In the News
PR Newswire: Supreme Court Must Step in to Protect Americans’ Freedom of Speech
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — The Center for Competitive Politics (CCP) recently filed an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court to protect the free-speech rights of Edmund Corsi — an ordinary Ohio citizen whom state officials have ruled should have registered with the State before blogging and printing fliers about political issues in his community. An internal conference of the justices is scheduled for September 30 to review Corsi’s case.“This matter could have been settled quickly if the Ohio Elections Commission had simply followed Supreme Court precedent,” CCP President David Keating said. “But it chose to defy it, which gave us no choice but to take this fight to the nation’s highest court. I think our Founding Fathers would be appalled if the justices fail to right this wrong.”Corsi started the Geauga Constitutional Council, a pseudonym for his blogging on local and national political issues and, occasionally, candidates. Three years ago, he authored a pamphlet that praised certain officeholders, some of whom were candidates for re-election, and denounced others. He distributed the pamphlet at the county fair.
The Hill: Disclosure’s unintended consequences
By Eric WangAnd how might Ms. Paz’s tormenters have located her? While a simple Google search may not suffice, one need not resort to expensive database services or NSA surveillance. Rather, the Federal Election Commission’s campaign finance disclosure website reveals individuals’ addresses, occupations, and employers within seconds, including information for Paz, who gave $2,000 to Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign.This would certainly not be the first time FEC data has been misused in such manner. In 2007, Gigi Brienza recounted in harrowing detail in the Washington Post how she was threatened by animal rights extremists. She was not targeted for donating to the John Edwards and Ralph Nader presidential campaigns; rather, the FBI determined that it was because FEC reports listed her employer as Bristol-Myers Squibb, which conducts animal testing.
Wyoming Liberty: WyLiberty Arguments Prevail in Important Free Speech Case
By Steve Klein“All too often, campaign finance laws are used as tools of political manipulation to damage and harass innocent citizens.” said Barr. “We are pleased that Mr. DeLay will be formally recognized as innocent and hope this precedent will help stop similar campaigns in the future. Today’s ruling affirms the simple truth that the Constitution does not allow states to invent political crimes to be levied against political opponents.”
CNBC: Top court to rule on political spending limits
By Mark Koba“It’s worth noting that there is virtually no evidence that contribution limits per race have any effect on corruption or its appearance,” said David Primo, a professor of political science at the University of Rochester who has researched the issue.“I know people would disagree, but It’s hard to imagine that limits on aggregate contributions would have any effect,” he said.
Daily Caller: Dick Durbin calls in Trayvon Martin’s mother for anti-ALEC testimony
By Patrick HowleyATT, which supports ALEC for its “state legislation aimed at achieving and maintaining a favorable business climate,” shot back with a sharply worded letter to Durbin from senior vice president James Cicconi saying that it’s “inescapable that any response to your request will be used by those interests whose purpose is to pressure corporations to de-fund organizations and political speech with which they disagree.”“’Because members of the Senate want to know’ is simply not a valid reason for the government invading an organization’s privacy or the privacy of its supporters,” the Center for Competitive Politics, a targeted Virginia-based nonprofit conservative think tank, said in a response to Durbin. “You file financial reports and campaign finance reports because you are a public servant. Citizens do not have to report on their beliefs and activities to the government. The two are not comparable.”
CCP
Appeals Court Acquits Tom DeLay
By David KeatingThe First Amendment protects Americans from being imprisoned by their government for political activity. Here, overzealous prosecutors tried to put Tom DeLay in jail because he solicited entirely legal campaign contributions. The state of Texas called this money laundering, but the Court of Appeals saw through their rhetoric and the lamentable complexity of campaign finance regulation, and ordered an acquittal. In doing so, it restored some clarity to the law and some restraint on political prosecutions.
Good Intentions not Enough at Latest IRS Scandal Hearing
By Matt McIntyreThe Acting Commissioner’s apparent good intentions have been on display every time he’s testified before Congress, but his investigation hasn’t followed through with the answers the public needs and is demanding. The IRS continues to employ people with major roles in the targeting scandal, and may in fact be continuing the targeting itself. Contrary to Mr. Werfel’s claims, the IRS has not been “moving aggressively” with “robust” reforms. It’s been slow and cautious. That may be the right approach for tax audits, but the evenhanded defense of constitutional rights demands more (especially rights as important to democracy as free speech, assembly, and petition).If anything, the actions of the IRS continue to prove that despite the Acting Commissioner’s good intentions, the Agency should never have had and will never have any business policing political speech.
Independent Groups
CPI: ‘Stand with Rand PAC’ takes a stand
By Dave LevinthalIn a letter to the Federal Election Commission, the independent political committee today cheekily dismissed regulators’ assertion that it can’t use the name of Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., in its title unless the candidate himself formally authorizes it.“This Committee … is unaware that the late Ayn Rand, noted philosopher and author and of Atlas Shrugged, is seeking election to federal office,” Stand with Rand PAC wrote.Striking a more serious tone, the committee also accused the FEC of “broad overreach.” It argued that the agency “must allow the maximum of first amendment freedom of expression in political campaigns commensurate with Congress’ regulatory authority.”
Disclosure
Washington Post: Romney fundraising organization: ‘C.Moore Bacon’ is real deal
By Emily HeilBut the Romney money folks — who didn’t immediately return our initial calls — now assure us that he is, in fact, both real and a U.S. citizen. The suspicious-sounding name — and the foreign address — had initially raised their eyebrows, too. But they were able to verify his information, and they plan to soon inform the FEC that all is well with accepting Bacon’s bacon.
Candidates, Politicians, Campaigns, and Parties
NY Times: Donors’ Funds Sidestep Law, Aiding Christie
By Nicholas ConfessoreNot a single check was written to Mr. Christie’s campaign. Indeed, some of those in attendance were legally prohibited from doing so, because they had sizable contracts with state agencies and were therefore barred by New Jersey law from making large contributions to the governor.Instead, the donors wrote checks for as much as $100,000 to the Republican Governors Association, an organization Mr. Christie helps lead that has collected $1.65 million from New Jersey donors during the first six months of the year.
State and Local
New Jersey –– The Star-Ledger: Former Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano hit with election law violations tied to federal sting
By Ted ShermanHOBOKEN — Four years after his arrest in a massive federal corruption sting, former Hoboken Mayor Peter J. Cammarano was charged today with major campaign finance violations — including his acceptance of $25,000 in cash bribes.
Ohio –– AP: Political contributions questioned from Navy Vets charity scam
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio attorney general’s multi-state case against a man accused of fraud after collecting as much as $100 million in the name of Navy veterans doesn’t address the man’s donations to a who’s who of mostly Republican politicians, including the attorney general himself.The political donations tied to the man who calls himself Bobby Thompson, and to the United States Navy Veterans Association, his Tampa-based charity, are “kind of a sidebar to the scam,” Attorney General Mike DeWine said. Recipients included George W. Bush, Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann and other high-profile politicians.
