[Political Activity Law]

FREE SPEECH STATES.   WSJ.  “America’s media are obsessed with Washington, but in our federal system much of the law-writing takes place in the 50 states. This is one reason to welcome a new index detailing how well each state protects the First Amendment right to engage in political speech.”

TREVOR POTTER SPOTLIGHT.   BUS.  “According to Potter, who worked for the George H.W. Bush administration now runs Campaign Legal Center, this exchange of funds could spell major trouble for Trump and his team.”

FTC AND AGS INQUIRE.   D.  “The social network’s stock is trading at $155.15 this morning, down nearly 3% from Monday’s opening stock price of $160.82.”

COMPLAINTS AND LOBBYING.  ABC.  “As many as 30 Trump administration appointees may be in violation of ethics guidelines intended to prevent officials from working in agencies they once lobbied, a government watchdog said Monday.”

MD:  TRANSFER FLAGGED.   BS.  “A donation to the campaign of County Council candidate Janet Siddiqui’s has been referred for investigation to the state prosecutor’s office by the state Board of Elections.”

NY:  ETHICS BLAST.   ATU.  “Gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon tore into Gov. Andrew Cuomo Monday, saying he’s a bully, has failed to clean up the Capitol’s notorious political corruption…”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.  

CA:  FPPC CLASH AND CHANGE ON FUNDS.   LAT.  “The state’s five-member Fair Political Practices Commission is locked in a power struggle in which some part-time members, with support from attorneys representing candidates and elected officials, are proposing that Chairwoman Jodi Remke be required to share oversight power on budgets, court cases, hiring and policy…”

CA:  POTENTIAL FINE.  TS.  “California’s campaign finance watchdog wants to impose $36,500 in fines on a water district board member, in part for not closing a legal defense fund for his unsuccessful fight to serve on two elected bodies at the same time.”

CO:  COMPLAINT ON COMPLAINTS.  DP.  “Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams is under investigation by a grand jury for how his office handled several campaign finance complaints, the Denver District Attorney’s Office has confirmed.”

NY:  ALLEGED BRIBERY.  NYT.  “A Long Island restaurateur testified under oath on Thursday that he steered tens of thousands of dollars to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s political campaigns in return for favorable treatment by the city.”

WA:  CURBING COMPLAINTS.   HN.  “Lawmakers passed a bill overhauling how Washington enforces its campaign finance laws but the state’s top lawyer and largest daily newspapers contend it goes too far and want the governor to veto it.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

AAN REACTION.   NLR.  “In a consequential decision, a federal court in Washington, D.C. concluded yesterday that all ‘electioneering communications’ presumptively count as political spending for purposes of determining whether a group should register as a political action committee and disclose its donors.”

AZ:  BALLOT TITLE ISSUE.  DS.  “Usually, fighting over ballots happens only after elections.   But this week, Jan Harnik, the Palm Desert City Council member running against incumbent Supervisor Manuel ‘Manny’ Perez, filed suit over the title by which Perez will be referred to on this year’s ballots.”

CA:  TARGETING INTERNET ADS.   DJ.  “The bill would require social media platforms to include a link labeled ‘Who funded this ad?’ next to text indicating the content is promoted or sponsored and profile pages for committees to display their top three contributors in the cover photo, which would be easily viewable once viewers click on the ‘Who funded this ad?’ link.”

CA:  DONATION QUESTIONS.   EBT.  “Fremont’s police union donated $10,000 to Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley’s re-election campaign while her office investigated three officers’ actions in the fatal separate shootings of two people last year, campaign finance records show.”

ND:  PETITIONS OK.   USN.  “Supporters of changing the North Dakota constitution to include a sweeping government ethics overhaul can begin circulating petitions to try to bring the issue to voters.”

WI:  REFORM EFFORT.   CT.  “Petri, a Republican who represented the state’s 6th congressional district for 18 terms, is one of three Wisconsinites involved in Issue One’s ReFormers Caucus, a bipartisan group of nearly 200 former members of Congress and governors pushing for strengthened campaign finance regulations and a return to bipartisanship.”

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FRA:  SARKOZY CHARGED.   BB.  “Prosecutors charged former French President Nicolas Sarkozy with accepting illegal campaign contributions from Muammar Qaddafi’s regime in Libya before the 2007 French election, according to a person in a Paris prosecutor’s office familiar with the matter.”

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HAVE A GOOD DAY.