[DMCA-Activists] Rep. Adam Smith Critized for GPL Attack

[Seth Johnson]

> http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20021024S0001

Congressman Criticized For Attacking Free Software Movement

By D. Ian Hopper, AP Technology Writer
Oct. 24, 2002


Washington Rep. Adam Smith, whose biggest contributor
is Microsoft, is blasted by head of a House technology
committee.


WASHINGTON (AP)--A congressman from Microsoft Corp.'s home
state was criticized by the chairman of a House technology
committee for an attack on the free software movement. 

A bipartisan group of lawmakers had written a letter urging
White House computer security adviser Richard Clarke to find
sales opportunities for government-funded software projects.
The letter had no mention of the issue of free software,
also known as open-source or General Public License (GPL)
software. 

But when Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., whose biggest political
contributor is Microsoft, began circulating the letter to
his fellow Democrats asking for their signatures, he added
his own correspondence, saying the free software philosophy
is "problematic and threaten(s) to undermine innovation and
security.'' 

The open-source movement advocates that software, such as
the Linux operating system, should be distributed free and
open to modification by others rather than treated as
copyright-protected, for-profit property. 

Smith's attack on open-source drew an angry response on
Wednesday from one of the original authors of the letter,
Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., chairman of the Government Reform
Subcommittee on Technology and Procurement Policy. 

"We had no knowledge about that letter that twisted this
position into a debate over the open source GPL issues,''
said Melissa Wojciak, staff director of the subcommittee.
Wojciak added that Davis supports government funding of
open-source projects. 

Smith spokeswoman Katharine Lister said he has "definitely
spoken with (Microsoft) about this issue,'' but that there
wasn't a direct relationship between those discussions and
his decision to write his letter to fellow Democrats. 

Sixty-seven representatives signed the letter to Clarke;
almost two-thirds were Democrats. "I'm going to hope that
the people who signed on to the letter did their homework,''
Lister said. 

Microsoft, whose Windows operating system competes with
Linux, says open-source hurts a company's right to protect
its intellectual property. 

Microsoft is Smith's top source of donations. According to
the Center for Responsive Politics, Microsoft employees and
its political action committee have given $22,900 to Smith's
re-election campaign. 

The original letter was fashioned by Davis and Jim Turner,
D-Texas. They wanted the White House's national
cybersecurity plan, which is set to be finished next month,
to ensure that companies that develop software using federal
funds are free to use the resulting products for commercial
gain. 

Clarke and his top spokeswoman were traveling Wednesday, and
did not return a message seeking comment.