Institute For Free Speech

First Amendment and Campaigns: More Campaign Speech Benefits Voters
January 1, 2018  •  By IFS Staff  •    •  

At the heart of the First Amendment is the assumption that Americans are best served by a full and free discussion of whom to elect. The American system of government sits atop the bedrock of the First Amendment. From the pamphleteering of the founding era to the Facebook ads of today, political campaigns have been premised upon free and open…

Amicus Brief: French v. Jones
April 6, 2018   •  By IFS Staff   •  ,

Maine’s campaign laws hurt a free press
March 26, 2018   •  By Thomas Wheatley   •  , , ,

By David Keating and Thomas Wheatley Under Maine campaign law, an independent expenditure is "any [independent] communication that expressly advocates the election or defeat of ...

Feds prohibit candidates from commenting on Trump, despite constitutional questions
March 26, 2018   •  By Eric Wang   •  , ,

As the midterm congressional elections unfold, candidates are also running in 36 states for governor and competing for more than 6,000 state legislative seats. ...

SpeechNow.org v. Federal Election Commission: Protecting the First Amendment Rights of Americans
March 26, 2018   •  By Luke Wachob   •  , , ,

SpeechNow extended First Amendment rights already protected for individuals to groups of people who pool their resources to speak. The case legalized what is ...

A Government That Can Ban Ads on Public Transportation Can Restrict Other Forms of Speech Too
March 15, 2018   •  By Joe Albanese   •  , ,

Can a subway system ban advertisements that convey a controversial political opinion? What about an ad that asks riders to “embrace humanity and inclusion”? ...

Constitutional and Practical Issues with Idaho S. 1337 (2017 Campaign Finance Reform Legislative Work Group Recommendations)
March 8, 2018   •  By Matt Nese   •  , , , ,

On behalf of the Institute for Free Speech (“the Institute”), we respectfully submit the following comments on constitutional and practical issues with portions of ...

Free Speech Index – Grading the 50 States on Political Giving Freedom
March 2, 2018   •  By Scott Blackburn   •  , ,

Foreword by Chairman Bradley A. Smith and President David Keating On behalf of the Institute for Free Speech, we are pleased to present Part ...

Understanding the Differences Between Political and Issue Advocacy
March 1, 2018   •  By IFS Staff   •  , , ,

This Issue Brief explains the differences between political and issue advocacy in both layman’s terms and as viewed by the courts. In particular, the ...

Americans are smart enough to handle free speech at ballot box
February 28, 2018   •  By Zac Morgan   •  ,

If you’ve ever scrolled through Facebook or Twitter, or taken a look at bumpers as you sat in traffic, you know Americans are expressive ...

Constitutional and Practical Issues with Idaho H. 573 (2017 Campaign Finance Reform Legislative Work Group Recommendations)
February 22, 2018   •  By Tyler Martinez   •  , , , ,

On behalf of the Institute for Free Speech (“the Institute”) and Attorney Tyler Martinez, I respectfully submit the following comments on constitutional and practical ...

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