Sprint Nextel is picking a fight with the country’s largest phone companies over the price it pays for access to their fastest networks.

The industry skirmish has swelled into a political battle that will find an audience in front of members of Congress today. Sprint, of Reston, along with some competitors, says it has hundreds of millions of dollars riding on an upcoming Federal Communications Commission decision, which hinges on the unpredictable swing vote of Republican Commissioner Robert M. McDowell.

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