Posted on 10/29/2010 9:14:52 PM PDT by Rational Thought
.Yesterday, Lisa Murkowski’s hired guns threatened radio host Dan Fagan, and more importantly, the station that airs Fagan’s show, with legal action for allegedly illegal “electioneering.” The station, unlike Murkowski, who is flush with millions of dollars from vested corporate interests, does not have a budget for a legal defense. So it did what any small market station would do when threatened by Beltway lawyers charging $500 to $1000 an hour – they pulled Dan Fagan off the air.
Does all this sound heavy handed? It is. It is an interference with Dan Fagan’s constitutional right to free speech. It is also a shocking indictment against Lisa Murkowski. How low will she go to hold onto power? First, she gets the Division of Elections to change its write-in process – a process that Judge Pfiffner correctly determined had been in place without change for 50 years. She is accepting financial support from federal contractors, an act that is highly questionable and now pending before the FEC. And today, she played her last card. She made it clear that if you disagree with her and encourage others to exercise their civic rights, she’ll take you off the air.
The concept of “electioneering” involves several issues, but typically refers to campaigning at the polls, which is appropriately banned. Under federal law, it can also mean paying for advertising on broadcast media during a federal election cycle, and it requires disclosures if done by groups and corporations. Fagan used satire to mock Murkowski’s write-in efforts and encouraged Alaskan’s to run as write-in candidates. That is not illegal. That is free speech.
Individuals like Dan Fagan have a fundamental right to speak their minds without threats from the incumbent Senator from Alaska. It is hard to find a constitutional right Americans cherish more than the right to free speech. This was a right Joe Miller, as a decorated combat veteran – a tank commander tested in battle, was willing to die to defend. Dan Fagan has not always agreed with me, but I will gladly defend his right to speak freely on his radio show, which he has often used to criticize me. In fact, Fagan has actually used his radio show to attack and insult me, my husband, my children, and my family in just about every way possible. He was especially insulting to my son, who left for a war zone to defend Fagan’s right to attack our family. But when I was his governor, I never would have dreamed of threatening his right to free speech. I support him in this fight because this D.C. Beltway thuggery, as exemplified by Lisa Murkowski’s latest threat, is ruining our country. The powers that be want ordinary Americans to sit down and shut up and let the ruling class ride us right off the debt cliff we’re heading towards with Obama, Pelosi, and Reid steering the nation’s car. We can’t let them. Now is the time to put aside our past differences and stand up to the establishment powers.
This whole episode confirms again why we need to elect Joe Miller. Lisa, you can sue me if you want (you won’t be the first). But I will not be intimidated from speaking my mind. Your intimidation just empowered us liberty-loving Alaskans. Are you really that out of touch?
- Sarah Palin
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Far from shocking.
Tough-minded, defiant, insolent and especially audacious.
I don’t think Lisa is going to endorse Sarah Palin for POTUS in 2012.
Thank you Sarah.
Way to go, Sarah!
Now what can we do to help Fagan?
BINGO!
Sarah is certainly a better person than me. Defending Dan Fagan after what he has said about her and her family. Extremely noble and classy.
Nam Vet
It would appear that this Dan Fagan person will now be on Sarah's team.
There’s another thread about this running-Sarah continues to lay it out cold and targeted. Hope Lisa has the privilege of reading Sarah’s reaction.
If she wins Cornyn and his boys need to be held to account for undermining the will of the people allowing her to maintain her committee positions to allow her to leverage money from lobbyist.
Demint and Inhofe were the only Senators I know that voted for her to step down.
and she is the exact opposite of the thin-skinned current resident of the WH who keeps an "enemies list"...
As much as I dislike what decision the radio management made, I disagree with Palin. It is NOT a violation of his Constitutional "free speech" rights. The Constitution limits what the Federal Government cannot do - not what his employer can do. He is still free to say anything he wants about anyone! It is the "right" of the employer to do what they want and they are not the Government. The Federal government cannot abridge his free speech rights. There is no law that prevents his employer from setting limits. He can either abide by his employer's standards or go find another gig. He is now free to say whatever he wants. He just can't use his employers facilities to do it.
What role did Murkowski have in pulling Fagan off the air?
The employer of Dan Fagan was free to have him on the air or remove him from the air; but when they remove him from the air under threat of legal action from a private citizen - that would be one thing - but this is a threat from a sitting Senator - which makes it something different.
His employer pulled him from the air because there were being threatened by a U.S. Senator. I think "freedom of speech" applies in this case.
I disagree. In this instance, she is a private citizen. If the DOJ were threatening, THAT would be a different matter. Loser Lisa expressing displeasure or even threatening is not. Regardless of her personal expressions of displeasure, she is not the Federal gov't. The fact that the radio station elected to not fight this issue in court for any reason (including lack of money for legal defense) is not an issue to the courts.
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