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Home Front: Politix
FEC looks at policing blogs cyberspace
2005-02-14
WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- The Federal Election Commission will soon look at ways to tighten restrictions on political activities in cyberspace, Roll Call said Monday. The idea make some FEC members uneasy.
Me too..
"I don't think the FEC should do anything that restricts or interferes with the ability of citizens at the grass-roots level to use the Internet or support the candidates of their choice," FEC Vice Chairman Michael Toner said.
Under U.S. law, coordinated communications are considered campaign contributions subject to strict limits. Regulations adopted in 2002 carved out an exemption for coordinated political communications transmitted over the Internet, which is exactly the sort of thing the FEC now wants to review.
Toner said there is no evidence Congress intended to regulate the Internet when it enacted the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. "Congress is clearly familiar with the fact that the Internet is an increasingly important tool in politics and yet did not mention it in the McCain-Feingold law so I still see no evidence that Congress intended to regulate the Internet at all," Toner said.
Yeah, but that was before the Swift Boat Vets, Rathergate, Howell Raines and Eason Jordan. If the FEC doesn't do anything, I expect McCain to try something. I'll wager they will try to say that linking to another blog or website is proof of "coordinated political communications". We need to follow this closely.
Posted by:Steve

#13   I'd surely like to see Arizonans put the fear of losing on his arrogant butt.

We tried a few years back with a petition, and there was enough momentum that it forced him to tack back. Like Jackal, I unhappily voted for him this time.
Posted by: Pappy   2005-02-14 10:09:34 PM  

#12  At some point, they'll decide that trackback is a form of coordination, if that's what it takes to shut down the critics of incumbents.
Posted by: Robert Crawford   2005-02-14 7:04:03 PM  

#11  Headline: FEC looks at policing cyberspace

If the FEC started looking at policing the liberal media, we wouldn't need conservative blogs to counteract their lies.
Posted by: Zhang Fei   2005-02-14 6:07:58 PM  

#10  Yeah, but that was before the Swift Boat Vets,...

It was also before Kerry hired Kos to shill for him on the web. This is just like their regulating advertising (with which I have problems, but it is the law). Maybe next time, Kos will have to have a picture of Kerry pop-up and say "I'm John Kerry and I paid for this blog."
Posted by: Mrs. Davis   2005-02-14 5:21:15 PM  

#9  Sorry, .com, but we have until 2010, when I hope he'll retire. I voted for him this time, too. I wasn't happy, but he has the right ideas on the war, which is the most important issue. He's pretty good on judges, too. If we can only get him to support the First and Second amendments, he'd be very good.
Posted by: jackal   2005-02-14 4:41:35 PM  

#8  McCain just doesn't like anyone else having free political speech, huh?
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-14 4:08:59 PM  

#7  You'll get free speech out of the net, just after you take the porn off.
Posted by: Floting Shang5398   2005-02-14 4:00:30 PM  

#6  You'll take my blog when you pry it from my cold, dead fingers!
Posted by: Chuck Simmins   2005-02-14 3:57:23 PM  

#5  I'd surely like to see Arizonans put the fear of losing on his arrogant butt. Maybe even let a smart up and coming youngster, some Lt Col fresh from Iraq, say, someone who can cancel out his POW status and just whoop his ass in the primary and bulldoze the Donk. That, I'd pay to see.
Posted by: .com   2005-02-14 3:45:23 PM  

#4  McCain seems to be positively irritated by that Constitution thingy. He is perplexed why everybody is always talking about it, and why people keep telling him he can't do what he wants because the Constitution won't let him. In fact, if everybody would just do what he wants, then everything would be fine--no more of this senseless argument and disagreement.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2005-02-14 3:41:31 PM  

#3  *slaps forehead*

I forgot. Sorry. Lol!
Posted by: .com   2005-02-14 3:41:07 PM  

#2  Sorry, dot com, but the first amendment only protects the LLL.
Posted by: GK   2005-02-14 3:34:03 PM  

#1  They only have jurisdiction over organizations raising and/or spending money to promote a political message, POV, or support a candidate or party.

We work real cheap. They wouldn't dare pretend thay can regulate the free discussion of individuals. The First Amendment would make child's play of turning them into sushi.

Uneasy? Hah, how about so far out of their depth that they wouldn't have the first clue what to do? Lol!

McCain. FEC. Congress. Asshats. MSM.

Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Posted by: .com   2005-02-14 2:52:27 PM  

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