Trump Purports to Fire FEC Commissioner Ellen Weintraub

February 6, 2025, 3:58 pmchicanery, federal election commissionRick Hasen

Commissioner Weintraub: Received a letter from POTUS today purporting to remove me as Commissioner and Chair of the FEC. There's a legal way to replace FEC commissioners-this isn't it. I've been so fortunate to serve the American people and stir… Continue reading

“Altered image of Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate in new ad raises ethics concerns”

February 6, 2025, 2:09 pmcheap speech, judicial electionsRick Hasen

AP: A new television attack ad in Wisconsin’s hotly contested Supreme Court race features a doctored image of the liberal candidate, a move that her campaign claims could be a violation of a recently enacted state law. The image in… Continue reading

“A Preview of the Ohio State Law Journal 2025 Symposium”

February 6, 2025, 12:32 pmUncategorizedNed Foley

The latest episode of the Law & Democracy podcast is a preview for the symposium that the Ohio State Law Journal is hosting to discuss Nick Stephanopoulos’s important new book Aligning Election Law. More details about the symposium will be… Continue reading

Brennan Center: “New York State’s Public Campaign Financing Program Empowers Constituent Small Donors”

February 6, 2025, 11:50 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

New analysis: Candidates relied much more on small donations from constituents. The program has made in-district contributions of $250 or less a central component of fundraising. These donations leaped from less than 5 percent of overall funding in recent… Continue reading

“New LEO Report Out Today”

February 6, 2025, 11:48 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Michelle Schafer at Electionline: Local Election Officials (LEOs) are “stewards of democracy” who are positioned at the frontline of elections in the United States. They ensure fair, free, accessible, and secure elections. LEOs skillfully manage the new obstacles that come with… Continue reading

“Trump’s Justice Department shutters specialized FBI team combatting foreign election interference threats”

February 6, 2025, 7:22 amchicanery, election subversion riskRick Hasen

CNN: The FBI is preparing to disband a team of specialists charged with combatting foreign threats to US elections, a source familiar tells CNN. The shuttering of the FBI Foreign Influence Task Force and planned reassigning of team… Continue reading

New Attorney General Bondi, Who Was Once a Foreign Agent for Qatar, Diminishes DOJ Criminal Oversight of Foreign Agents

February 6, 2025, 7:20 amDepartment of Justice, lobbyingRick Hasen

Bloomberg Law: The Justice Department is scaling back enforcement of laws governing foreign lobbying transparency and bribes of foreign officials, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced. The Criminal Division’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act unit will prioritize investigations related to foreign bribery… Continue reading

“Johnson County Sheriff’s Office finds no evidence of voter fraud in 2020”

February 6, 2025, 7:12 amfraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

Fox4: After about 880 hours of investigating and $88,000 spent, the Johnson County, Kansas Sheriff’s Office said it has turned up no evidence of voter fraud in 2020. The sheriff’s office said in September 2021, three people reported 100 allegations… Continue reading

Georgia: “Secretary of State asks Attorney General to drop DOJ lawsuit over controversial voting law”

February 6, 2025, 7:08 amDepartment of Justice, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

WSB: Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is sending a letter to the newly sworn-in United States Attorney General Pam Bondi asking that she “reconsider and withdraw” the lawsuit the Department of Justice filed in 2021. “When she sees our… Continue reading

“Justice Dept. Says It Will Not Bring Charges in Investigation of Project Veritas”

February 6, 2025, 7:05 amchicaneryRick Hasen

NYT: The Justice Department said on Wednesday that it would not bring charges against anyone affiliated with the group Project Veritas over their role in trying to publish the contents of a diary that had been stolen from Joseph R.… Continue reading

“The Liar’s Dividend: Can Politicians Claim Misinformation to Evade Accountability?”

February 6, 2025, 6:45 amcheap speechRick Hasen

Kaylyn Schiff, Daniel Schiff, and Natalia Bueno have written this article for APSR. Here is the abstract: This study addresses the phenomenon of misinformation about misinformation, or politicians “crying wolf” over fake news. Strategic and false claims that stories are… Continue reading

ELB Podcast 6:5: Fair Elections and Voting Rights: What Ahead in the Next Four Years? (Gardner, Karlan, Richer)

February 5, 2025, 5:08 pmELB Podcast, legislation and legislatures, Supreme Court, voting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Season 6, Episode 5 of the ELB Podcast: What will the new Trump Administration and the new Congress do when it comes to voting rights and fair elections? What challenges face state and local election officials going forward? Will the… Continue reading

“The SAVE Act Would Disenfranchise Millions of Citizens”

February 5, 2025, 12:20 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

New from CAP: The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act has been reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. This legislation would require all Americans to prove their citizenship status by presenting documentation—in person—when registering to vote or updating their… Continue reading

Must-Read Charlie Savage NYT: “Trump Brazenly Defies Laws in Escalating Executive Power Grab” (Gift link)

February 5, 2025, 7:52 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

NYT: In his first term, President Trump seemed to relish ripping through the norms and standards of self-restraint that his predecessors had respected. Three weeks into his second term, hand-wringing about norms seems quaint. Other presidents have occasionally ignored or… Continue reading

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