Marco Rubio Drops PIPA Sponsorship

Says he's worried about unintended consequences
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 18, 2012 12:18 PM CST
Marco Rubio Drops PIPA Sponsorship
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks during the Atlantic Forum, Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2011, at the Newseum in Washington.   (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

Internet, you have been heard—by a couple of influential senators at least. Marco Rubio says he's dropping his support of the Protect Intellectual Property Act, of which he is a co-sponsor, Politico reports. In a Facebook post, the Florida senator says he's heard "legitimate concerns about the impact the bill could have," and urges Congress to "avoid rushing through a bill that could have unintended consequences." John Cornyn soon followed suit, the New York Times reports.

"Stealing content is theft, plain and simple," Cornyn, the head of the GOP's campaign operations, said in his own post, "but concerns about unintended damage to the Internet … require a more thoughtful balance." The announcements come on the same day that sites across the web are going dark to protest PIPA, and its House counterpart, the Stop Online Piracy Act. On the House side, Arizona Rep. Ben Quayle has also rescinded his support. (More SOPA stories.)

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