The Biden administration of the United States of America has discovered a surprising corporate ally in one of its major policy efforts, it seems. This past week the Biden administration announced an effort to include an expansion of broadband internet infrastructure within the larger American Jobs Plan currently being put together. Stepping forward in support of the initiative is online retailer Amazon, which in a public statement encouraged President Biden to make "bold investments" in infrastructure.
To be clear, Amazon isn't solely endorsing the Biden administration's broadband expansion efforts, but the American Jobs Plan infrastructure effort as a whole. Amazon's statement encourages Democrats and Republicans to work together to make the American Jobs Plan happen. It also acknowledges that concessions will be made in order to pay for the American Jobs Plan, going so far as to encourage an increase in the corporate tax rate at the heart of the bill.
Amazon's decision to be vocally supportive of the infrastructure bill is surprising to many. The company has been a frequent target for rhetorical attacks by Democrats throughout the past several election cycles. That's due to Amazon frequently paying $0 in federal taxes, employing tax credits, deductions, and loopholes to pay any of its multi-billion-dollar income in taxes. Amazon is also in a war of rhetoric with the political left over the ongoing effort by certain Amazon workers trying to unionize. In other words, Amazon does not come across as politically aligned with Democrats in the US.
However, it's also easy to see why Amazon would support the Biden administration's infrastructure plan. The broadband expansion effort, in particular, would be attractive to the company. It could lead to more Americans than ever having access to the internet, as well as faster internet. All of Amazon's online services would naturally benefit from such an effort.
There is strong corporate opposition to the Biden administration's infrastructure efforts in other areas, however. Specifically, opposition from broadband service providers is increasingly loud. For example, AT&T has said current speeds of 50Mbps download and 10Mbps upload are good enough, while some US Senators are calling for a modern redefinition of broadband at 100/100 speeds baseline.
The Biden administration's infrastructure efforts are still in the works, of course. Many of the efforts being made could be changed prior to a final bill being passed through Congress, through compromise or capitulation. Exactly how Biden's broadband infrastructure efforts manifest remains to be clarified. Amazon clearly sees value in getting behind the effort regardless of the final details, but this likely isn't the last that will be said on the matter.
Source: Twitter, ArsTechnica