[EL] ELB News and Commentary 4/8/14
Rick Hasen
rhasen at law.uci.edu
Tue Apr 8 07:33:30 PDT 2014
"How to reverse a supreme court attack on democracy: fight for
voting rights; John Roberts' wrecking ball got you mad as hell?
Don't take his court's electoral destruction for granted anymore"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60195>
Posted on April 8, 2014 7:31 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60195>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
I have written this piece
<http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/08/supreme-court-fight-for-voting-rights>
for /The Guardian/. It begins:
Many Americans, especially on the left, are up in arms
<http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/06/mccutcheon-conservative-supreme-court-next-occupy>
about the US supreme court's decision last week in McCutcheon v FEC
<http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/mccutcheon-v-federal-election-commission/>,
which further deregulates
<http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/04/the_subtle_awfulness_of_the_mccutcheon_v_fec_campaign_finance_decision_the.html>
campaign financing. Now the super-wealthy need not go through an
independent Super Pac; they can get more money directly into the
hands of politicians.
The worst thing about the decision is that there's not much you can
do about it
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2293979>, other
than fight to uphold what remains of the rules. The only ways to
restore the pre-Roberts court campaign finance rules would be for
Congress and the states to amend the Constitution (something that's
all but impossible in today's partisan environment), or for the
supreme court to change its interpretation of the First Amendment
(something that would take the retirement
<http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2013/02/campaign_finance_reform_when_scalia_leaves_the_supreme_court.html>
of Justice Scalia or Kennedy and their replacement by a Democratic
president, which is not impossible but not something to bank on).
A lot more can be done to roll back some of the Roberts court's
other unfortunate decisions involving our electoral process.
Somehow, the political will just doesn't seem to be there. Many
white Americans are exercised about campaign finance but little
else. But the American public -- all of it -- should be just as
exercised by the assault on voting rights as it is by the court's
new views on money in politics.
It concludes:
Last week, the day before the court issued its verdict on
McCutcheon, I posted an item <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59850>
on my Election Law Blog about Kansas secretary of state Kris Kobach
pushing for new literacy tests for voting. The date of the blog post
was April 1, and the link to the story went to Google's gag for
April Fools' Day
<http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/introducing-gmail-shelfie.html>.
Many readers -- including some quite sophisticated lawyers and
journalists -- took the bait. It isn't funny, but the best April
Fools' jokes are the ones that come closest to the truth. Americans,
in the John Roberts era, somehow just expect that it's going to get
harder and harder to vote in this country -- and that there's
nothing we can do about it.
It's about time for Congress to pass some new laws protecting voting
rights, and it's high time -- right now -- for us to dare the
supreme court to strike even more of them down.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,
election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>, The Voting Wars
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>
"Pew's 2012 Index: Election Performance Improving, But Some States
(Despite Progress) Still Lag" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60193>
Posted on April 8, 2014 7:23 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60193>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Doug Chapin blogs
<http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cspg/electionacademy/2014/04/pews_2012_index_election_perfo.php>
on the new Pew report.
<http://www.pewstates.org/news-room/press-releases/pew-index-shows-40-states-improved-election-performance-in-2012-85899543004>
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>
"Primary Season Poses Special Challenges for PAC Spending Reporting"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60191>
Posted on April 8, 2014 7:17 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60191>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Eric Stahl
<http://www.regblog.org/2014/04/08-stahl-multi-state-spending.html>reports
for RegBlog.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
"Study: Voting process here lags nation's"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60189>
Posted on April 8, 2014 7:15 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60189>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
News from Ohio. <http://cin.ci/1gGjb6P>
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>
"Justices Decline Cases on Gay Rights and Campaign Finance"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60187>
Posted on April 7, 2014 9:25 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60187>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Adam Liptak reports
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/08/us/politics/justices-decline-cases-on-gay-rights-and-campaign-finance.html?ref=politics&_r=0>
for NYT.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
A Loss for O'Keefe <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60185>
Posted on April 7, 2014 9:23 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60185>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
AP
<http://highlandstoday.com/ap/politics/judge-stops-investigation-into-battleground-texas-ap_politics6e19b46c5df44ef9b1a593e431ca9711>:
A state district judge has thrown out a complaint filed against the
Democratic outreach group Battleground Texas that was based on a
conservative filmmaker's video, a special prosecutor said Monday.
Special prosecutor John Economidy, a Republican, told The Associated
Press that he and fellow special prosecutor Christine Del Prado, a
Democrat, determined that Battleground Texas did not violate state
election law by transcribing phone numbers submitted on voter
registration forms. San Antonio Judge Raymond Angelini signed the
dismissal without comment on Friday, Economidy added.
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>
"Study: States Did Better Job Running Elections In 2012?
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60183>
Posted on April 7, 2014 9:18 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60183>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NPR reports.
