MY EMAIL FROM BEYONCE. It looks like Ann Althouse got the same email that Beyonce sent to me… (I’m on the email list for tens of political organizations of all political stripes, because I’m a student of fundraising techniques and attendant legal rules). This has got to be the biggest year for political raffles, prizes, and trips. The small print on the Beyonce email:
No purchase, payment, or contribution necessary to enter or win. Contributing will not improve chances of winning. Void where prohibited. Entries must be received by September 13th, 2012. You may enter by contributing to Obama for America here, or click here to enter without contributing. One (1) winner will receive the following prize package: round-trip tickets for winner and a guest from within the fifty U.S. States, DC, or Puerto Rico to a destination to be determined by Sponsor; hotel accommodations; tickets for winner and a guest to an event of Sponsor; and the opportunity to meet with President Obama, Jay-Z and Beyonce at such event (approximate retail value of all prizes $1,600). Odds of winning depend on number of entries received. Promotion open only to U.S. citizens, or lawful permanent U.S. residents who are legal residents of 50 United States, District of Columbia and Puerto Rico and 18 or older (or age of majority under applicable law). Promotion subject to Official Rules and additional restrictions on eligibility. Sponsor: Obama for America, 130 E. Randolph St., Chicago, IL 60601.
Not only do you have fundraising rules to worry about, but also the law of raffles, etc. of all 50 states, DC, and Puerto Rico.
FREE SPEECH IN WY. Story here. “Free Speech’s case ended up in the courtroom of U.S. District Court Judge Scott Skavdahl after Free Speech and the Wyoming Liberty Group concluded they couldn’t get clarity from the six-member FEC.”
WHY CAMPAIGN FINANCE MATTERS. CBS. “Proponents of such looser rules say there should be few, if any, limits on what is essentially free speech. They say that not just the wealthy benefit; everyone can pool money to run ads. Some say even federal disclosure rules are anathema to anonymous speech.”
STOCK VIDEO ISSUES. HuffPo. “Deanna Moffitt, an actor, comedian and writer, said she was amazed to find out that she had become part of an effort from Karl Rove’s conservative 527 organization to bash President Obama on television.”
PLANE ISSUE FOR CAMPAIGN. The Post. “Romney sat on the plane in Richmond for four hours, as reporters on board sent out Twitter messages about the unfortunate situation. His aides eventually located a substitute aircraft — offered by a NASCAR team owner — and Romney arrived home at 2:31 a.m.”
POSNER IN MADIGAN. CFIF v. Madigan. Judge Posner had an interesting take on vagueness, a common challenge to laws regulating speech: “A vague statute can deter lawful activity. Cautious persons will want to avoid even a small probability of being found to have violated it, and the safest way to do that is to avoid lawful activity that is just across the line from the unlawful—to create a buffer zone around the statutory core, just as cautious men decide not to have sex with young-looking women who probably are not below the age of consent but may be. When the lawful activity likely to be deterred by a vague statute is not extramarital sex but the exercise of free speech—a right at the apex of modern constitutional solicitude—a finding of vagueness is apt to doom the statute. FCC v. Fox Television Stations, Inc., 132 S. Ct. 2307, 2317-18 (2012).”
AD CAMPAIGN IN THE NEWS. The Times. “With nearly two months before Election Day on Nov. 6, estimated spending on television ads promoting coal and more oil and gas drilling or criticizing clean energy has exceeded $153 million this year, according to an analysis by The New York Times of 138 ads on energy issues broadcast this year by the presidential campaigns, political parties, energy companies, trade associations and third-party spenders.”
STOCK ACT UPDATE. The Post. “The judge wrote that the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act appeared to illegally infringe on federal workers’ right to privacy. The injunction does not, however, affect the law from taking effect for members of Congress and their staffs.”
POLITICAL SOCIAL MEDIA ROI. The Times. “A study of millions of Facebook users on Election Day 2010 has found that online social networks can have a measurable if limited effect on voter turnout.”
NO MORE SOLYNDRAS ACT CONSIDERATION. The bill is on the calendar here. The bill is here.
THE MOST INTERESTING FUNDRAISER IN THE WORLD. The Hill. “The actor known as ‘the most interesting man in the world’ in a series of commercials for Mexican beer Dos Equis is fundraising for the president.”
CA: FINES FOR GROUPS. Story here. “The state Fair Political Practices Commission voted unanimously to impose a combined $80,000 in fines against the three groups that fought the gay-marriage measure: No on 8 — Equality for All, the Human Rights Campaign California Marriage PAC, and the Equality California Issues PAC.”
MD: GAMBLING ADS. Story here. “A pitched TV ad war is underway in Maryland, pitting one out-of-state gaming-industry behemoth against another.”
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND.