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U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich said he would push for media reform as chairman of a new House subcommittee focusing on Federal Communications Commission issues. Kucinich, D-Ohio, and a presidential candidate, said the new Domestic Policy Subcommittee of the House Government Reform Committee would focus on issues such as net neutrality and major telecommunications mergers, Radio Industry News said. Kucinich outlined the subcommittee and its responsibilities during a recent media reform conference in Memphis. The panel also would consider Fairness Doctrine, eliminated in 1987, which had required broadcasters to present controversial topics in a fair and honest manner. "We know the...

Senate bill would 'create most expansive intrusion on First Amendment rights ever'The Senate is considering legislation that would regulate grassroots communications, with penalties for critics of Congress. "In what sounds like a comedy sketch from Jon Stewart's Daily Show, but isn't, the U. S. Senate would impose criminal penalties, even jail time, on grassroots causes and citizens who criticize Congress," says Richard A. Viguerie, chairman of GrassrootsFreedom.com Section 220 of S. 1, the lobbying reform bill before the Senate, would require grassroots causes, even bloggers, who communicate to 500 or more members of the public on policy matters, to register...

Nancy Pelosi hasn’t been Speaker of the House for two weeks yet and there is already proposed legislation which would be the most significant encroachment ever into the affairs and ability of churches and other organizations to communicate. Under the guise of lobbying reform, Speaker Pelosi and others have proposed legislation greatly expanding the scope of lobbying regulation which would have a significant impact on churches, pastors, religious denominations, public interest organizations, civic organizations and other nonprofit groups. Even private individuals who voluntarily pay for media to distribute important messages to the general public on political matters would be impacted....

Congress to Send Critics to Jail, Says Richard Viguerie Congress Wants to Blame the Grassroots for Its Own Corruption MANASSAS, Va., Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement by Richard A. Viguerie, Chairman of GrassrootsFreedom.com, regarding legislation currently being considered by Congress to regulate grassroots communications: "In what sounds like a comedy sketch from Jon Stewart's Daily Show, but isn't, the U. S. Senate would impose criminal penalties, even jail time, on grassroots causes and citizens who criticize Congress. "Section 220 of S. 1, the lobbying reform bill currently before the Senate, would require grassroots causes, even bloggers,...

When you look at GOA's year-ending report, you can see that your grassroots efforts had a tremendous impact upon the legislative process last year. There is no doubt that you guys have made a difference. That's why GOA is so concerned about legislation currently pending on the Senate floor which would attempt to intimidate organizations like GOA that work with members and friends to pressure Congress to support the Second Amendment. The legislation (S. 1) would regulate "grassroots lobbying" by requiring groups like us to monitor and report the amount of money we spend to exercise our First Amendment rights...

Kucinich: Congress To Take On FCC January 15, 2007 Over the weekend, the National Conference for Media Reform was held in Memphis, TN, with a number of notable speakers on hand for the event. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) made an surprise appearance at the convention to announce that he would be heading up a new House subcommittee which will focus on issues surrounding the Federal Communications Commission. The Presidential candidate said that the committee would be holding "hearings to push media reform right at the center of Washington.” The Domestic Policy Subcommittee of the House Government Reform Committee was to...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Less than two weeks after Democrats took control of both houses of Congress, Accuracy in Media has exposed a plan by congressional liberals to use the federal government to silence conservative voices in the media. Reporting from a so-called National Conference on Media Reform, organized by "progressive" activists, AIM editor Cliff Kincaid has revealed, in an exclusive report now available on the AIM web site (http://www.aim.org), that liberals in the House and Senate intend to push legislation giving the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) the authority to monitor and restrict what conservatives in the media say...

