Free the Speech

Hillary the Movie is pretty funny.

Last year’s film is mostly Ken Starr-inspired and other discredited news headlines with Ann Coulter, Dick Morris, Newt Gingrich and other rightwingers saying they do not like Hillary and Bill, with dark overtones reminiscent of Jerry Falwell’s The Clinton Chronicles (1998).

What’s not funny is that in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (Docket No. 08-205) before the U.S. Supreme Court, the court will decide if the McCain-Feingold Act (the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 ("BCRA") that became law because of valid political corruption concerns about big money dominating the electoral system) mandates an oppressive and unconstitutional infringement of free speech of those behind Hillary The Movie because the film would need to be regulated as electioneering under the reporting and disclaimer requirements of McCain-Feingold.

Hillary the Movie was “advertised on the Internet, sold on DVD and shown in a few theaters (Jesse Holland, AP).” But because Hillary was running for president last year this film and others like it need to be regulated, say defenders of McCain-Feingold.

Absurd. Strike down McCain-Feingold now.

In the Wall Street Journal blog last week, the writer quotes Justice Scalia during oral arguments "admitt(ing) to feeling a little 'disoriented.' 'We are dealing with a constitutional provision, are we not, the one that I remember which said Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of the press?' he asked" of Deputy Solicitor General Malcolm L. Stewart, of the Obama's administration's DOJ.

Yes. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (Docket No. 08-205) does deal with a constitutional provision in the First Amendment, one that protects this, my and the readers' blogs, for example.

Myself, I spent a lot of time trashing Hillary and promoting Obama during the 2008 Democratic primary, so do I have to register, report and disclaim my blog here?

The smart money is that free speech will prevail in the case but the only Wisconsin voice that I have read on this case defending the First Amendment is from David Blaska.