Senator John McCain had trailed Senator Barack Obama in the number of former Federal Communication Commission (FCC) chairs supporting his campaign by a count of two to zero. This week, his re-energized campaign has managed to garner the support of former FCC Chairman and professed Best Buy lover Michael K. Powell.
Powell represented McCain on Monday in an online discussion conducted over Skype entitled "The Next President, the Internet, and the Disconnected City"; he faced off against Obama surrogate Gigi Sohn, President of Public Knowledge. Powell, son of General and former Secretary of State Colin Powell, likely gets extra brownie points in McCain circles for his Army service.
After departing the FCC, Powell has kept a low public profile. During his time as chairman, Powell outlined principles for what has become known as Net Neutrality and was a geek favorite for his love of TiVo, VoIP and whatever other cool gizmos he found.
However, McCain has an uphill battle in the telecommunications adviser count. Obama counts a (very embittered) Bill Kinnard and Reed Hundt among his former FCC chair head count; both have contributed cash and advice to the Democratic candidate's campaign.
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