Memphis, Tennessee: Media reform sounds like a good cause. But the gathering here of more than 2,000 activists turned out to be an effort to push the Democratic Party further to the left and get more "progressive" voices in the media, while proposing to use the power of the federal government to silence conservatives. In short, triumphant liberals now want to consolidate and expand their power. Several speakers, including Senator Bernie Sanders and Rep. Maurice Hinchey, declared that they think Congress should use a new federal “fairness doctrine” to target conservative speech on television and radio.But while conservatives are not...

Chicago, IL July 20, 2006 - Klocek said that he was suspended by DePaul administration and ultimately lost his position and teaching benefits after engaging in an out-of-class argument with pro-Palestinian students at a student activities fair on campus. But after engaging in heated discussion with two Muslim student groups at a Student Involvement Fair on DePaul’s campus, the student groups Students for Justice in Palestine (SPJ) and United Muslims Moving Ahead (UMMA) went to the administration to call for Klocek’s firing. Both groups were backed by CAIR (Council on American Islamic Relations) Chicago, and other local Muslim advocate groups,...

Complaint accusing anti-affirmative action group of campaign finance violations dismissed 6/6/2005, 6:51 p.m. ET By BREE FOWLER The Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — The Secretary of State on Monday dismissed a complaint by a pro-affirmative action group that accused the group behind an anti-affirmative action ballot initiative of money laundering and other campaign finance violations. The Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration & Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality by Any Means Necessary (BAMN) claimed in the complaint that the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative and California affirmative action opponent Ward Connerly unlawfully refused to disclose who has donated most of...

Summary: A bombshell revelation by a former officer of the Pew Charitable Trusts revealed the charity giant’s surreptitious but successful effort to manipulate the Congress into passing the McCain-Feingold Law. Here’s how they did it. The March 12, 2004 seminar panel at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication had a very dull title: “Philanthropy and Public Policy: Foundation Strategies for Social Change.” But the remarks by Sean Treglia were incendiary. Treglia, a former vice president of the Pew Charitable Trusts, was supposed to be addressing a roomful of reporters attending an academic seminar on how the news...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Press Office 202-863-8614 WASHINGTON – The RNC today submitted comments to the Federal Election Commission regarding the Commission's Notice Of Proposed Rulemaking on Internet Communications."The RNC strongly supports a view of the Internet as an open public square where political ideas may be exchanged freely, without burdensome federal oversight or regulation that potentially discourages the use of the Internet in the political arena," RNC Chief Counsel Tom Josefiak said.Among the RNC's suggestions is that many, if not all, bloggers should be included under the FEC's media exemption rules.To view a complete copy of the RNC's comments...

WASHINGTON — The Federal Election Commission is considering whether to require political bloggers to disclose whether they are receiving funds from a political campaign, the latest step in a larger debate over whether political activity on the Internet should be regulated by the government. Friday is the deadline set for the FEC to receive public comments on a number of proposed regulations dealing with Internet activities. The commission will hold hearings on June 28-29 in Washington, D.C., before deciding on final action. One of those new rules, the disclosure requirement, has many bloggers bristling, accusing the government of unfairly targeting...

Some members of the Congressional Black Caucus are teaming up with conservative Republicans to push for the first major changes in the 2002 campaign-finance reform bill, most admitting that they made a mistake in voting for the bill three years ago. "If I had the chance to vote again, I wouldn't vote the way I voted," said Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, New York Democrat, who along with most of the CBC supported the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act after they were promised by Democratic leaders that the bill would not harm their constituents or funding bases in order to garner their...

GOVERNMENT AFTER POLITICAL SITES? This came up a few months ago, and now it's back. Ever since The Poodle experienced a crushing defeat in the general election last November, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) has been kicking around the idea of regulating political blogs. That's right...political blogs...they could probably say the Nuze qualifies. How on Earth could they do such a thing? This is an offshoot of the anti-free speech "campaign finance reform." Their logic goes that if a political blog endorses a candidate, then it's considered political advertising. Since the government is now, thanks to our Supreme Court, firmly...