<http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2014/04/08/300251872/study-states-did-better-job-running-elections-in-2012?utm_source=Politics&utm_campaign=nprnews&utm_medium=twitter>
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>
"FCC Takes Important Step for Transparency in Political Advertising"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60180>
Posted on April 7, 2014 4:33 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60180>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
CLC
<http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2429:april-7-2014-fcc-takes-important-step-for-transparency-in-political-advertising&catid=63:legal-center-press-releases&Itemid=61>:
"Late Friday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a
notice reminding */all/* U.S. television broadcasters that as of July 1,
2014, they will be required to post their political files online in a
Commission-hosted database. Of vital importance in this requirement is
the information it provides regarding political advertisers. The Public
Interest Public Airwaves Coalition (PIPAC) has repeatedly urged the FCC
to require this disclosure to increase transparency as required by
statute. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has fought this
move despite losing an effort to stay the requirement at the U.S. Court
of Appeals in 2012."
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,
campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>
"Democrats, civil rights groups push for action on voting rights
bill" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60178>
Posted on April 7, 2014 4:32 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60178>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Gannett reports.
<http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20140406/NEWS01/304060016>
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Posted in Voting Rights Act <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=15>, VRAA
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=81>
The Disappearance of the "Appearance of Corruption" in McCutcheon
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60176>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:49 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60176>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
I have written a new piece for Reuters Opinion
<http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2014/04/07/opening-the-political-money-chutes/>.
It concludes:
The Supreme Court's opinions are themselves actually promoting the
appearance of corruption. On the day /McCutcheon/ was decided, I
spoke at a luncheon honoring the California Supreme Court and
criticized the U.S. Supreme Court for failing to pay attention to
facts and evidence in election cases. I quoted from Justice Anthony
Kennedy's majority opinion in /Citizens United/, the earlier Supreme
Court case that allowed corporations to make significant
contributions to elections. Kennedy wrote: "we now conclude that
independent expenditures, including those made by corporations, do
not give rise to corruption or the appearance of corruption."
Further, "[t]he appearance of influence or access...will not cause
the electorate to lose faith in our democracy."
Kennedy's remarks were huge laugh lines in my speech. No one in the
public is buying what the court majority is selling anymore. People
have become cynical about the role of money in politics.
We will now learn what happens to public confidence in an era of big
money going into politicians' pockets. The court may not call it
"appearance of corruption." But to the general public, that's just
how it looks.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
"Mega-Donors Are Now More Important Than Most Politicians"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60174>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:35 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60174>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Peter Beinart
<http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2014/04/mega-donors-are-now-more-important-than-most-politicians/360192/>in
/The Atlantic./
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
"Texas Legislators Forced To Turn Over Emails In Voter ID Lawsuit"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60172>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:30 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60172>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Ryan Reilly reports
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/07/texas-voter-id-emails_n_5106688.html?utm_hp_ref=tw>for
HuffPo.
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Posted in The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, voter id
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9>
Jack Shafer: McCutcheon Means More Money for Broadcasters
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60170>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:22 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60170>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here.
<http://blogs.reuters.com/jackshafer/2014/04/03/my-secret-plan-for-all-that-new-campaign-cash/>
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
"WyLiberty Attorneys Call for Immediate Change to Wyoming Election
Law" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60168>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:20 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60168>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Press release
<http://wyliberty.org/feature/wyliberty-attorneys-call-for-immediate-change-to-wyoming-election-law/#ff_s=trEWx>:
"Wyoming Liberty Group attorneys delivered a letter to the Wyoming
Secretary of State and Attorney General today
<http://wyliberty.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/WyoSecState-4-7-14.pdf>, asking
them to immediately cease enforcement of a provision of the Wyoming
Election Code that limits aggregate political contributions in state
elections to $25,000. The letter follows a decision by the United States
Supreme Court last week, /McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission/
<http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/13pdf/12-536_e1pf.pdf>, which
overturned the aggregate contribution limit in federal law as an
unconstitutional abridgement of free speech."
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
Gans on McCutcheon <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60166>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:15 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60166>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here
<http://www.courier-journal.com/story/opinion/contributors/2014/04/04/supreme-court-undermining-us-constitution/7315863/>.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
Cagle on McCutcheon <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60164>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:11 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60164>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Cartoon.
<http://www.caglecartoons.com/viewimage.asp?ID=%7B13C37A37-D220-4A35-822B-7D1F9A8E839C%7D>
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
"John Roberts, Meet John Roberts" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60162>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:09 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60162>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Brianne Gorod
<http://blog.constitutioncenter.org/2014/04/john-roberts-meet-john-roberts/>
on McCutcheon.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
Brad Smith Guest-Blogging at Volokh on Recent Article
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60160>
Posted on April 7, 2014 1:08 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=60160>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Eugene introduces.
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/04/07/introducing-guest-blogger-professor-bradley-smith/>
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
--
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
949.824.0495 - fax
rhasen at law.uci.edu
hhttp://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/
http://electionlawblog.org
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