Play to win
Leaving aside who or what is to blame, politics in the US has become much more partisan. Truly winning an issue therefore requires framing it for both sides, thereby making it "non-partisan". In the case of net neutrality, there are several different approaches that can be taken.
As a free-market conservative, I would go after the cozy deals that the cable companies have with local governments & the states. There can be no question of federal authority here, as almost all content comes from out of state (except for CA, where only most does). These deals are clearly anti-competitive. If eliminating/substantially limiting these does not bring in significant competition, that becomes prima facie evidence of collusion.
But breaking up the ISP monopolies does not solve the problem--it just changes the abusers. If ISPs become weak, then content providers become strong. The major providers then muscle the ISPs for preferential treatment---or else. Or, they just gobble the profits. Note that we already have non-trivial verticals forming between the major ISPs and the major Hollywood studios, for instance.
A lot of people talk about internet service as a utility. That might be workable--but who insures that upgrades happen in a reasonable fashion? I don't like the idea of potholes in the local internet...
Biting the hand that feeds IT