<p>Web loggers, who pride themselves on freewheeling political activism, might face new federal rules on candidate endorsements, online fundraising and political ads, though bloggers who don't take money from political groups would not be affected.</p> <p>Draft rules from the Federal Election Commission, which enforces campaign finance laws, would require that paid political advertisements on the Internet declare who funded the ad, as television spots do.</p>

The Assembly passed legislation Thursday to limit the sums that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and other state politicians can raise for ballot-measure committees they control. AB 709, by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk, D-Davis, would not take effect unless it passes the Senate, is signed by the governor and is approved by state voters. The Assembly vote was 43-29, with Republicans dissenting. The measure limits a person from making contributions exceeding $5,600 during the entire period that a state officeholder or candidate for state office controls the ballot-measure committee. The Fair Political Practices Commission imposed a $22,300-per-donor limit in June 2004, ruling that...

Six weeks before the 2004 election, The New York Times ran a puff-piece profile of George Soros that, even by Times standards, was jaw-dropping. For the privilege of sharing Dover sole at the great man’s Southampton estate, Katharine Seeyle brought the following news to her readers: George Soros, the billionaire philanthropist who has given $18 million to Democratic advocacy groups to defeat President Bush, is preparing to spend millions more because he fears that Senator John Kerry might lose... “America has gone off the rails,” he lamented in the interview over a lunch of Dover sole at his home in...

Contra Costa supervisors may soon ask oil refiners, unions and developers to promise to forgo mudslinging and lies in political mailers. The county's standing Internal Operations Committee on Monday approved a voluntary campaign pledge for independent committees that spend money on behalf of candidates in local races. The measure would carry no legal weight, but it could pressure big contributors into cleaning up increasingly nasty campaigns, said Supervisor Mark DeSaulnier of Concord, a committee member who proposed the pledge. "When the hit pieces come out, at least the press and public will see who agreed not to do dishonest politics...

A flurry of recent activity surrounding a federal court challenge to Vermont’s campaign finance laws has set up a strong possibility that the Supreme Court could reconsider its 30-year-old landmark decision Buckley v. Valeo, which prohibited expenditure limits on federal campaigns. Last week, plaintiffs challenging Vermont’s limits on the amount campaigns can spend in state races appealed their case to the high court — and campaign finance experts believe there is a good chance the Supreme Court will decide to hear it. If the court agrees to grant cert, as taking up the case is known, much of the legal...

THE WASHINGTON TIMES Rep. Albert R. Wynn, a Maryland Democrat dissatisfied with the way the 2002 campaign-finance law affected black voter turnout, is working with conservatives to reopen the hard-money playing field to political parties. The 527 Fairness Act — drafted by Mr. Wynn and Rep. Mike Pence, Indiana Republican and chairman of the Republican Study Committee — will be considered this week in a hearing of the House Administration Committee. "This bill restores the role of the parties, and the reason it is important is because the federal parties are more transparent, they're more accountable, more diverse and they...

The biggest loophole in the laws regulating big-money campaign donations is the runaway spending by unregulated shadow-party advocacy groups. The $400 million that poured through these thinly disguised party operations - called "527 committees" after a section of the tax code - included funds for the campaign by the supposedly independent Swift Boat Veterans for Truth against Senator John Kerry, and the checkbook politicking of George Soros, who spent $24 million trying to defeat President Bush. The loophole obviously needs plugging, but the going is getting rough in both the House and Senate. Forum: Today's Editorials In the Senate, a...

The news media's treatment of foundation involvement in public policy may have changed forever on March 17. That was the day the New York Post published "Buying 'Reform': Media Missed Millionaires' Scam," an account by one of its columnists, Ryan Sager, of the massive spending by several mainstream foundations to secure passage of the 2002 overhaul of campaign-finance laws and to keep the issue alive. Mr. Sager told his readers he had discovered "an immense scam perpetrated on the American people by a cadre of left-wing foundations and disguised as a 'mass movement.'" Foundations like Ford, Open Society, Carnegie, Joyce,...

