"Don't Vote This November"

That's the astounding message of an ad from "Latinos for Reform." Here's an NPR story on the group from 2008. Here's the group's press release about the new ad. The most recent filing of this 527 organization is not illuminating. Here's some 2008 financial information.

"Judge Strikes Down Montana's Ban on Corporate Political Expenditures"

Jess Bravin follows up on his earlier report about this Montana case. No surprises in this ruling.

"Our view on judicial independence: Judges face reprisals for unpopular rulings"

USA Today offers this editorial. Brian Brown of NOM responds.
MORE: See this SF Chronicle oped by Susan Gluss.

"Impact of Citizens United v. FEC"

You can watch this event, cosponsored by the University of Va. Miller Center of Public Affairs and the Campaign Finance Institute, at c-span's website.

"Registration Trends in 'Purple' America'

Rhodes Cooks blogs at WSJ's "Capital Journal."

"Brownback, Kobach call for voter identification requirement"

News from Topeka.

TPM Does Not Love RNLA

This post sums up the concern.

"Karl Rove's Karl Rove"

Politico reports.

"Behavioral Decision Theory and Implications for the Supreme Court's Campaign Finance Jurisprudence"

Molly Walker Wilson has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Cardozo Law Review). Here is the abstract:

America stands at a moment in history when advances in the understanding of human decision-making are increasing the strategic efficacy of political strategy. As campaign spending for the presidential race reaches hundreds of millions of dollars, the potential for harnessing the power of psychological tactics becomes considerable. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has characterized campaign money as "speech" and has required evidence of corruption or the appearance of corruption in order to uphold restrictions on campaign expenditures. Ultimately, the Court has rejected virtually all restrictions on campaign spending on the ground that expenditures, unlike contributions, do not contribute to corruption or the appearance of corruption. However, behavioral decision research and theory provide strong support for the notion that expenditures do corrupt the political process, because there is a nexus between campaign spending, strategic manipulation, and sub-optimal voting decisions. This Article applies behavioral research and theory to advance a new definition of "corruption," arguing that there is a vital governmental interest in regulating campaign expenditures in order to limit manipulative campaign tactics and to reduce the existing inequities in access to channels of communication and persuasion.

"ELECTION-RELATED SPENDING BY POLITICAL COMMITTEES AND NON-PROFITS UP 40% IN 2010"

The Campaign Finance Institute has issued this press release.

Ginsberg, Davis-Denny Headline Chapman "Nexus" Symposium on CU

See here.

"The Risk of Voter Suppression"

Eliza's latest.

-- 
Rick Hasen
William H. Hannon Distinguished Professor of Law
Loyola Law School
919 Albany Street
Los Angeles, CA  90015-1211
(213)736-1466
(213)380-3769 - fax
rick.hasen@lls.edu
http://www.lls.edu/academics/faculty/hasen.html
http://electionlawblog.org