Email from The Institute for Free Speech The Latest News from the Institute for Free Speech February 4, 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]. New from the Institute for Free Speech Statement of David Keating Before the Kansas House of Representatives Committee on Elections .....On January 30, 2025, Institute for Free Speech President David Keating gave testimony before the Kansas House of Representatives Committee on Elections on House Bill 2054. The bill, if passed into law, would improve free speech, provide more information to voters, and reduce complexity in the campaign finance laws. Read a PDF of the full testimony here. Watch the full presentation below: The Courts Bloomberg Law: DEI Officers Claim Trump Orders Threaten Free Speech in New Suit By Chris Marr .....President Donald Trump’s executive orders targeting allegedly discriminatory DEI programs in business, higher education, and elsewhere should be blocked for infringing on First Amendment and due process rights, a group of challengers said in a new federal lawsuit. Groups representing university diversity officers, college professors, and restaurant workers, along with Baltimore city officials, sued Trump and multiple federal agencies Monday in the US District Court for the District of Maryland. They claim a pair of executive orders targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion programs are so broad and overly vague that they chill the plaintiffs’ free speech under threat of both civil investigations and loss of federal funding if the Trump administration deems their DEI efforts to be illegal. New York Times: These Settlements With Trump Are Weakening Press Freedoms By Jameel Jaffer .....The spectacle of powerful media organizations debasing themselves before Mr. Trump has become so familiar that it is beginning to feel like scheduled programming… Meta’s settlement with Mr. Trump, which followed a few weeks after ABC’s, smells even more rank. Mr. Trump’s central claim in that case was that the company had unlawfully censored him in violation of the First Amendment by suspending his Facebook and Instagram accounts after the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. To settle the case, Meta agreed to pay Mr. Trump $25 million, most of which would be directed, again, to his presidential library. (If things continue this way, the Trump library will rival Alexandria’s.) But if Mr. Trump’s complaint against ABC was weak, his case against Meta was laughable. Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): Court Reaffirms First Amendment Right to Quote Epithets in University Class Discussions By Eugene Volokh .....From Friday's decision by Judge Michael Watson (S.D. Ohio) in Sullivan v. Ohio State Univ.: The Verge: NetChoice sues to block Maryland’s Kids Code, saying it violates the First Amendment By Lauren Feiner .....NetChoice has filed its 10th lawsuit in an ongoing fight against a broad slate of state internet regulations — this time against a Maryland law billed as protecting kids from inappropriate material online. It’s the latest effort to oppose what NetChoice calls an unconstitutional speech code in disguise. Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): No One-Sided Pseudonymity in Case Against Political Candidate Alleging Revenge Porn By Eugene Volokh .....From Doe v. Maloit, decided today by Magistrate Judge Kathryn Starnella (D. Colo.): The States Aberdeen Insider: Lawmakers target rivals in campaign finance measure By Austin Goss, The Dakota Scout .....A bill that would have hindered one of the men thought to be plotting a run for governor in 2026 now could hamstring two potential candidates. A panel of House lawmakers gave near unanimous clearance to Senate Bill 12 Monday, Feb. 3, legislation that would limit the amount of money that can be loaned to a state political action committee per year. Sen. Michael Rohl, a Brown County Republican, brought the proposal as part of his own package of election integrity bills. Rohl said SB 12 is intended to help stop a “loophole from becoming a pathway” — allowing loans to be given and then forgiven without financial limits. His constituent, businessman Toby Doeden, drew scrutiny last year when he loaned $100,000 to his Dakota First Action PAC. The contribution was inadvertently reported as a donation at first, well over the $10,000 limit per year currently allowed by South Dakota law. An amended campaign finance report corrected the filing to note that it was, in fact, a loan. Politico: Eric Adams’ 2021 campaign could be on the hook for $10 million By Joe Anuta and Jeff Coltin .....In a Jan. 16 letter obtained through a Freedom of Information Law request, the Campaign Finance Board informed Team Adams it was taking more time to complete an audit of his 2021 election effort after discovering bookkeeping irregularities and learning of an alleged straw donor scheme via the mayor’s federal criminal case. In the