Posted on 03/21/2009 11:32:34 AM PDT by Steelfish
Now showing at Supreme Court: 'Hillary: The Movie'
By JESSE J. HOLLAND, Associated Press Writer Mar 21, 10:00 am ET
WASHINGTON – Months after its debut, "Hillary: The Movie" faces nine of the nation's toughest critics: the Supreme Court.
The justices' review of the slashing documentary financed by longtime critics of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton could bring more than just a thumbs up or thumbs down.
It may settle the question of whether the government can regulate a politically charged film as a campaign ad.
David Bossie, a former Republican congressional aide who produced the Clinton movie and another describing then-Sen. Barack Obama as an overhyped media darling, said his films are about important moments in American politics.
"The outcome of this case will dictate how we're able to make films and educate people about them," he said.
At issue in the case being argued before justices Tuesday is the 90-minute anti-Clinton movie and television ads Bossie wanted to air during the 2008 primaries advertising the film.
Bossie's group, the conservative Citizens United, released the movie as Clinton, then a New York senator, was competing with Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
“A panel of federal judges disagreed, calling “Hillary” nothing but an extended-length political attack ad. The Justice Department agreed, saying “’Hillary’ is a 90-minute advocacy piece whose unmistakable meaning is that Hillary Clinton should not be elected president.”
Well, if you replaced Hillary with “John McCain,” that would be a good description of the Evening news in the 2008 election. Does that mean we get to enjoin CBS evening news during elections?
I suspect the defense would be that no one watches CBS news, so it's a non issue.
Remember that movie “Millhouse?”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millhouse_(film)
Hold on, correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't the movie W released right before the election the same thing? What about Fahrenheit 911 released just prior to the 2004 election? I guess if its leftist dreck it's OK.
They should have stuck with the original title:
“Big Momma’s House III”
If not for that dolt McCain and his wonderful McCain-Feingold bill, this wouldn’t even be an issue.
As it is, McCain-Feingold only seems useful in regulating conservative or religious speech. Kind of like the Fairness Doctrine.
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