Category Archives: campaigns

“Judge: First Amendment Protects Political Robocalls”

July 28, 2016, 12:08 pmcampaignsRick Hasen

WSJ Law Blog: Political robocalls may be an irritating feature of modern campaigning, but that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve protection under the First Amendment, a federal judge ruled. A decision handed down Wednesday in Arkansas federal court struck… Continue reading

“Is D.N.C. Email Hacker a Person or a Russian Front? Experts Aren’t Sure”

July 28, 2016, 8:29 amcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

NYT: Who is Guccifer 2.0, the self-proclaimed Romanian “lone hacker” responsible for copying thousands of emails and other files from the Democratic National Committee — a real person, or a front created by Russian intelligence officials? Technology specialists have… Continue reading

“After Lying Low, Deep-Pocketed Clinton Donors Return to the Fore”

July 28, 2016, 8:28 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

NYT reports.

“George Soros Rises Again”

July 28, 2016, 8:09 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Politico: George Soros is back. The billionaire investor, who scaled back his political giving after a then-unprecedented $27 million spending spree to try to defeat George Bush in 2004, has quietly reemerged as a leading funder of Democratic politics… Continue reading

“Lobbyists Celebrate Democratic Party’s New Embrace at Convention”

July 27, 2016, 3:39 pmcampaigns, lobbyingRick Hasen

TIME reports.

“Gianforte Wants ‘Misleading’ Campaign Ads Pulled”

July 27, 2016, 7:18 amcampaignsRick Hasen

Montana Public Radio: Republican candidate for governor Greg Gianforte is pressuring local TV stations to stop running an ad that he says falsely calls him “a millionaire from New Jersey.” Earlier this month, Gianforte’s attorneys sent a cease-and-desist letter… Continue reading

Read the St. Petersburg Ordinance Set Up as Challenge to Legality of Super PACs

July 26, 2016, 5:42 pmcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Release: Last night, on Thursday 21, 2016, the St. Petersburg City Council voted 6-1 to move forward for consideration our proposed ordinance to abolish super PACs and ban foreign corporate money in local elections. The vote followed passionate statements… Continue reading

“In Hacked D.N.C. Emails, a Glimpse of How Big Money Works”

July 26, 2016, 7:35 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

NYT: But the leaked cache also included thousands of emails exchanged by Democratic officials and party fund-raisers, revealing in rarely seen detail the elaborate, ingratiating and often bluntly transactional exchanges necessary to harvest hundreds of millions of dollars from… Continue reading

“Perkins Coie Lawyer’s Advice Helped Spark Democratic Division”

July 26, 2016, 7:19 amcampaign finance, campaigns, election law bizRick Hasen

American Lawyer: Perkins Coie’s Marc Elias, who has juggled legal roles for both the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee, saw the intersecting interests of both clients unexpectedly become public on Friday with the leak of… Continue reading

“Convention Delegates Win Settlement in Free Speech Lawsuit Against Federal Election Commission”

July 25, 2016, 8:39 amcampaign finance, campaigns, federal election commission, political partiesRick Hasen

Release: Two delegates to the Republican National Convention settled a lawsuit on Friday against the Federal Election Commission (FEC), Two Unnamed Plaintiffs v. FEC. These delegates were represented by attorneys from the Pillar of Law Institute, which was also… Continue reading

“As Democrats Gather, a Russian Subplot Raises Intrigue”

July 24, 2016, 8:20 pmcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

David Sanger for the NYT: Proving the source of a cyberattack is notoriously difficult. But researchers have concluded that the national committee was breached by two Russian intelligence agencies, which were the same attackers behind previous Russian cyberoperations at the… Continue reading