Dan Coats

In the following viewpoint, Dan Coats, a senator from Indiana, testifies before the U.S. House Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Trade, and Consumer Protection about the need for a law that would require purveyors of Internet pornography to bar minors from access to their websites. Coats argues that the bill he favors, known as the Child Online Protection Act, is constitutional because it regulates only obscene material that is commercially available on the Internet and is harmful to minors. In addition, Coats refutes the claim that Internet porn laws are unenforceable by pointing out that current technology ensures that Internet porn sites can verify the age of their users. The bill was signed into law by Bill Clinton in October 1998, but was immediately challenged in court. An injunction has prevented the bill from...