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May 12, 2006 -- Legal Center Weekly Report: May 12, 2006
On May 9, 2006, a three-judge federal district court denied the plaintiff's motion for a preliminary injunction in Christian Civic League of Maine, Inc. ( CCLM ) v. FEC . The CCLM has challenged the "electioneering communications" provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA), which prohibit corporations and unions from using treasury funds to influence campaigns right before an election through broadcast advertisements that clearly identify a candidate. The CCLM wishes to use treasury funds to run an ad referring to Senator Olympia Snowe, who is unopposed in the June 13 primary. The CCLM is arguing that the electioneering communications provisions of BCRA are unconstitutional as applied to its proposed ad, because it claims the ad is a "grassroots lobbying ad" and, therefore, should be exempt from the definition of "electioneering communications."
The district court noted that the CCL could publish its proposed ad without running afoul of BCRA if it: (1) funded the ad through a PAC; (2) published the ad in a medium other than broadcast, cable, or satellite; or (3) altered the script of the ad to refrain from clearly identifying Senator Snowe. Furthermore, the court recognized that "the League's proposed 'grass roots lobbying' exception would seriously impair the government's compelling interest in protecting the integrity of the electoral process," because "candidates or their allies could easily schedule an issue for 'legislative consideration' during the run-up to an election as a pretext for broadcasting a particular subliminal electoral advocacy advertisement." The court therefore denied the CCLM's motion for a preliminary injunction.
The CCLM today filed a Jurisdictional Statement with the U.S. Supreme Court, appealing the district court's denial of the CCLM's request for a preliminary injunction.
The Campaign Legal Center represents defendant-intervenors in the case: Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI), Representative Christopher Shays (R-CT), Representative Marty Meehan (D-MA), and Representative Tom Allen (D-ME).
To view the case documents for Christian Civic League of Maine v. FEC, click here.
To view the Legal Center's press release, click here.
Legal Center Policy Director Speaks to University of Utah Students
This week, Meredith McGehee, Policy Director at the Campaign Legal Center, spoke to a group of students from the University of Utah. She gave a brief history of campaign finance and also spoke about the recent lobbying and ethics reform battle on the Hill. The students were a part of a week long visit to the nation's capital where they met with many government and civic organization leaders.
Week in the News
To read a variety of this week's editorials and articles on campaign finance , please click here. |
