Looking for one last stocking stuffer for your home’s campaign finance/election law geek?
Ron Paul fans have produced a documentary on Dr. Paul’s quixotic run for President, titled, “For Liberty: How the Ron Paul Revolution Watered the Withered Tree of Liberty.” What’s of note to us is that the documentary includes as a “bonus feature” an extensive interview with CCP Chairman Brad Smith on the role campaign finance laws play in smothering political competition and harming true grassroots efforts. Smith notes that after agreeing through his private law practice to represent Liberty Political Advertising, a for profit company selling shared advertising time for Ron Paul, he was beseiged with calls from various grassroots activists seeking advice for a variety of creative, spontaneous campaign activities. Repeatedly, Smith had to inform these activists that their activity was either illegal or that the bureaucratic hassles and lawyer’s fees would make it practically unfeasible.
Of course, if one believes that complicated laws that smother grassroots activity are good for America, and that your average citizen should have to hire a lawyer before campaigning, just like patent or anti-trust law, these problems won’t move you.
