Reason.com
Damon W. Root
August 20, 2009
As Jacob Sullum has previously discussed, the Supreme Court heard arguments last term in the case of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. At issue was the 90-minute documentary Hillary: The Movie, which was produced by the conservative group Citizens United and intended for distribution before the 2008 elections. This would have been illegal under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (McCain-Feingold), however, which bars corporations and non-profit organizations (such as Citizens United) from sponsoring “any broadcast, cable, or satellite communication” that mentions a candidate in a federal campaign within 30 days of a primary or 60 days of a general election.
In an unusual move, the Court decided to rehear oral arguments, scheduling them for September 9, which is a few weeks before the next term officially kicks off. Earlier this month in The Washington Post, liberal columnist Ruth Marcus offered an astonishing case for why the Court should gut the First Amendment and restrict political speech…
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