From the Washington Post’s Wyden: SOPA win was a `grassroots victory for the history books’ by columnist Greg Sargent:
In a huge victory for grassroots online organizing, the Senate Dem leadership announced this morning that it was indefinitely postponing votes on the PIPA bill — the companion to SOPA — in the wake of massive protests.
The next question: Does the Senate Dem leadership really understand that its approach was a major threat to what makes the Internet a democratic force and that it needed a complete overhaul?
I just got off the phone with Senator Ron Wyden, the primary driver of opposition to the bill within the Senate, and he confirmed that the leadership grasps the depth of the problems with its approach, and is ready to address them head on.
“I talked to Senator Schumer last night, and I believe it’s going to be a new day in the Senate,†Wyden said. “What we’ve seen over the last few weeks from the grassroots is a time for the history books.†The win is a triumph over very powerful special interests, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, major content providers, and big unions, who had supported the bills.
And from CBS’ SOPA is dead, Smith pulls bill:
In the House, [Texas Rep. Lamar] Smith said he had “heard from the critics” and resolved that it was “clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products.” Smith had planned on holding further committee votes on his bill next month.