Citizens United: Affirming Government Can’t Ban Speech

January 1, 2018   •  By IFS Staff   •  ,

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission is a 2010 Supreme Court decision that restored some of the First Amendment rights of corporations and unions ...

Brookings Report Examines How Parties Have Weakened in Relation to Independent Groups

December 20, 2017   •  By Joe Albanese   •  , ,

Earlier this month, Jonathan Rauch – a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution – and Raymond J. La Raja – an ...

Arizona State Senator Needs a Dose of Reality on the Negative Side Effects of Banning Marijuana Billboard Messages

December 18, 2017   •  By Alex Cordell   •  ,

Over 20 years ago, Arizona residents legalized the sale of marijuana for medical uses, but just last year, they narrowly vetoed a proposition that ...

Censorship and Privacy: Lessons from Alabama

December 14, 2017   •  By Alex Baiocco   •  ,

If an elected official views a political advertisement as misleading, or even false, should that politician have the power to prevent citizens from viewing ...

Out-of-State Spending Was a Tool for Local Change in Alabama

December 13, 2017   •  By Joe Albanese   •  , ,

The Alabama special election for U.S. Senate concluded Tuesday with a win for Democrat Doug Jones. Given the deep-red electoral history of the state, ...

Is Patagonia Destroying Democracy?

December 12, 2017   •  By Alex Baiocco   •  , ,

Holiday shoppers visiting the online home of outdoor apparel and equipment retailer Patagonia, Inc. are encountering an overtly political message: “The President Stole Your ...

Political Contributions are Speech: Jeff Flake Edition

December 7, 2017   •  By Scott Blackburn   •  , ,

Arizona Republican Senator Jeff Flake recently made a $100 contribution to Alabama’s Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, Doug Jones. Along with the donation, Flake ...

No, “Big Donors” Aren’t the Only Ones Who Want Tax Reform

December 6, 2017   •  By Joe Albanese   •  , ,

A perennial tactic in political debates is to oppose legislation not just in terms of ideology or policy soundness, but also to attribute the ...

Brace Yourself for the Tax Ads, You Just Might Learn Something

December 5, 2017   •  By Alex Cordell   •  , ,

As the end of the year approaches, legislation that amends portions of the federal tax code is moving quickly through Congress. Unsurprisingly, over the ...

Let’s Talk Turkey: Comparing 2016 Election and Thanksgiving Spending

December 4, 2017   •  By Alex Cordell   •  ,

During the time-honored tradition of contentious political discussions at the Thanksgiving dinner table, one of your relatives may have mentioned the amount of money ...

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