Eugene Volokh’s contribution to the Balkinization symposium on my Cheap Speech book begins:

Rick Hasen’s book identifies a tremendously serious problem; and it offers only modest solutions. And rightly so, I think: As the book correctly points out, more aggressive restrictions (such as bans on supposedly “misleading” advocacy) will likely be cures that are worse than the disease, however serious the disease might be.

I therefore have little quarrel with many of Rick’s suggestions. But I do want to talk briefly about the problem of foreign speech that may influence election campaigns, which Rick suggests should be even more restricted than it is now (see pp. 102-09).

Protecting American self-government from undue foreign influence is of course quite appealing, especially for people (like me) who have a mindset that’s more nationalist than universalist. I don’t view myself as a citizen of the world; I’m a citizen of a particular nation. If I’m stranded in Elbonia, I’m not going to call the UN for help; I’ll call the American Embassy. It is my nation, not the world, that I expect to defend me against peril. In turn, I’d like to see my fellow citizens make political decisions without excessive interference by foreign countries, even friendly ones but especially adversarial ones (such as Russia). “God gave all men all Earth to love / But, since our hearts are small / Ordained for each one spot should prove / Beloved above all.” Our spot, for us to govern; and I’m sure many citizens of other countries think the same of theirs.

At the same time, much important information relevant to American political debates comes from foreign citizens. Some are people living in the U.S. on temporary work or student visas. Many are in foreign countries; they could be ordinary citizens, political activists, scholars, or politicians. They may be able to convey important facts and ideas about the effects of American foreign policy; or about American actions bearing on world problems (such as climate change or telecommunications technology or artificial intelligence or food production); or about foreign problems that might call for American help.

They might offer some information about the foreign activities of American politicians or business leaders. They might be foreign religious figures who want to exhort their American followers to act consistently with their shared religions. They might be journalists for foreign newspapers who are writing about American politics for a world audience, including an American audience. And they might even be foreign government employees (such as academics, much as Rick and I are employees of an American government) or others who are actually or allegedly linked in some way to a foreign government….