The DISCLOSE Act, unlike BCRA (in section 403), does not provide for a fast track appeal to the Supreme Court. (Sec. 501 of the Senate version.) Instead, those who seek to challenge the constitutionality of the Act’s provisions will have to rely on the lower court’s obligation to “expedite” consideration of their claims.
Day: April 29, 2010
Express advocacy: why should courts and the FEC have all the fun?
The DISCLOSE Act doesn’t seem to directly define “express advocacy”; it amends the definition of “independent expenditure” in 2 USC 431(17) to provide that the term means an expenditure by a person that, when taken as a whole, expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate, or is the functional equivalent of express […]
President Obama supports The DISCLOSE Act
President Obama released this statement today in support of The DISCLOSE Act. “I welcome the introduction of this strong bi-partisan legislation to control the flood of special interest money into America’s elections. Powerful special interests and their lobbyists should not be able to drown out the voices of the American people. Yet they work ceaselessly […]