In the News
Reason: Delaware Faces Lawsuit Over Campaign Finance Law That Targets Political Speech
By Ed KrayewskiFree speech’ll cost you if you’re talking about politicians. Last year, Delaware passed broad new laws on campaign finance “reform” that politicians claimed would lead to more “transparent” government. Among the bills signed into law was HB 300, which aimed to require “[p]ersons who buy ads that do not use ‘magic words’” but “advocate indirectly for a candidate” to file the same disclosure reports as other purveyors of “electioneering communications.” The law’s definition, unsurprisingly, takes an expansive view of just what that means, “third party advertisements that refer to a clearly identified candidate and are publicly distributed within 30 days before a primary or special election, or 60 days before a general election.”The measure has now yielded a lawsuit from the Center for Competitive Politics, filed on behalf of Delaware Strong Families, an affiliate of the Delaware Family Policy Council that puts out a “values voter guide” that lists the answers candidates give to questions ranging from the estate tax to Planned Parenthood funding. The Center for Competitive Politics claims the new law would force Delaware Strong Families to submit to “substantial regulatory burdens while violating the privacy of even their small-dollar supporters.” DSF says it won’t publish another guide in 2014 absent a judgment in their favor, and the CCP argues that “the government cannot impose extensive regulatory burdens, or violate the privacy of donors, where an organization does not advocate for any candidate,” pointing out that in its 1976 Buckley decision on campaign finance laws, the Supreme Court upheld disclosures only for groups that directly urged people to vote a certain way. In its synopsis, the Delaware bill quoted the recentCitizen United decision quoting a 2003 campaign finance decision quoting Buckleyon helping “citizens make informed choices in the political marketplace.”
Delaware Online: Conservative group files suit over Delaware donor disclosure law
By Sean O’Sullivan and Jonathan StarkeyThe disclosure bill was written by lawyers in Markell’s office and spearheaded in Legislative Hall in 2012 by then-House Speaker Robert Gilligan and then-Senate President Pro Tem Anthony Deluca, both Democrats. It did not have a single Republican sponsor. It passed along party lines in the House in May of 2012 and unanimously in the Senate the following month. Markell signed the measure into law on Aug. 15, 2012. It took effect Jan. 1.Allen Dickerson, legal director for the Alexandria, Va.-based Center for Competitive Politics, which brought the case on behalf of Delaware Strong Families, said a 1976 U.S. Supreme Court precedent makes clear that a group cannot be forced to register with the government unless they are advocating for a particular candidate.
SCOTUS/Judiciary
National Review: McCutcheon and the Biennial Bottleneck
By Stephen M. HoerstingIt has been two weeks since the Supreme Court opened its October term with argument in McCutcheon v. FEC. In that time, campaign-finance reformers have taken to the editorial pages to express their hopes that the Court will deny Alabama businessman Shaun McCutcheon’s right to make contributions under certain limits to the several committees of the Republican party, even if it vindicates his right to make limited contributions to the candidates of his choice.McCutcheon and the Republican National Committee are challenging the “biennial aggregate limits” of federal campaign-finance law. Under current law, while individuals are permitted to contribute up to a “base limit” of $2,600 to a candidate in a given election cycle, their aggregate contributions to federal candidates may not exceed $48,600, and there is a biennial aggregate cap of $74,600 on an individual’s contributions to all PACs and party committees.
NY Times: Court Lifts Limit on Contributing to Pro-Lhota PAC
By Thomas Kaplan
A federal appeals court on Thursday ruled that a conservative group supporting Joseph J. Lhota, the Republican nominee for mayor of New York City, can immediately begin accepting contributions of any size because New York State’s limit on donations to independent political committees is probably unconstitutional.The ruling, 12 days before the mayoral election, is not likely to change the dynamics of the race, given the wide lead of the Democratic candidate, Bill de Blasio, and a presumed reluctance by many potential big donors to donate to an underdog candidate this late in the game.
Disclosure
More Soft Money Hard Law: Bruce Cain’s Proposal for Full Reporting with “Semi-Disclosure”
By Bob BauerBut Cain does not see how the answer can lie in dispensing with meaningful disclosure. There are reasonable regulatory enforcement goals served by financial reporting—deterring corruption or its appearance, and aiding enforcement—and the public retains an interest in some information about the money behind campaigns. There is no reason to believe that this same public will abide for long the direction at present toward more money spent and a growing share of it undisclosed.
USA Today: George Soros backs pro-Hillary Clinton super PAC
By Fredreka SchoutenWASHINGTON — Billionaire financier George Soros is joining forces with others urging Hillary Rodham Clinton to run for president in 2016, becoming the best-known Democratic donor to provide his money and name to the Ready for Hillary super PAC.The move, announced Thursday by the super PAC via Twitter, could attract other big-name donors to a possible Clinton candidacy, potentially making it harder for other Democrats to compete financially with Clinton should she decide to seek the nomination.
Candidates, Politicians, Campaigns, and Parties
NY Times: Ted Cruz Takes On the F.C.C.
EditorialSenator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican who helped engineer the recent government shutdown, has a new target for his obstructionism: the Federal Communications Commission. Last week, Mr. Cruz blocked the Senate from considering the nomination of Tom Wheeler to lead the commission — a candidate who leaders from both parties had agreed would be put up for a vote without delay.Mr. Cruz has put a hold on the nomination, his spokesman told reporters, to find out if Mr. Wheeler would vote to require greater disclosure about political ads on television and radio bought by independent groups. Such groups can currently keep donors secret even as they spend hundreds of millions of dollars to influence elections. Mr. Cruz says he is trying to get more information and to make sure the F.C.C. does not exceed its authority.
Lobbying and Ethics
Politico: President Obama poised for fundraising spree
By JOHN BRESNAHAN and REID J. EPSTEINWith the grueling government shutdown fight over for now, President Barack Obama is heading out on the campaign trail to raise money for House and Senate Democrats, as well as the Democratic National Committee.Between Friday and the end of November, Obama will appear at seven fundraisers — three each for House and Senate Democrats and one for the DNC. The DNC fundraiser and two of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee events have not been previously reported.
Politico: GOP hardliners reach out to K Street
By ANNA PALMER and JAKE SHERMAN“I think they felt the need for some outreach to the Washington echo chamber, but I don’t think they answered the big question on the mind of everybody. The shutdown was not brought up or referred to,” said one lobbyist in the meeting. “I would have thought maybe they would feel the need to talk about what was accomplished, how to move forward.”The lobbyist said that many meeting participants felt like the lawmakers hadn’t learned any lessons about the negative impact the shutdown has on the Republican brand and how it could affect the 2014 elections.
State and Local
District of Columbia –– Washington Post: Petition to Supreme Court may prolong probe of Gray campaign
By Ann E. Marimow
A redacted copy of the petition made public this week provides a window into the behind-the-scenes legal wrangling and helps explain why there have been no public developments in the investigation in recent weeks.The federal probe into the alleged $635,000 secret “shadow campaign” for Gray has generated uncertainty in the District’s political landscape in advance of next April’s mayoral primary. Gray (D), who has not been charged and has denied any wrongdoing, has not announced whether he will seek a second term.
