Not most of the senators in the room.

Washington, D.C. - Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today questioned the Senate Judiciary Committee's direction on the proposed Microsoft antitrust case settlement.

"If Sen. Orrin Hatch's (R-Utah) opening statement is illustrative of where the committee is headed, consumers and taxpayers are in trouble," CAGW President Tom Schatz said.  The senator used the hearing to read a letter to the committee from James Barksdale, billionaire CEO of Netscape and the chief instigator of the Microsoft antitrust litigation.  

"The purpose of the Judiciary Committee hearing today was to determine whether the proposed settlement between the Department of Justice, nine states, and Microsoft is in the public interest," Schatz added.  "With the exception of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kent.), the panel appears more interested in how the settlement affects Microsoft's competitors."

"Other than Sen. McConnell, who actually cited public opinion in opposition to continuance of the case, the Judiciary Committee members seem deeply enamored with the settlement's opponents," Schatz also said.  "They did not question the opponents' motives in opposing the settlement, nor did they point out that the remaining states' alternative remedy was just a wish-list of Microsoft's competitors."

The ten parties still pushing the suit are California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Utah, and West Virginia.  The other original parties to the case, including nine other states and the U.S. Department of Justice, have settled.

"Sen. Hatch and his colleagues do not appear concerned by the remaining states' tactics in prolonging this litigation at taxpayer expense," Schatz concluded.  "The senators also ignored the effect of these continued expenditures of time and resources when states are facing serious financial pressures and threats of terrorism." 

Taxpayers have already forked over more than $35 million on this case at the state and local level.  The remaining nine states and the District of Columbia have an average of $1.3 billion in budget deficits.  California alone is in the red by $9.5 billion, West Virginia is at $3 million, and Minnesota has ordered 10 percent budget cuts.

CAGW is the nation's largest taxpayer advocacy group with over one million members and supporters nationwide.  It is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, mismanagement and abuse in government.