Comments and Testimony

The Center for Competitive Politics yesterday filed an amicus brief in U.S. v. Danielczyk, a case that began in May of 2011 when a federal judge in Virginia struck down the ban on direct corporate contributions to federal candidates. The case is currently before the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

This is the testimony of Allen Dickerson before the Pennsylvania Senate Democratic Policy Committee, September 23rd, 2011.

On August 22, 2011, CCP Legal Director Allen Dickerson submitted comments to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in opposition to a Petition for Rulemaking filed with the FEC by Representative Christopher Van Hollen on April 21, 2011.

CCP believes that Congressman Van Hollen’s petition misinterprets existing law while inappropriately attempting to enact by regulatory action what Congress has already rejected in 2010′s failed DISCLOSE Act.

If this petition was approved, the FEC would require broad, consitutionally-questionable disclosure requirements on a variety of organizations.

On August 22, 2011, CCP Legal Director Allen Dickerson submitted comments to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in support of a Petition for Rulemaking filed with the FEC by the James Madison Center for Free Speech on January 26, 2010.

CCP believes that the James Madison Center for Free Speech’s petition properly aligns FEC regulations with the understanding of the First Amendment recently articulated by the Supreme Court in its January 2010 decision in Citizens United v. FEC.

The FEC should approve this peition, effectively repealing existing FEC regulations that have since been invalidated by the Supreme Court.

Written testimony of CCP Chairman Bradley A. Smith at a May 12, 2011 joint hearing of the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the United States House Committee on Small Business, concerning a proposed Executive Order by the Obama Administration that would require bidders on government contracts to disclose their political spending.

Joel Gora, Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at Brooklyn Law School and member of CCP’s Board of Academic Advisors, submitted comments to a May 12, 2011 joint hearing of the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the United States House Committee on Small Business, concerning a proposed Executive Order by the Obama Administration that would require bidders on government contracts to disclose their political spending.

CCP President Sean Parnell submitted comments to an April 12, 2011 hearing of the United States Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights, on the subject of S. 750, the Fair Elections Now Act (FENA). If passed, FENA would institute taxpayer financed elections for candidates to federally-elected offices. In our comments, CCP noted that FENA relies upon false premises and flawed analysis and would almost exclusively benefit entrenched incumbents and other political insiders without providing any noticeable benefits to the public.