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Wall Street Journal: How Ron DeSantis Could Unlock $86 Million for a Presidential Run

By Julie Bykowicz and Alex Leary

.....Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is poised to jump into the Republican presidential primary in the coming months with an $86 million pot of donor money—and a legally questionable strategy for using it.

FIRE: From Florida to Maine, school boards and city councils silence critics in the name of ‘decorum’

By Abby Smith and Aaron Terr

.....[The Brevard County School Board] board repeatedly interrupted Moms for Liberty members, ordered them to stop speaking on entire topics, and even removed them from the podium for criticizing the board. The board cited decorum policies to prevent the group’s members from speaking on topics ranging from COVID-19 masking policies to school library books to the board’s response to a case of indecent exposure on one of its campuses. 

The group sued to block the school board from continuing to violate its members’ First Amendment rights, but the trial court didn’t agree and dismissed the case. Moms for Liberty has now appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. 

FIRE and the Manhattan Institute filed an amicus curiae — “friend of the court” — brief in support of Moms for Liberty, asking the Eleventh Circuit to recognize that the First Amendment protects the right to criticize government officials and that “decorum” policies are no exception to this ironclad rule. 

New York Times: Disney v. DeSantis: How Strong Is the Company’s Lawsuit?

.....To understand why Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida should lose in his quest to punish Disney for the high crime of publicly disagreeing with Ron DeSantis, it is first necessary to talk about tow trucks. Specifically, it’s necessary to discuss a case about tow trucks and the First Amendment and how it answers a key question: If the government offers some person or entity a benefit, can it also take it away?

New York Times: Prosecutors in Jan. 6 Case Step up Inquiry Into Trump Fund-Raising

By Maggie Haberman, Alan Feuer and Jonathan Swan

.....As they investigate former President Donald J. Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, federal prosecutors have also been drilling down on whether Mr. Trump and a range of political aides knew that he had lost the race but still raised money off claims that they were fighting widespread fraud in the vote results, according to three people familiar with the matter.

The Miner: Dark money group wants judge to toss out bid by conservative group to kill law

.....The group that convinced voters last year to expose “dark money” contributions to political campaigns wants a federal judge to toss a bid by a conservative advocacy group to kill the new law.

New York Times: Echoes of History in New National Push to Shield Children Online

By Kashmir Hill and Natasha Singer

.....The current push for age restrictions on certain online content echoes a similar legislative drive three decades ago, when the internet was in its infancy. In 1996, Congress passed a major telecommunications bill that made it illegal to knowingly send or display “obscene or indecent” material to people under 18…

SCOTUSblog: Roberts declines invitation to testify at Senate hearing

.....Chief Justice John Roberts on Tuesday night “respectfully decline[d]” an invitation from Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing next week. Durbin had asked Roberts to testify about Supreme Court ethics rules and potential reform.

Daily Caller: Dem Senator Pushing For Investigation Into Clarence Thomas Received Money From Harlan Crow’s Brother

.....Democratic Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, one of the most vocal critics of Justice Clarence Thomas’ friendship with billionaire real estate developer Harlan Crow, received campaign money from Crow’s brother, records show.

Whitehouse, along with Georgia Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson, sent a letter to Chief Justice Roberts April 7 requesting he open an investigation into Thomas over expense-paid trips he received from long-time friend Harlan Crow but did not disclose. The senator, however, is connected to Harlan Crow’s brother, Trammell Crow, who donated to Whitehouse’ campaign and runs a prominent green group Whitehouse supports. 

Denver Post: Colorado elected officials across political spectrum want to be allowed to block people on social media

.....In a deeply divided Colorado legislature, lawmakers from either wing of the political spectrum found common ground Thursday: limiting the abuse they weather on social media.

A bipartisan bill that would allow elected officials to block people and delete their comments on officials’ personal social media accounts cleared its first legislative hurdle Thursday, passing the House’s State, Civic, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee unanimously. That’s no mean feat: The committee’s composed of some of the most ideologically distant legislators — and the most prolific tweeters — in the Capitol. But they united, for the moment, around HB23-1306, which would be the first such law in the nation, said Delta Republican Rep. Matt Soper, who’s sponsoring the bill with Denver Democratic Rep. Leslie Herod.

Colorado Sun: Unlimited candidate fundraising, spending in Colorado municipal elections could soon be a thing of the past

By Sandra Fish and Jesse Paul

.....This year could be the last of unlimited fundraising and spending by candidates in municipal elections if a bill approved last week by the House also passes the Senate and is signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis.

House Bill 1245 would limit individual donations to municipal candidates to $400, while small-donor committees would be able give up to $4,000. The measure originally limited contributions to $250 and $2,500 and banned political parties from contributing directly to candidates in municipal elections, which are supposed to be nonpartisan, but was amended to increase the amounts and removed that prohibition.

Seattle Times: Early WA governor’s race skirmish? Campaign finance loophole scrutinized

.....Washington’s campaign-finance watchdog is eyeing whether to close a loophole that could give Attorney General Bob Ferguson a big campaign cash advantage if he runs for governor next year.

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