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Advocacy Blog
Thursday, February 08, 2007
First Amendment Restoration Act
Representative Bartlett (R-MD) has introduced H.R. 71, the First Amendment Restoration Act. This bill would repeal the "electioneering communication" provision in the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. The "electioneering communication" ban prohibits labor unions, corporations, and nonprofits from sponsoring broadcast advertisements that have any reference to a federal candidate 30 days before a primary election and 60 days before a general election. Bartlett's press release references the Wisconsin Right to Life case that the Supreme Court will hear April 25. As proponents of nonprofit speech rights, OMB Watch is in full support of an exemption for legitimate grassroots communications from the "electioneering communication" ban. Bartlett is quoted in the press release;
The 30-60 day BCRA provision eviscerates the central purpose of the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech — the protection of political speech. This legislation would simply repeal this provision. . . . The 30-60 day provision abridges Americans' First Amendment rights. These are rights and a guarantee for self-government that must be restored to all Americans.
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Posted by Amanda Adams
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