Institute For Free Speech
Default Article

Political Spending: Civic Engagement is Not a Threat to Democracy
January 1, 2018  •  By IFS Staff  •    •  

The First Amendment guarantees every American freedom of speech. That freedom includes the right to spend money on speech. Without money, a political group cannot buy ads, print fliers, organize protests, or hire staff. Short of shouting one’s opinions on a street corner, it takes money to spread a message. Recognizing this relationship, the Supreme Court has long prohibited the…

Are corporations spending “unprecedented sums?” Setting the record straight

 Default Article
July 9, 2012   •  By Brad Smith   •  

Roll Call’s Eliza Newlin Carney is on a mission. Today Carney takes on competing claims about the role of corporations in the 2008 campaign. ...

Are corporate campaign contributions good or bad for shareholders?

 Default Article
June 21, 2012   •  By Jason Farrell   •  

The argument that corporate spending on political campaigns is making companies rich has been screamed ad infinitum by the media and pro-regulation groups like ...

SEC Rulemaking Should Not be a Popularity Contest

 Default Article
May 25, 2012   •  By Allen Dickerson   •  ,

Today, two Ivy League law professors touted the groundswell of support for an SEC petition that would require corporations to disclose otherwise-immaterial political spending ...

Outside Spending and Incumbency in Indiana

 Default Article
May 9, 2012   •  By Jason Farrell   •  

Fox News reported that Senator Dick Lugar R-IN, lost his renomination bid after 35 years in office. Lugar is expected to be one of ...

Does Less Income Mean Less Representation?
May 1, 2012   •  By Matt Nese   •  , ,

Do politicians better represent the interests of their higher income constituents? Perhaps because of the increasing costs of campaigns, or the greater participation of high ...

The (Non-)Effects of Campaign Finance Spending Bans on Macro Political Outcomes: Evidence From the States
February 20, 2012   •  By Matt Nese   •  , ,

This paper seeks to understand the effect of campaign finance laws on electoral and policy outcomes. Spurred by the recent Supreme Court decision, Citizens United ...

Campaign Spending, Diminishing Marginal Returns, and Campaign Finance Restrictions in Judicial Elections

 Default Article
October 1, 2011   •  By IFS Staff   •  , , ,

Abstract: For years, scholars of elections have argued about whether campaign finance limitations adversely affect electoral competition. In this article, we examine how the ...

Challenging the presumptions of America’s Fiscal Crisis: Follow the Money

 Default Article
September 28, 2011   •  By Jason Farrell   •  ,

Americans for Campaign Reform, a reform advocacy group chaired by former US Senators Bill Bradley, Bob Kerrey, Warren Rudman and Alan Simpson (of the ...

The Myth of the Level Playing Field: Knowledge, Affect, and Repitition in Public Debate
March 1, 2010   •  By IFS staff   •  ,

Justice Holmes famously asserted that “the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the ...

Campaign Fund-raising and Spending for Deterrence and Savings
April 1, 2009   •  By IFS staff   •  , ,

I present a model of fund-raising in repeated elections where funds are raised to deter the entry of strong challengers, and to increase the probability ...

Load more

Get the Latest Updates

© 2024 Institute for Free Speech | 1150 Connecticut Avenue, NW | Suite 801 | Washington, DC 20036 | 202-301-3300

The word mark Institute for Free Speech® and its logo of a stylized lantern with a flame are federally registered service marks and are owned by the Institute for Free Speech.