Cannon’s policy intersections with Safavian clients

Cannon fought a House bill seeking to ban on-line gambling, saying it could open the door to gambling in Utah. Safavian had lobbied for numerous gambling interests, including the Interactive Gaming Council. From 2001-2003, Cannon received more than $ 33,000 from groups and lobbyists opposing the gambling legislation.

Cannon went to bat for the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians during a House Government Reform Committee hearing in 2002 when the band was having a dispute with a neighboring tribe. The Viejas band was a client of Janus-Meritt and contributed $ 5,000 to the congressman.

Cannon sponsored an Internet file sharing bill in 2002, introduced shortly after Napster hired Janus-Merritt to lobby on the issue. Napster executives contributed $ 2,750 to Cannon’s campaigns.

Cannon was a leading opponent of a major satellite television merger between EchoStar Communications and DirecTV. Janus-Merritt lobbied on behalf of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., which opposed the merger and acquired DirecTV when the FCC blocked the EchoStar deal. Cannon received thousand from opponents of the EchoStar.

Cannon issued a press release praising Covad Communications for lowering its rate for Internet access. Covad was a client of Janus-Meritt. Covad and its executives have contributed more than $ 5,200 to Cannon.

Cannon opposed a telecommunications reform bill at a time when several former Safavian clients were small telecom companies opposing the legislation.