[EL] WyLiberty Attorneys File Motion for Preliminary Injunction in Free Speech v. Federal Election Commission

[Steve Klein]

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       *PRESS RELEASE*
July 16, 2012 *For Immediate Release*

WyLiberty Attorneys File Motion for Preliminary Injunction in *Free Speech
v. Federal Election Commission*

*CHEYENNE* -Wyoming Liberty Group (WyLiberty) attorneys filed a motion for
preliminary injunction<http://wyliberty.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Free-Speech-PI-Motion.pdf>in
*Free Speech v. Federal Election Commission
(FEC)<http://wyliberty.org/legal-center/free-speech-v-federal-election-commission/>
*, a case that began in Wyoming federal court last month. The motion calls
for a nationwide injunction against campaign finance regulations that
require grassroots groups to register and report with the federal
government just to criticize it.



"It is hard to believe that in America we permit a bureaucracy to exist
that regularly shuts down political debate - speech at the very core of the
First Amendment," said said Benjamin Barr, counsel to WyLiberty. "*Free
Speech v. FEC* is about freeing grassroots groups nationwide from the grip
of federal censorship."



Supporting the motion is an extensive memorandum detailing numerous
constitutional problems with the FEC's
regulations<http://wyliberty.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Free-Speech-PI-Memo-Filed.pdf>,
which allow the FEC to delve into advertisements about political issues and
decide whether or not the ad is actually "express advocacy" for the
election or defeat of a candidate for office. If a group engages in enough
express advocacy it must comply with burdensome registration and reporting
requirements as a "political committee."



"But no one can predict what's express advocacy and what isn't," said Steve
Klein, co-counsel to Free Speech. "The regulations are vague, and the FEC's
history of enforcing the regulations only makes things vaguer. Even
experienced politicos and attorneys can't figure them out, and that's just
the way the government wants it: if citizens can't understand the rules,
the Commission can make them up as it goes along."



Since the Free Speech case began, the case has grown more significant.
Recently, the Obama campaign and Democratic National Committee filed a
complaint against Crossroads GPS, a nationwide issue advocacy group,
charging that it must register and report with the government under the
same regulations challenged by Free Speech.



"The complaint against Crossroads GPS is telling," said Barr. "Instead of
engaging on the issues, the Obama campaign wants to tie up a group in the
FEC's enforcement process. The more time and money any group has to spend
on defending itself, the less it has to spend on getting its message heard.
The First Amendment was designed to protect against this very harm."



The Free Speech case has been assigned to Judge Scott Skavdahl in Casper.



-- 30 --

For more information, please contact:



Benjamin Barr, of counsel, Benjamin.barr at gmail.com
Stephen Klein, staff attorney, stephen.klein at wyliberty.org, 307-632-7020
     *Wyoming Liberty
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organization. The Group's mission is to prepare citizens for informed,
active and confident involvement in local and state government and to
provide a venue for understanding public issues in light of constitutional
principles and government accountability.*
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-- 
Steve Klein
Staff Attorney & Research Counsel*
Wyoming Liberty Group
www.wyliberty.org

**Licensed to practice law in Illinois. Counsel to the Wyoming Liberty
Group pursuant to Rule 5.5(d) of the Wyoming Rules of Professional Conduct.*
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