President Obama Plays Three Dimensional Appeasement - TYT

[WillyT]

Published on Jun 30, 2014

"A top pharmaceutical industry lawyer is set to be installed as the next head of the US Patent and Trademark Office.

The Obama Administration intends to nominate Philip Johnson, the head of intellectual property at Johnson & Johnson, to be the next director of the US Patent and Trademark Office. The selection is a setback for the tech sector and a seeming 180-degree turn on the patent issue for the Obama administration, which was pushing Congress to pass patent litigation reform just months ago.

The nomination was made public over the weekend, when Hal Wegner, a patent lawyer who authors an e-mail newsletter, said Johnson was the "anticipated nomination," citing "reliable sources." Wegner saw an "overwhelmingly positive reaction to this development among insiders," but for the tech sector, the choice of Johnson is about as bad a choice as could be imagined."* The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur breaks it down.

*Read more here from Joe Mullin / Ars Technica: http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/06/staunch-opponent-of-reform-tapped-to-head-us-patent-office/

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/06/staunch-opponent-of-reform-tapped-to-head-us-patent-office/

[RufusTFirefly]

1. By Jove, he's done it again!

[WillyT]

2. LOL !!!

[blkmusclmachine]

3. Keeping it in THE FAMILY.

Who are you, Obama???

[pa28]

4. It's not really appeasement if he wants these things.

He's a moderate Republican who appoints moderate Republicans to important positions.

[raindaddy]

5. Third Way Democrats........

are the new moderate Republicans...

[Enthusiast]

6. Expect a rerun starting in 2016.

[Divernan]

7. Obama folds on his own State of the Union speech! Disgusting!

Why? Can even the staunchest Obama supporter explain, let alone justify this action?

What was Big Pharma's "quid" for Obama's "pro quo"?

Johnson has been an outspoken opponent of patent reform efforts for years. In the run-up to the recent failed reform effort, Johnson was particularly vocal. He was active as the head of the Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform, often called 21C, a coalition of large pharmaceutical, chemical, and manufacturing concerns. Johnson has been chief patent counsel at Johnson & Johnson since 2000 and its top IP lawyer since 2009. Before working at J & J, Johnson was a partner at the law firm Woodcock Washburn for 19 years.

Large pharmaceutical companies, including Johnson & Johnson, have been the most vigorous opponents of patent reform. The 2007 reform effort sputtered out because of pharma opposition, and it was big pharma that killed the bill again this year.

It's a big turnaround for President Barack Obama on the issue. Obama mentioned patent trolls in his State of the Union speech in January, and his support was key to the bill advancing as far as it did.