Institute For Free Speech

FEC: An Agency Tasked with Regulating First Amendment Activity
January 1, 2018  •  By IFS Staff  •    •  

The Federal Election Commission is the independent agency charged with enforcing federal campaign finance law and enacting campaign finance regulations. The FEC was created after the Nixon Administration’s Justice Department pursued criminal campaign finance charges against the President’s critics. In light of that effort, Congress correctly rejected the idea of letting a future president effectively control a government agency tasked…

Self-Styled Campaign Finance “Reformers” Jump the Shark
December 6, 2016   •  By Luke Wachob   •  , ,

This Issue Brief tells the alarming story of radical activists and government leaders pushing for new restrictions on political speech in the wake of ...

Some FEC Commissioners Unwilling to Commit to Not Banning Books
October 11, 2016   •  By Joe Albanese   •  ,

The Federal Election Commission’s recent public meeting revealed a partisan gap on what would have otherwise seemed a straightforward issue. Commissioner Lee Goodman proposed ...

Comments to FEC Commissioner Ravel on Proposal to Rescind AO 2006-15 (TransCanada) (FEC Agenda Document No. 16-32-A)
September 12, 2016   •  By Allen Dickerson   •  , ,

The Center for Competitive Politics (“the Center”), respectfully submits comments in response to Commissioner Ravel’s Proposal to Rescind Advisory Opinion (“AO”) 2006-15 (TransCanada) (“the ...

The Internet and Free Speech
August 15, 2016   •  By Alex Baiocco   •  , ,

The Federal Election Commission recently voted along party lines on the issue of whether to impose sanctions on a nonprofit that posted a video ...

‘Leaks’ Courtesy of the FEC: No Hacking Necessary
August 3, 2016   •  By Alex Baiocco   •  , ,

The recent news of the leaked DNC emails, along with the more recent DCCC hack, has left many observers concerned about the state of ...

Surprise, Surprise: Partisan Grandstanding from FEC Commissioners Has Hurt the Agency’s Morale
August 2, 2016   •  By Joe Albanese   •  ,

The Federal Election Commission’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently released a July 2016 study on the root causes of its infamously low employee ...

Statement of Chairman Bradley A. Smith and President David Keating on FEC Commissioner Weintraub’s “Corporate Political Spending and Foreign Influence” Forum
June 23, 2016   •  By Brad Smith   •  , ,

Today, Commissioner Ellen Weintraub has taken the unprecedented step of using her office to organize what is in essence a private forum, to be ...

Senator Mad Federal Agency Won’t Help him Silence Opponents
June 17, 2016   •  By Scott Blackburn   •  , ,

Those who seek ever more regulation of political speech love to play hopscotch with government agencies. If the FEC won’t take up your cause, ...

Petition for Rulemaking to Strengthen Political Parties
June 15, 2016   •  By Scott Blackburn   •  ,

A new FEC rulemaking petition from Sandler Reiff looks to strengthen political parties. State and local party committees play a critical role in the ...

The FEC, LLCs, and Political Contribution Disclosure
April 16, 2016   •  By Brad Smith   •  , ,

Recently, there’s been a flap at the FEC about whether the Commission should have found certain actors were in violation of the laws governing ...

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