The United States is forfeiting a wholly American invention — the internet — by relinquishing control to an international authority at the end of September, Pete Hoekstra, former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, told Newsmax TV.
"This was born in the United States," Hoekstra, who served as a U.S. congressman from Michigan, told J.D. Hayworth on Monday's "America Talks Live."
"American values have been instilled in the internet, access, freedom of speech and all of these types of things and it has enabled and fueled the growth of the internet — information on a global basis and it's because of American leadership and American values.
"At the end of this month the President is going to – he's giving up that control and who knows where it goes. Most likely it goes to the U.N. Whoa, that's a good place for it to go."
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The U.S. Department of Commerce has been responsible for managing the internet since its inception. The Obama administration believes the move is necessary to help maintain international support for the internet.
"Maybe Congress can take some legislative action to make sure that that doesn't happen, but I doubt that's going to be the case and we're going to get to Oct. 1. The internet is going to be controlled, the U.S. is going to give it up," Hoekstra said.
"We're exceptional like lots of other countries are exceptional and we're going to give it up to that exceptional organization called the U.N. Be prepared, it's going to change, and we'll probably start paying taxes on it to the U.N."
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