March 19, 2025

New from the Institute for Free Speech

This “Sunshine Week”, Shine a Light on Donor Privacy

By Tiffany Donnelly

This week is the 20^th anniversary of Sunshine Week, “a nonpartisan collaboration among groups in the journalism, civic, education, government and private sectors that shines a light on the importance of public records and open government.”

Every American has reason to celebrate government transparency and laws like the Freedom of Information Act, which protect our access to government information. Open government empowers citizens to hold officials accountable, an important feature of democracy.

However, every year activists and groups pushing for more expansive disclosure mandates attempt to co-opt the week to celebrate laws and regulations that invade the privacy of Americans who are not in government.

But transparency has nothing to do with the government publicizing the political activity and associations of private citizens. Transparency is for the government, privacy is for the people.

The Courts

National Review: Sixth Circuit to Consider Gender Ideology School Speech Case

By Carrie Campbell Severino

.....An interesting free speech claim involving gender ideology in schools made its way to the Sixth Circuit and [today] will be argued en banc. Parents Defending Education v. Olentangy Local School District Board of Education arose from a challenge to an Ohio school district’s policy to punish disfavored speech about gender identity. Specifically, the district’s anti-harassment policy barred a student from “purposefully referring to another student by using gendered language they know is contrary to the other student’s identity.”

Ed. note: Can't listen live? Stay tuned for our newest episode of "Free Speech Arguments" covering today's oral arguments.

FEC: District Court issues memorandum opinion, order in CREW v. FEC (Case No. 22-0035)

.....The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order in CREW v. FEC (Case No. 22-0035) granting Plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment and denying the Commission’s motion for voluntary remand.

Courthouse News: A Black Lives Matter protester’s conviction may hinder his First Amendment suit

By Sydney Haulenbeek

.....A North Carolina man argued before the Fourth Circuit on Tuesday that his stayed conviction after he was arrested at a Black Lives Matter demonstration should not prevent his First Amendment case against the sheriff who arrested him from moving forward.

ADF: New York AG appeals case against pregnancy centers’ freedom of speech

.....Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing two nonprofit pro-life pregnancy centers and a nonprofit network of affiliated centers filed their response brief Monday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit.

Over the past year, New York Attorney General Letitia James has taken action against 11 faith-based, life-affirming pregnancy centers in state court in an effort to silence their speech about the use of progesterone therapy to counteract the effects of the abortion drug mifepristone, a treatment that is commonly known as “abortion pill reversal.” Her enforcement action alleges—despite contrary evidence—that those centers are spreading “false and misleading” information in violation of state business fraud laws.

Courthouse News: Oregon newspaper will have to turn over confidential docs inadvertently given by attorney, Ninth Circuit rules

By Hillel Aron

.....An Oregon newspaper will have to either turn over or destroy confidential documents accidentally given to them by a plaintiff's attorney after the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday reversed a lower court's ruling that shielded the news operation.

"Does a district court have the power to order an intervenor to return or destroy confidential documents that were inadvertently disclosed to it by another party?" asked U.S. Circuit Judge Lawrence VanDyke, a Donald Trump appointee, in his 13-page ruling. "We conclude that a district court’s inherent powers provide the authority to issue such an order."

Congress

Fox News: Schumer says 'oligarchs' keep him up at night, despite his own ties to billionaires

By Deirdre Heavey 

.....Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told the hosts of "The View" on Tuesday morning that "oligarchs" running the United States keep him up at night, despite his ties to the billionaire Soros family. 

"I wake up at 3 in the morning sometimes so worried about the future of this country under these oligarchs," Schumer said on "The View."  

Free Expression

Just the News: Biden-era censorship initiatives involved 90 agencies, independent report concludes

By Greg Piper

.....Ninety federal agencies and components were involved in 57 "distinct" Biden-era censorship initiatives through direct actions, policies or rulemakings, partnerships and grants, according to a report by the Media Research Center, whose prior documentation of news-rating service NewsGuard's alleged bias played a role in subsequent congressional and agency investigations.

While the initiatives happened "behind closed doors," readers should view them "in the context" of President Biden's bully pulpit, MRC said, which promoted censorship of political opponents, called platforms un-American for "declining to contract with censorship outfits" and famously accused Facebook owner Meta of "killing people" for insufficient censorship.

The conservative watchdog emphasized that Biden Attorney General Merrick Garland "refused to prosecute any of the perpetrators" for illegal censorship and his Department of Justice "refused to even launch a single investigation" after a federal judge compared the whole-of-government effort to an "Orwellian 'Ministry of Truth.'"

Trump Administration

New York Times: Trump Fires Democrats on Federal Trade Commission

By David McCabe and Cecilia Kang

.....President Trump fired the two Democratic members of the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, a rejection of the corporate regulator’s traditional independence that may clear the way for the administration’s agenda.

The White House told the Democrats, Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya, that the president was terminating their roles, according to statements from the pair. The F.T.C., which enforces consumer protection and antitrust laws, typically has five members, with the president’s party holding three seats and the opposing party two.

Members of the F.T.C. and other independent regulatory boards are protected from removal under a 1935 Supreme Court precedent that says the president may not fire them solely over policy disagreements. Ms. Slaughter and Mr. Bedoya said they planned to challenge Mr. Trump’s decision in court.

“Today the president illegally fired me from my position as a federal trade commissioner, violating the plain language of a statute and clear Supreme Court precedent,” Ms. Slaughter, whom Mr. Trump nominated to the F.T.C. during his first term in 2018, said in a statement. “Why? Because I have a voice. And he is afraid of what I’ll tell the American people.”

Washington Post: The Columbia protest case is about immigration law, not free speech

By Tal Fortgang

.....The hair-on-fire reactions to Khalil’s detainment, which his defenders have characterized as reprisal for his pro-Palestinian activism at Columbia University in New York, are not just overblown. They are completely misplaced. This is simply not a case that implicates free speech or the First Amendment. Undisputed facts, and the law that allows the U.S. government to deport even lawful permanent residents without a criminal conviction, make that abundantly clear.

The States

NC Newsline: Citing FEMA Trump flag incident, NC lawmaker moves to protect political speech in disaster response

By Galen Bacharier 

.....A proposed North Carolina bill would ban discrimination based on political affiliation during disaster response efforts.

House Bill 251 would restrict officials from considering a person’s political party, or political speech, in distributing disaster aid money or assistance in any form.

It stemmed from an incident in Florida after Hurricane Milton, in which a FEMA worker instructed her team to avoid canvassing at homes that had Trump flags. The Florida attorney general has sued the former FEMA head and the worker for discrimination.

“That hit the mark, that upset me,” said Rep. Kelly Hastings (R-Cleveland), who’s sponsoring the bill.

“This should never happen to someone, simply for exercising the most protected speech in the United States, political speech,” he added. There have been no documented incidents of such discrimination in North Carolina.

Goldwater Institute: Standing Up for Free Speech at the Oregon Supreme Court

By John Thorpe

.....Picture it: You run a successful small business, but there’s one big catch—it’s illegal to accurately describe what you’re selling.

That’s not just kooky, it violates basic free speech rights. Now Goldwater is headed to the Oregon Supreme Court, the sixth state high court where we’ve defended constitutional liberties, to fight this illegal restriction.

A core element of the freedom of speech is the right of business owners to communicate with their customers and with the general public—the right to freely provide accurate information about the products and services the business sells. Not only does that freedom help businesses succeed; it also ensures that customers get the information they need to make informed decisions.

Oregon, however, passed a law banning shops that sell e-cigarettes and vaping products from including any words or images on their products’ packaging that the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) deems might be “attractive to minors.”