February 21, 2025

Congress

Roll Call: Mitch McConnell’s legacy in Senate sits in the nation’s courts

By Michael Macagnone

.....Mitch McConnell will end his Senate career with his most indelible mark on the nation’s federal courts and the chamber’s judicial confirmation process, a priority that changed the chamber’s rules and solidified a conservative Supreme Court for the foreseeable future…

McConnell’s focus on a lasting impact also showed in his yearslong effort to prevent an overhaul of campaign finance law. Once he lost that fight in Congress, McConnell went to the courts to stop the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act — the 2002 law also known as the McCain-Feingold law for its principal sponsors, the late Sen. John McCain and former Sen. Russ Feingold.

The same day it was signed into law, McConnell filed a challenge on free speech grounds and was the named plaintiff at the Supreme Court. In that case, the justices would rule 5-4 ruling in McConnell v. Federal Election Commission to uphold the law’s main provisions — a ban on “soft money” to political parties and restrictions on political ads by outside groups.

But McConnell kept supporting challengers in subsequent free speech cases at the Supreme Court that would later curtail campaign finance restrictions. In a 2022 case brought by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, McConnell filed a brief that urged the court to wipe out the BCRA entirely.

“There is no reason to let BCRA limp along, no need for further piecemeal surgery by this Court: the Court should strike the entire statute,” McConnell’s brief stated.

Ed. note: Read IFS Chairman Bradley A. Smith's 2021 National Review op-ed praising McConnell's enduring commitment to free speech here.

Trump Administration

New York Times: Trump Dismantles Government Fight Against Foreign Influence Operations

By Steven Lee Myers, Julian E. Barnes, and Sheera Frenkel

.....The Trump administration is targeting government officials who had been flagging foreign interference in U.S. elections, despite ongoing concerns that adversaries are stoking political and social divisions by spreading propaganda and disinformation online, current and former government officials said.

The administration has already reassigned several dozen officials working on the issue at the Federal Bureau of Investigation and forced out others at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, part of the Department of Homeland Security, they said.

The cuts have focused on people who were not only combating false content online but also working on broader safeguards to protect elections from cyberattacks or other attempts to disrupt voting systems. In last year’s election, the teams tracked and publicized numerous influence operations from Russia, China and Iran to blunt their impact on unsuspecting voters.

Politico: Vance floats US troop withdrawal from Germany over free-speech concerns

By Chris Lunday

.....U.S. Vice President JD Vance on Thursday night suggested that the Trump administration could reconsider its military presence in Germany, tying continued American defense commitments to Berlin’s stance on free speech.

Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, Vance took direct aim at Germany’s handling of online speech restrictions, warning that the American public would not support funding the country’s defense while its government cracks down on political expression.

“Think about this,” Vance said. “Germany's entire defense is subsidized by the American taxpayer. There are thousands upon thousands of American troops in Germany today. Do you think that the American taxpayer is going to stand for that if you get thrown in jail in Germany for posting a mean tweet? Of course, they're not.”

The Courts

Reason (Volokh Conspiracy): Claim That Minnesota Agency Retaliated Against Rancher for Petitioning Legislature to Change Law …

By Eugene Volokh

.....From Wagner v. Scheirer, decided last week by Eighth Circuit Judge Bobby Shepherd, joined by Judges Jane Kelly and David Stras:

FEC

NPR: Trump wants more power over agencies. Experts worry about campaign finance regulators

By Ashley Lopez

.....President Trump's executive order Tuesday to "rein in" independent agencies is raising particular concern among those who follow the work of the Federal Election Commission, which is in charge of enforcing the country's campaign finance laws…

Adav Noti, a former FEC official who's now executive director at the nonprofit Campaign Legal Center, said the FEC, in particular, was created by Congress following the Watergate scandal to be both bipartisan and independent, so that it would not be "beholden to any particular president."

Noti notes how the FEC is unique.

"The FEC, unlike basically every other federal agency, has a role in enforcing the law against the president as a candidate and as a holder of federal office," Noti told NPR. "And that's a really unique function for the Federal Election Commission. And so for President Trump to purport to bring the FEC under his direct control seems contrary to all of the ways that Congress has structured the FEC to be independent."…

Daniel Weiner — director of the Elections and Government Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, a group critical of the president's attacks on the electoral process — said this latest order could amount to another attack on the agency's mission.

"The idea that the president can just remove the FEC commissioners and have the FEC under his thumb is very dangerous," he said. "They are asserting just total control over the agency. And to me, that's a very, very risky path we're embarking on."

The States

USA Today: NY governor won't oust Mayor Eric Adams but vows stricter oversight

By John Bacon, Eduardo Cuevas, and Jeanine Santucci

.....Gov. Kathy Hochul will not oust embattled Mayor Eric Adams from office but will attempt to impose strict new guidelines on his administration, she announced in a news conference Thursday afternoon.

The guardrails she proposed could curtail the mayor's independence as he awaits a federal judge's decision on a Justice Department motion to drop corruption charges against him.

Denver Post: Denver approves new rules for taxpayer-funded campaign matching dollars in city elections

By Elliot Wenzler

.....Denver’s Fair Elections Fund, a purse intended to help more candidates for mayor and other city offices compete financially, will have new stipulations after the City Council approved changes to its rules on Tuesday.

The fund, which was approved by voters in 2018, provides 9-to-1 matching for small-dollar contributions to campaigns, granting up to $450 of taxpayer dollars per $50 donation.

The changes, approved unanimously, will ban anonymous donations, require “neutral debates” for participating candidates, pave the way for campaign finance investigations and prohibit the use of the public money on certain things like alcohol. Before the updates, candidates were allowed to accept anonymous cash donations up to $50.