An attempt by Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Russell Feingold (D-WI) to extend federal campaign finance regulation to independent political groups has backfired in the Senate Rules Committee, which amended the 527 Reform Act of 2005 (S. 271), to repeal portions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA). The vastly altered version of S. 271 passed by the committee on April 27 is a crazy quilt of amendments that restricts independent groups while lifting limits on business groups and PACs run by members of Congress. An additional amendment exempts groups that limit their activities to voter mobilization if...

The news media's treatment of foundation involvement in public policy may have changed forever on March 17. That was the day the New York Post published "Buying 'Reform': Media Missed Millionaires' Scam," an account by one of its columnists, Ryan Sager, of the massive spending by several mainstream foundations to secure passage of the 2002 overhaul of campaign-finance laws and to keep the issue alive. Mr. Sager told his readers he had discovered "an immense scam perpetrated on the American people by a cadre of left-wing foundations and disguised as a 'mass movement.'" Foundations like Ford, Open Society, Carnegie, Joyce,...

Government Plans Crackdown On Bloggers    I would take great delight in unseating each and every one of their sorry asses.  A fairly extensive FR thread detailing the threat to political Blogs is here.      Blogs Bristle at FEC's Internet Political Speech Proposal (this affects you) -- "You can be assured that none of us in the blogosphere will fail to recognize those who do not act to defend our rights to free and unfettered political speech, and regardless of political party, none of us will rest until those voices of repression are stripped of office by the...

Dear Fellow FReepers,Please join in the call for Senator Kerry to release the videotape of his July 8 "Hate Fest" at Radio City Music Hall by signing this petition.You can view and sign the petition by clicking here.Further, you can urge your friends and family to sign the petition by clicking here.  Please ask everyone you know to sign.  When we have collected enough signatures, we will mail hardcopies to the Kerry Campaign, the Bush Campaign, and the Media.The petition reads as follows: To:  Senator John F. KerrySenator Kerry, release the videotape of your July 8, 2004 fundraiser at Radio...

Proposal to Have U.N. Monitor Elections Ends in Partisan Clash By Dan Morgan House Republicans view a recent move by 11 Democrats to have United Nations observers monitor U.S. elections as a politically motivated stunt, and last week they moved to nip the idea in the bud. But after an unusually rancorous skirmish that brought proceedings on the House floor to a standstill late Thursday, the issue may have received more publicity than even Democrats hoped for. It pitted Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), author of an amendment to the 2005 foreign aid bill aimed at blocking U.N. involvement in U.S....

I have created a public register of "bump lists" here on Free Republic. I define a bump list as a name listed in the "To" field used to index articles. Free Republic Bump List Register

HOUSE MEMBERS WILL DISCUSS REQUEST TO UNITED NATIONS TO MONITOR ELECTION Rep. Johnson Spearheads Effort to Invite International Body Washington, D.C. - The request by several Members of Congress to the United Nations to send observers to monitor the upcoming Presidential election has sparked interest around the globe. At this juncture a dozen House Members have signed the letter to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Thursday morning those Members who have signed the U.N. letter will hold a news conference on Capitol Hill to discuss the ramifications of their request. ”We are hoping that our action will alleviate the nation from...

<p>WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court rose for its recess only a few weeks ago -- but the justices are probably already back in study hall. With no retirements embroiling the country in a nasty debate, the most stable Court in history will return to town next month and hold an extraordinary four hours of oral argument in a single case -- the challenge by Sen. Mitch McConnell and others to the constitutionality of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act, better known as McCain-Feingold.</p>

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that the government can ban campaign contributions from advocacy groups, a warm-up decision to the showdown over the broader new campaign finance law. Justices rejected a constitutional challenge to the 32-year-old federal donation ban, which applies to groups with a point of view on issues such as gun rights and abortion. The case, involving a North Carolina anti-abortion organization, was a prelude to the court's handling of the 2002 campaign finance law. By a vote of 7-2, the court said the right to free speech does not trump Congress' goal of limiting the corrosive effects...

