Kathianne
08-19-2008, 07:14 AM
Not with Big Brother watching:
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/political-speech-not-as-free-as-you-think/2/
Political Speech Not as Free as You Think
Daring to display homemade signs could get you a visit from the FEC.
August 19, 2008 - by Hans A. von Spakovsky
Campaign finance laws are necessary to keep really rich people from “buying” candidates and controlling our government, right? And any limitations on free speech that might be necessary are just collateral damage — unfortunate but unavoidable, aren’t they? At least that is the prevailing view of the reform community and probably the general public. However, these laws regulate and restrict political speech, political association, and the ability to lobby the government on important issues and have a reach way beyond what most of us realize...
After subjecting Liles, Morton, and two other locals to an extensive investigation, the lawyers for the FEC found that they had violated federal law because their homemade sign did not have a disclaimer. In other words, it did not say who had paid for the sign and whether or not it was approved by the candidate, even though everyone in this very small town apparently knew who was responsible. The political competition was a general topic of conversation at the Spudnut Shop on Main Street and the Dinner Bell Café on Highway 84. The FEC’s general counsel recommended sending an admonishment letter — he could just as easily have recommended a civil penalty — but fortunately wisdom prevailed amongst the commissioners and they voted simply to close the file without taking any further action...
Besides the disclaimer problem, if you decide to put a homemade political sign in your front yard or take out an advertisement in your local neighborhood newspaper expressing your belief that John McCain should be elected president, you’d better not spend more than $250. If you do, you are required by federal law to register with the FEC and report your independent political expenditures. Think it won’t happen?
You might want to talk to Kirk Shelmerdine, former crew chief for Dale Earnhardt, who races in NASCAR as a field-filler. In 2004 he couldn’t sell advertising on one panel of his car, so he committed the terrible federal crime of putting a Bush/Cheney decal on it. Horror of horrors — he did not report the “value” of that decal to the FEC, thus violating the independent expenditure reporting requirement. After an extensive investigation, the FEC got into a convoluted internal argument about what the value of that decal placement was, i.e., how much would Mr. Shelmerdine have to pay himself to purchase the unsold advertising space on his own car and how much was that worth in the various races he participated in.
In a four-to-one vote — I cast the dissenting vote — the commission decided to send Shelmerdine a letter of admonishment that he had violated federal law for not reporting putting a decal on his own car. No telling how much he spent in attorneys’ fees — and his own time — in responding to this silly investigation.
...
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/political-speech-not-as-free-as-you-think/2/
Political Speech Not as Free as You Think
Daring to display homemade signs could get you a visit from the FEC.
August 19, 2008 - by Hans A. von Spakovsky
Campaign finance laws are necessary to keep really rich people from “buying” candidates and controlling our government, right? And any limitations on free speech that might be necessary are just collateral damage — unfortunate but unavoidable, aren’t they? At least that is the prevailing view of the reform community and probably the general public. However, these laws regulate and restrict political speech, political association, and the ability to lobby the government on important issues and have a reach way beyond what most of us realize...
After subjecting Liles, Morton, and two other locals to an extensive investigation, the lawyers for the FEC found that they had violated federal law because their homemade sign did not have a disclaimer. In other words, it did not say who had paid for the sign and whether or not it was approved by the candidate, even though everyone in this very small town apparently knew who was responsible. The political competition was a general topic of conversation at the Spudnut Shop on Main Street and the Dinner Bell Café on Highway 84. The FEC’s general counsel recommended sending an admonishment letter — he could just as easily have recommended a civil penalty — but fortunately wisdom prevailed amongst the commissioners and they voted simply to close the file without taking any further action...
Besides the disclaimer problem, if you decide to put a homemade political sign in your front yard or take out an advertisement in your local neighborhood newspaper expressing your belief that John McCain should be elected president, you’d better not spend more than $250. If you do, you are required by federal law to register with the FEC and report your independent political expenditures. Think it won’t happen?
You might want to talk to Kirk Shelmerdine, former crew chief for Dale Earnhardt, who races in NASCAR as a field-filler. In 2004 he couldn’t sell advertising on one panel of his car, so he committed the terrible federal crime of putting a Bush/Cheney decal on it. Horror of horrors — he did not report the “value” of that decal to the FEC, thus violating the independent expenditure reporting requirement. After an extensive investigation, the FEC got into a convoluted internal argument about what the value of that decal placement was, i.e., how much would Mr. Shelmerdine have to pay himself to purchase the unsold advertising space on his own car and how much was that worth in the various races he participated in.
In a four-to-one vote — I cast the dissenting vote — the commission decided to send Shelmerdine a letter of admonishment that he had violated federal law for not reporting putting a decal on his own car. No telling how much he spent in attorneys’ fees — and his own time — in responding to this silly investigation.
...