“New hope, new problem: Will Federal Election Commission shut down?”
CPI piece, with the subhead: “Agency could lose quorum just as liberals, conservatives find sliver of common ground”
Category Archives: federal election commission
FEC Commissioner Weintraub Statement on Ongoing Litigation to Stop FEC from Revealing Identity of Those Found to Have Illegally Hid Names of Contributors
Troubling:
COVER LETTER TO THE STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER ELLEN L. WEINTRAUB IN MUR 6920 (AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE UNION)
DECEMBER 19, 2017
Due to pending litigation, I must take the unprecedented step of releasing the attached statement with the identities of certain… Continue reading
FEC Commissioner Petersen Withdraws from Federal District Court Nomination after Hearing Fiasco; How Long Will He Remain on FEC?
Letter concludes: “Until the time is otherwise appropriate, I look forward to returning to my duties at the Federal Election Commission.”
“Facebook Political Ads Get Bare-Bones Guidance From FEC”
Bloomberg BNA:
Candidates and political groups may be heading into another congressional election cycle without guidance about what their ads should reveal about who’s paying to influence Facebook’s almost 160 million U.S. users.
The Federal Election Commission deadlocked along party… Continue reading
FEC Commissioner Petersen Gets Tough Questioning at Hearing to Become Federal District Court Judge
NLJ:
A nominee for a District of Columbia judgeship took a beating at his Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday when he could not define motion in limine.
U.S. district court nominee Matthew Petersen, a member of the Federal Election Commission,… Continue reading
“Election officials move closer to placing new rules on Facebook and Google”
Washington Post:
The Federal Election Commission moved a step closer to placing tighter regulations on Internet ads published on major Web platforms, marking a significant shift for an agency beset by partisan dysfunction and another sign that regulators are seeking… Continue reading
In Wake of Russian Interference on Social Media in 2016, Republican FEC Commissioners Agree to Open Rulemaking on Fixing Disclosure Rules
My oh my.
A positive (and surprising) development.
But let’s see if/what they come up with and if they can get agreement. We’ve seen groups like the Institute for Free Speech oppose the Honest Ads Act out of stated concern… Continue reading
“Trump, Twitter, and the Russians: The Growing Obsolescence of Federal Campaign Finance Law”
Tony Gaughan has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal). Here is the abstract:
Since the 1970s, federal campaign finance law has been built on four pillars. The first is contribution limits on donations to candidate… Continue reading
“FEC Commissioner Says Agency Limited in Ability to Regulate Online Political Ads”
Morning Consult:
As executives from Facebook Inc., Google Inc. and Twitter Inc. face congressional committees this week over concerns that Russian agents used their platforms in order to influence the 2016 election, a Democratic member of the Federal Election Commission… Continue reading
“FEC fines contractor that gave pro-Clinton super PACs illegal cash”
CPI:
The Federal Election Commission has fined Boston-based Suffolk Construction Co., a federal government contractor, for making illegal contributions to a pro-Hillary Clinton super PAC, according to a letter from the agency.
The $34,000 settlement between the FEC and Suffolk… Continue reading
“Campaign watchdogs cite ‘significant concerns’ if Texas lawyer Trey Trainor gets FEC post”
Dallas News:
Campaign watchdog groups blasted Austin lawyer Trey Trainor on Wednesday, warning senators that his ties to the White House and views on campaign finance should raise “significant concerns” should he win a spot on the Federal Election… Continue reading
“Trump Nominee to FEC Tried to Shred Texas’ Already-Weak Ethics Laws”
Christopher Hooks for the Texas Observer.
“How the FEC Turned a Blind Eye to Foreign Meddling”
Ann Ravel for Politico:
I suggested to the commission that the FEC consult with internet and tech experts to discuss how the agency’s current approach may or may not fit with future innovations. Starting this conversation should have been noncontroversial,… Continue reading
“Trump’s FEC nominee has questioned the value of disclosing political donors”
Matea Gold for WaPo:
James E. “Trey” Trainor III, the conservative Texas lawyer nominated by President Trump this week to serve on the Federal Election Commission, has challenged the principle that the public benefits from the disclosure of political donors,… Continue reading