her constituents seem to agree, as her office has received a flood of positive calls and emails supporting passage of the bill.
However, we all know it takes 60 votes to make anything happen in the Senate, and the GOP and Blue Dogs are coming out in force against this seemingly common sense bill. It seems they will stop at nothing to make sure that TV networks and advertising companies can profit off TV viewers at any cost despite near unanimous polls proving that Americans agree loud TV ads are totally annoying. Let's see how they're spinning the obstruction this time!
The Blue Dogs started barking- from Senator Blanche Lincoln, D-AR:
“My first loyalties are with the people of Arkansas,” she said. “Not TV companies, the advertising industry or my political party.”
Of course, we all know that Lincoln has taken millions of dollars from the TV ad lobby in recent years.
Not to be outdone, Senator Ben Nelson, D-NE demanded the FCC give Nebraska it's own super-sized radio network to allow the Nebraska Senator the ability to broadcast his remaining demands to all Americans in exchange for a vote for cloture.
Of course, the GOP won't allow this travesty of a bill to go on unchallenged. From Senator John McCain R-AZ:
As an example, McCain pointed to a woman who told him during a recent town hall that the TV ad volume debate has left her “worried about my freedom.”
“What she was talking about was her right to choose what kind of TV ad volume she wants, what commercials she wants to hear, when she can hear them and when she can’t,” the former GOP presidential nominee said. “She epitomized, in many respects, the deep and abiding concern out here and a revolt against a government-run TV ad volume system.”
McCain knocked Democrats for being “in denial that Americans are upset and concerned” and for not understanding “the depth of the passion that’s out there.”
"What's the deal? What's the deal? Brrrwwaaak! What's the deal?" McCain squawked.
Senator Chuck Grassley, R-IA, amped up the rhetoric even more at another Town Hall event:
Appearing at a town hall in his home state of Iowa, Sen. Chuck Grassley told a crowd of more than 300 that they were correct to fear that the government would "pull the plug on grandma's hearing aid."
Naturally, feeling the public spotlight shifting away from him, Joe Lieberman, D-CT, jumped into action by threatening to filibuster the bill to its ultimate demise:
But for now, he's drawing a bright line. "I do want to make clear, because at least one publication got this wrong," he said. "What I said this morning and what I've said to Senator Reid is that I'm inclined to vote for cloture on the motion to proceed to a debate on TV ad volume, because I believe we need to have a debate on TV ad volume and I hope to be in a position to vote yes on TV ad volume. But, I've also said that if the current proposal remains as it is unamended, before the final vote on the floor, that I will not vote for cloture."
Grabbing the spolight back from Lieberman was Sarah Palin, who issued the following statement on her Facebook page:
We must step up and engage in this most crucial debate. Nationalizing our TV ad volume system is a point of no return for government interference in the lives of its citizens. If we go down this path, there will be no turning back. Ronald Reagan once wrote, “Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth.” Let’s stop and think and make our voices heard before it’s too late.
Aside from all the back-and-forth, I for one would welcome such a bill, despite all indications it will drag us ever closer to the Socialist future we're trying to prevent. After all, I'd like to be able to take a nap without being rudely awoken by the ShamWow guy, I'd like to see babies sleep soundly while their parents enjoy decompressing in front of "Glee", and there really should be a law that no commercial can be louder than "Jersey Shore". 'Nuff said.