Court Restores Campaign-Funding Limits i>By SHARON THEIMER, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - A federal court Monday temporarily restored limits on political donations and advertising that it had struck down as unconstitutional, allowing 2004 candidates to operate under the law passed by Congress last year until the Supreme Court settles the matter. The Justice Department (news - web sites) and the law's sponsors had asked the three-judge panel handling the case to stay its entire May 2 ruling while the Supreme Court considers appeals. Interest groups, including the AFL-CIO and the National Rifle Association, had asked the lower court to block...

Democrats file complaint about ads against Daschle By Denise Ross, Journal Staff Writer WASHINGTON — Television ads that take Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D., to task for opposing President Bush's tax-cut package break the new federal campaign-finance laws, Democratic leaders believe. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee filed a formal complaint against ad sponsor Club for Growth with the Federal Election Commission this week. The DSCC contends that Club for Growth uses unrestricted soft money to campaign against an individual candidate, something a new federal law says can be done only with limited hard money. "There can be no doubt that the...

<p>WASHINGTON The Republican National Committee asked a federal court Monday to keep in effect a decision on the new campaign finance law that lets the national party get involved in state and local elections this year. The RNC asked a three-judge panel handling challenges to the law to reject requests by others that it stay that section of its May 2 decision.</p>

<p>The National Rifle Association yesterday asked the Supreme Court to block part of the recent lower court ruling that rewrote the rules guiding outside interest groups running issue ads.</p> <p>The NRA's request could give the Supreme Court its first chance to rule on the special court's decision May 2 that invalidated or rewrote much of the campaign finance regulations that President Bush signed into law last year. The three-judge panel, created specifically to hear the case, ruled that political parties could not raise or spend "soft money," and changed the rules under which interest groups may run broadcast advertisements.</p>

A special three-member panel of federal judges ruled last week that major elements of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law violated the1st Amendment right of free speech.Specifically, the panel said Congress could not prohibit soft money contributions to political parties or election-time advertisements by interest groups that mention a federal candidate.The panel was split and wrote its own complicated law on both these matters, however. Soft money, it said, cannot be used for party-paid advertisements promoting or attacking a specific candidate, nor can advertisements paid for by interest groups support or attack a specific candidate even implicitly.The case will now go...

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Justice Department has joined sponsors of the new campaign finance law in asking a federal court to suspend its ruling that struck down some of the law's restrictions.</p> <p>Government attorneys defending the law asked the court for a stay Friday. The Justice Department, defending the law on behalf of it and the Federal Election Commission, sought the stay in consultation with the FEC.</p>

Sometimes reform is illegal HIGHLANDS, N.C., May 9 (UPI) -- The special three-judge trial court considering the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act ruled last week. By varying votes of 3-0 and 2-1 it determined that substantial portions of BCRA, sometimes known by the names of its two chief sponsors, Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Russell Feingold, D-Wis., violate the U.S. Constitution. When this law was passed, much of the mainstream media hailed it as a "Good Thing for America." The trial court has now ruled that it is largely an affront to the Constitution. The media did not mention, at the...

<p>The eye-glazing ruling Friday that overturned key parts of a major campaign-finance law tells us something is inherently wrong with a federal law that would give incumbents a virtually unbeatable advantage, would reduce voter turnout, would diminish the role of political parties whose purposes are clearly stated and favor special-interest groups whose real purposes are often hidden — even as it tramples our fundamental right to free political expression.</p>

ELECTIONS 2004 SPECIAL REPORT The Presidential Sweepstakes The race to challenge President Bush is on as Democrats begin lining up. Get full candidate profiles here. By Jim VandeHei and Dan Balz Washington Post Staff Writers Sunday, May 4, 2003; Page A04 If the new federal court ruling on campaign finance laws stands, corporations, union leaders and wealthy Americans will pour millions of dollars back into a political system that could look and operate much as it did before Congress "reformed" it with great fanfare a year ago, according to election law experts and political operatives from both parties. A special...

