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Apr 6, 2007 -- Legal Center Weekly Report: April 6, 2007
On April 3, 2007, Reps. Christopher Shays (R-CT) and Martin Meehan (D-MA) filed a motion and memorandum in the D.C. federal district court in Shays & Meehan v. FEC (Shays II), asking the court to order the FEC to promulgate a regulation making clear when 527 groups must register as federal "political committees"—arguing that the agency's Supplemental Explanation and Justification published in February 2007 is contrary to law and fails to justify the Commission's refusal to adopt a 527 regulation. Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Russ Feingold (D-WI), represented by the Campaign Legal Center, filed an amici curiae brief in the case supporting plaintiffs Shays and Meehan.
Sens. McCain and Feingold argue that the problem with the Commission's Supplemental E&J "is not only that the Commission's approach is inconsistent with campaign finance law, but also that the Commission's case-by-case approach simply is not working." Sens. McCain and Feingold further argue that: "For the past three years, spanning three election cycles (2004, 2006, 2008), amici and plaintiffs have urged the FEC to effectively regulate 527 groups—to no avail. Instead, as this Court previously observed, '[c]ases arising from the 2004 campaign have languished on the Commission's enforcement docket' for as long as 38 months, with no end in sight."
Under such compelling circumstances, Sens. McCain and Feingold argue, the Commission should now be ordered by the court to adopt such a rule consistent with the legal framework set forth in the amici's brief and in plaintiffs' Shays and Meehan's filing.
Legal Center Blog Highlights
Each week, the Campaign Legal Center staff posts blog entries on its site, www.clcblog.org . This week's entries include Click to read this week's entry: " Show Me the Money (and I mean lots of it!) ," and " Sens. McCain & Feingold File Amici Brief in 527 Lawsuit " or to sign up for blog updates, click here .
To read a variety of this week's editorials and articles on a variety of Campaign Legal Center issues, please click here . |
