Republican Commissioner Nathan Simington of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) repeated his remarks in Romanian Thursday in a jab at Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez during the agency’s monthly open meeting of commissioners.
Gomez has a habit of repeating her remarks in Spanish during meetings, which some viewed as wasting time and labor, Joe Verde, a former Simington staffer, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. The agenda for the meeting included regaining authority to auction off parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. (RELATED: Things Keep Getting Worse For Corporate Media)
“I’m pleased that the commission is back in business, so to speak. This proceeding represents the kind of thinking that has lately been missing from the commission: A practical, results-oriented action… repurposing existing commercial brands to increase spectral efficiency is one key way to address it,” Simington said. “There are others, of course, and I am counting on the good offices of Congress and the NTIA [National Telecommunications and Information Administration] to help us get there. Yet, in the meantime, it’s fair to say that, yeah, I’m thinking we’re back. This item has my support. And now, my remarks in Romanian.”
WATCH:
Simington proceeded to repeat his speech in Romanian, taking a minute and six seconds to deliver the remarks that took all of 30 seconds to deliver in English, forcing an American Sign Language interpreter to stand by.
“I wasn’t sure that was at an end, but thank you very much,” FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said before turning to Gomez.
“That was super-cool,” Gomez responded to laughter from other commissioners, before adding, “As we would say in Spanish, y tu mamá también [and your mom, too].”
Gomez did not repeat her remarks in Spanish during the Thursday meeting before Simington spoke, but she did deliver remarks in Spanish later in the meeting after speaking in English.
Simington was appointed to the FCC by President Donald Trump in 2020, after serving with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, according to his official biography. He was known to avoid attending diversity events held by other members of the commission, Verde told DCNF.
Gomez was placed on the commission after being confirmed by the Senate in September 2023. She previously served for 12 years at the FCC in various capacities and was deputy director of NTIA during the Obama administration, according to her biography.
“Simington’s actions today shed a light on how ridiculous it is that Gomez has continued this posture of reciting a speech she already spoke,” Verde said.
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