May 3, 2003 Half-Right on McCain-Feingold A three-judge federal court in Washington issued a split decision yesterday in a lawsuit challenging McCain-Feingold, the landmark law aimed at reducing the corrupting role money plays in politics. The decision upheld important parts of the law but struck down other sections that Congress rightly considered critical to reforming the electoral process, and that fully conform to the Constitution. The Supreme Court should quickly review the case and restore the law in its entirety. The panel that decided yesterday's case did not distinguish itself. The package it produced was so big, so ungainly and...

<p>A federal panel yesterday struck down or rewrote most of the campaign finance reform law that Congress passed and President Bush signed into law last year.</p> <p>The three-judge panel overturned restrictions on how and when outside interest groups may run campaign advertisements against federal candidates but wrote new rules that some groups said are just as onerous. The court also overturned the part of the law that prohibits national political parties from raising so-called "soft money," though it upheld the law's ban on using the money to run television advertisements.</p>

reported 15:38 bloomberg news

We have no idea how the three-judge panel that’s reviewing the McCain-Feingold campaign law will rule. But we do know that a failure quickly to break the legal logjam that’s gripping that panel augurs dire consequences for the 2004 elections. The undue delay may have already doomed chances for the U.S. Supreme Court to consider last year’s reform legislation before Congress recesses for the summer. The longer it takes for the lower court to render its verdict, the harder it is going to be to have clear rules firmly in place next year when the nation next needs to elect...

<p>WASHINGTON — Plaintiffs in the legal challenge to last year's campaign finance reform law say that it may be too late for the U.S. Supreme Court to tackle the case this term, but a lower court's ruling — expected any day — could stay a soft money ban for now.</p>

McCain: GOP Misrepresents Campaign Law By SHARON THEIMER The Associated Press Monday, February 24, 2003; 3:40 PM Republican Sen. John McCain on Monday accused his party of misleading GOP activists about the nation's new campaign finance law and employing "scorched earth" scare tactics to make the rules look more restrictive than they are. McCain sent a letter to Republican National Committee Chairman Marc Racicot accusing Republican lawyers of spreading "falsehoods" about several aspects of the law during recent briefings for party members.

<p>WASHINGTON — Republican Sen. John McCain on Monday accused his party of misleading GOP activists about the nation's new campaign finance law and employing "scorched earth" scare tactics to make the rules look more restrictive than they are.</p> <p>McCain sent a letter to Republican National Committee Chairman Marc Racicot accusing Republican lawyers of spreading "falsehoods" about several aspects of the law during recent briefings for party members.</p>

[AD-MUNCHED] Jacob Sullum'sSyndicated Column Blindman's Rule (2/21) Powell Play (2/14) Jury Rigging (2/7) Earlier Columns February 21, 2003 Blindman's Rule Congress discovers the perils of legislating in the dark. By Jacob Sullum The New York Times reports that Robert Matsui was "surprised by [the] fine print" in the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law. Matsui, the California representative who heads the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, confesses, "I didn't realize what all was in it." Well, how could he have known? It's a complicated piece of legislation. You didn't expect him to actually read the bill prior to voting for it, did...

ASHINGTON, Feb. 18 ? It began as a modest idea: a series of small seminars by Democratic Party lawyers for elected officials, political consultants and Congressional aides on the intricacies of the new McCain-Feingold campaign finance law. Party officials reserved a dining room at the Democratic Club on Capitol Hill and sent out invitations across Washington.By the end of last week, that low-key undertaking had drawn more than 400 people over the course of a month, a turnout that has astonished its organizers. The crowd came first for a three-hour introductory course on a statute that is upending the...