Email from The Institute for Free Speech The Latest News from the Institute for Free Speech January 7, 2025 Click here to subscribe to the Daily Media Update. This is the Daily Media Update published by the Institute for Free Speech. For press inquiries, please contact [email protected]. In the News Salon: "Free of corruption": How a Maine ballot initiative could help get dark money out of politics By Marin Scotten .....Despite nearly three-quarters of voters approving Question 1, the initiative has been criticized by those who argue that political donations are a form of expression, including the Institute for Free Speech, an organization dedicated to protecting First Amendment rights through litigation and advocacy. In an op-ed for the Portland Herald Press, David Keating, president of the Institute for Free Speech, argued that Question 1 is "unconstitutional" and “counterproductive.” “By attempting to limit contributions to independent expenditure-only organizations, the proposed Maine measure directly and clearly contradicts our rights as Americans under the First Amendment,” he wrote. “It infringes on our rights to organize into groups and express our opinions on a matter of the utmost public concern – the question of who will run the government.” Keating added that the measure would “obviously lead to less speech and less information for voters” and give “an advantage to incumbent politicians.” On Dec. 13, Question 1 was officially challenged by two conservative groups, Dinner Table Action and For Our Future. They argue that super PAC donations are “a vital feature of our democracy.” “All Americans, not just those running for office, have a fundamental First Amendment right to talk about political campaigns,” the federal lawsuit reads “Their ‘independent expenditures,’ payments that fund political expression by those who are not running for office but nonetheless have something to say about a campaign, are a vital feature of our democracy.” New from the Institute for Free Speech First Amendment Victory: Judge Limits Reach of Kansas PAC Law .....An Overland Park grassroots advocacy group can speak freely about issues and candidates without fear of being regulated as a political committee, a federal court ruled late Friday. In a victory for political speech rights, the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas ruled that state officials cannot regulate grassroots issue advocacy organizations as political committees merely because they occasionally engage in campaign-related speech. The decision protects Fresh Vision OP, a local nonprofit that advocates for responsible development and quality of life issues in Overland Park, from burdensome political committee regulations. Attorneys for the Institute for Free Speech and local counsel Josh Ney and Ryan Kriegshauser filed the suit after state officials demanded Fresh Vision register as a political committee and disclose its donors in the wake of Fresh Vision’s 2021 endorsement of a mayoral candidate. The group suspended operations rather than submit to onerous regulations designed for campaign organizations. Under Kansas law, political committees must file detailed financial reports and publicly identify their supporters, requirements designed for organizations focused on elections rather than community advocacy. Supreme Court SCOTUSblog: Parties file final briefs before Supreme Court hears TikTok case By Amy Howe .....One week ahead of oral arguments in its challenge to a federal law that would require social-media giant TikTok to shut down in the United States unless its parent company can sell it by Jan. 19, the Biden administration filed its reply brief on Friday, urging the justices to allow the law to go into effect. The law, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the justices, targets the national security risk of China’s potential control of the Beijing company, not free speech. But TikTok pushed back, calling the Biden administration’s suggestion that the dispute does not implicate any First Amendment rights at all “obviously wrong.” And the group of TikTok creators that are also challenging the law agree with the company that the law “is anathema to the First Amendment because it aims to shield Americans from nothing more than a potentially disagreeable mix of ideas.” The arguments came in three reply briefs filed on Friday afternoon as part of a highly expedited briefing schedule set in mid-December. A federal appeals court upheld the law in early December and declined to put it on hold, prompting TikTok and the group of creators to come to the Supreme Court on Dec. 16. Two days later, the justices agreed to weigh in and hold arguments on Jan. 10. The Courts Bloomberg Law: California City's Campaign Finance Limits Struck Down on Appeal By Holly Barker .....The City of Oxnard, Calif.'s 2020 campaign finance limitations violate the First Amendment because the provisions—which appear to target a political outsider—aren’t narrowly tailored to further a legitimate government interest, the Ninth Circuit ruled Friday. Such limits are allowed when they are are “closely drawn” to advance the legitimate government interest of preventing the appearance of corruption, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit said. In this case, however, there was evidence that Oxnard’s limitations take aim at Aaron Starr, the president of plaintiff nonprofit Moving Oxnard Forward Inc. Starr had orchestrated an unsuccessful recall effort against a ... Ed. note: Watch oral argument here. The City of Oxnard recently asked the court for a rehearing by an en banc panel. Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): Louis Farrakhan Loses Defamation and First Amendment Lawsuit Against Anti-Defamation League and Others By Eugene Volokh .....From Farrakhan v. Anti-Defamation League, decided today by Second Circuit Judges Susan L. Carney, Joseph F. Bianco & William J. Nardini: Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): Claim Against School Board That Refused to Display "Satan Loves the First Amendment" Banner Can Go Forward By Eugene Volokh .....The factual allegations from today's decision by Robert Scola (S.D. Fla.) in Stevens v. School Bd. of Broward County: Congress The Hill: New House Ethics campaign rules are a belated lump of coal By Eric Wang .....On Monday, the House Committee on Ethics belatedly played the role of the Christmas Grinch when it issued what are effectively sweeping new requirements for House members’ campaign and leadership PAC funds. While the pronouncement was dropped in the sleepy interlude between Christmas and New Year’s, it will likely prove to be a bombshell once the regulated community has had a chance to digest it. Free Expression New York Times: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Wants to Ban Drug Ads on TV. It Wouldn’t Be Easy. By Rebecca Robbins .....Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice for health secretary, is a longtime critic of pharmaceutical advertising on TV, arguing that it leads broadcasters to more favorable coverage of the industry and does not improve Americans’ health. He has repeatedly and enthusiastically called for a ban on such ads. Elon Musk, who is spearheading a government cost-cutting effort, last month wrote on X, his social-media site, “No advertising for pharma.” And Brendan Carr, Mr. Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Communications Commission, said that his agency could enforce any ban that is enacted. “I think we’re way, way too overmedicated as a country,” he said. The push against TV drug ads threatens to dent the revenues of pharmaceutical companies, which can make back in sales five times as much as they spend on commercials, according to some analysts. It could also create uncertainty for major television networks, which bring in substantial revenue from pharmaceutical advertisers trying to reach older viewers, who tend to take more medications. Online Speech Platforms Wall Street Journal: Meta Ends Fact-Checking on Facebook, Instagram in Free-Speech Pitch By Gareth Vipers .....Meta Platforms is ending fact-checking and removing restrictions on speech across Facebook and Instagram, a move Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said was an attempt to restore free expression on its platforms. “We’re going to get back to our roots and focus on reducing mistakes, simplifying our policies and restoring free expression on our platforms,” Zuckerberg said in a video Tuesday. “More specifically, we’re going to get rid of fact-checkers and replace them with Community Notes similar to X, starting in the U.S.” The pivot comes as Zuckerberg has looked to build ties with the incoming Trump administration. The day before Thanksgiving, the billionaire CEO dined with Donald Trump on a patio at the president-elect’s private Mar-a-Lago club. Meta has since donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. The States Tampa Bay Times: As Florida colleges change protest rules, some see voices stifled By Divya Kumar .....In the months since pro-Palestine protests on college campuses captured the nation’s attention, Florida’s universities have implemented new rules that some feel target certain viewpoints. While the policies don’t explicitly target protests, some are questioning the broader impact of what civic engagement is permitted on colleges. Early Returns - Law and Politics with Jan Baran (Podcast): AG Jason Miyares – Addressing Virginia’s Legal Issues .....Attorney General of Virginia and son of an immigrant who fled Fidel Castro’s Cuba, Jason Miyares, has recently announced his campaign for reelection and now talks with Jan Baran about the role of attorney general and the issues facing Virginia. Read an article you think we would be interested in? Send it to Tiffany Donnelly at [email protected]. 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