missive, the board’s general counsel doubled down on the possibility Adams would be found “in breach of certification,” the board’s most serious punishment and one that could require Adams to repay the $10.1 million in public matching funds he received during his first run for mayor. He would also be barred from receiving public monies in the future. Houston Public Media: Critics argue a Texas court ruling jeopardizes election integrity By Natalie Weber, Fort Bend County Bureau .....Just northwest of Houston, in Brenham – a town known for Blue Bell ice cream – a politician was accused of ethics violations. Prosecutors brought charges against Robbie Gail Charette, a candidate for a judicial seat in Washington County, for errors related to financial paperwork and political ads. But her attorney, Lewis Thomas, argued her case should have been first reviewed by the Texas Ethics Commission. "It violates Ms. Charette's due process. She didn't have the opportunity – neither the notice or the opportunity – to resolve these complaints administratively prior to indictment," Thomas said during oral arguments in front of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Texas' highest criminal court agreed and threw out her case in September – potentially setting a precedent that the commission has sole authority to enforce certain laws related to campaign finance, political advertising and lobbyists. Bozeman Daily Chronicle: Montana lawmakers advance bill requiring more signatures for independent, minor-party candidates By Tom Lutey, Montana Free Press .....Running for public office as an independent or minor-party candidate in Montana would get harder under a bill gaining early support in the state Legislature. House lawmakers on Friday gave early approval to House Bill 207, which would double the number of signatures independent and minor-party candidates need to qualify for office. The bill would also shorten by 50 days the amount of time candidates had to gather signatures. In the House State Administration Committee, members opposed to the bill questioned whether lawmakers were legislating against would-be challengers. 25 ABC: Gov. Abbott bans the use of AI, apps affiliated with Chinese government on Texas state-issued devices By Heidi March .....Gov. Greg Abbott issued a ban on Friday afternoon, prohibiting the use of AI and social media apps "affiliated with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP)" on government-issued devices. "Texas will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to infiltrate our state’s critical infrastructure through data-harvesting AI and social media apps," Gov. Abbott said. Bloomberg Law: California, New York Credit Card Surcharge Bans Reshape Landscape By Will Atherton .....At the heart of the legal debate surrounding attempts to limit surcharging is whether these laws infringe on merchants’ First Amendment rights. The First Amendment protects political speech and commercial speech, albeit to a lesser extent. In Expressions Hair Design, the justices determined that surcharging laws regulate commercial speech rather than conduct. They noted that traditional approaches of advertising a single cash price, plus a surcharge percentage for credit card payments, are problematic. They also said that when a single price is displayed, it must be the higher surcharged price. This opened the door for states to implement laws such as those in New York and California. Louisiana Illuminator: Judge orders LSU to reinstate law professor sidelined for political comments By Piper Hutchinson .....A state judge has ordered LSU to allow its law professor Ken Levy to return to teaching duties. The university had removed Levy from the classroom pending an investigation into alleged criticism of Gov. Jeff Landry. Levy, a tenured professor of constitutional and criminal law, sued the university earlier this week, saying it violated his First Amendment rights and its own policies regarding tenured faculty. Judge Don Johnson of the 19th Judicial District granted Levy’s request for a temporary restraining order that would allow him to return to the classroom for at least the next week. Johnson set a hearing for an injunction on Feb. 10. Read the judge’s order below. Read an article you think we would be interested in? Send it to Tiffany Donnelly at [email protected]. For email filters, the subject of this email will always begin with "Institute for Free Speech Media Update." The Institute for Free Speech is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that promotes and defends the political rights to free speech, press, assembly, and petition guaranteed by the First Amendment. Please support the Institute's mission by clicking here. For further information, visit www.ifs.org. Follow the Institute for Free Speech The Institute for Free Speech | 1150 Connecticut Ave., NW Suite 801 | Washington, DC 20036 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice