Staff Reports
In a not-so-surprising turn of events, Biden’s designated broadband whiz, Evan Feinman, has opted to step down from his post after three long years of overseeing a program that managed to connect precisely zero homes to high-speed internet in rural America. Feinman’s resignation came with a tirade of blame, particularly aimed at Elon Musk, implying that the tech mogul’s successful ventures have somehow left rural communities high and dry. It appears Feinman is pulling a classic leftist move: when success is out of reach, play the blame game instead.
Feinman’s exit before any semblance of progress could be made coincides with new intentions from Commerce Secretary Howard Luttnick. Under Luttnick, the revamped Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program is set to shift gears, abandoning the fiber-optic fixation that has bogged down the initiative. Luttnick’s promise is simple: high-speed internet access for all Americans, done efficiently and with minimal cost to taxpayers. It’s as if the Biden administration finally figured out that high-tech expectations don’t fit all rural communities, but not without leaving one frustrated bureaucrat flailing in their wake.
Serving in the Biden administration since 2022, Feinman had the opportunity to lead the BEAD program, which was built on funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act designed to serve the underserved. Turning out to be another governmental fiasco, this initiative has been more about waste than effective service. While the lofty goals of providing internet access fell flat, the program displayed a level of incompetence reminiscent of Biden’s other grand infrastructures, like electric vehicle charging stations, which have become symbols of inefficiency and neglect in America.
Biden's Rural Broadband Guru Who Accomplished Nothing Quits Because Trump Might Make Progress https://t.co/hs0Z8hhOPq
— Andrew Malcolm (@AHMalcolm) March 19, 2025
The heart of the debacle seems to rest in an outdated focus on fiber optics. As costs ballooned for rural service providers, companies like Starlink, which actually provide viable satellite service, were left out in the cold. Feinman’s obsession with metrics and strict technology guidelines meant that workable solutions were disregarded, all while the countryside continued to languish without adequate service. This choice seemed less about helping rural Americans and more about sticking to outdated bureaucratic norms that many left-leaning policymakers seem to prefer.
Feinman’s sudden departure also highlights an underlying threat to the left’s agenda, particularly with Trump’s renewed presence in the political arena. With Luttnick’s move to make the BEAD initiative more tech-neutral, the possibility of billions flowing to alternative providers like Starlink poses a considerable challenge to entrenched interests supporting traditional, and often inefficient, broadband models. This shift is potentially a real boon to rural communities that have been kept in the dark, both literally and metaphorically, for far too long. Feinman’s blame towards Musk is nothing more than a desperate counterattack against progress that could very well disrupt the plans of the liberal elite who thrive on governmental inefficacy.
As Feinman exits the stage, it becomes increasingly clear that the Biden administration’s strategies have largely been about political games rather than genuine solutions for the American people. With the BEAD program’s failure now moving to the forefront, the question remains whether the next iteration will learn from the mistakes of the past or merely serve as another vehicle for political posturing while taxpayers are left footing the bill for more broken promises.
