CITIZENS UNITED FILES SUIT OVER LIMITS FOR ISSUE ADS

New Court Battle with FEC over Hillary Clinton Film

Washington, D.C. — As it prepares to release its hard-hitting political documentary, Hillary: The Movie, Citizens United, a grassroots advocacy organization, led by election law attorney James Bopp, Jr., today filed suit against the Federal Election Commission, arguing that issue-oriented television ads are protected by the First Amendment and should not be subject to disclosure requirements under McCain-Feingold campaign finance law.
At issue are sections of the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act ("McCain-Feingold") that imposed a blackout period before elections on television advertisements that mentioned the name of a federal candidate -- "electioneering communications." Earlier this year, the United States Supreme Court, in Federal Election Commission vs. Wisconsin Right to Life, ruled that groups could not be prohibited from running "genuine issue ads" during the blackout period, but the FEC has insisted that such groups must still put disclaimers on the ads and file reports about the ads, including naming their contributors. Citizens United is challenging these disclosure requirements, arguing the ads for the film Hillary: The Movie, is a commercial ad, exempted in recent FEC rulemaking, and that disclosure requirements cannot be applied to such ads consistent with the First Amendment.
Citizens United has retained James Bopp, Jr., the Indiana attorney who successfully argued the Wisconsin Right to Life case.
In a complaint filed with the U.S. District Court today, Bopp asserts that Citizens United "intends to publish advertisements that will meet the statutory definition of electioneering communications…but are not properly considered electioneering communications for any purpose, including disclosure, because the 'ads may reasonably be interpreted as something other than as an appeal to vote for our against a specific candidate, …are not the functional equivalent of express advocacy and therefore fall outside the scope of McConnell's holding.'"
Citizens United has asked for a injunction so that it may begin running its ads by the first of the year.
Citizens United is a national 500,000 member, conservative grassroots advocacy organization dedicated to restoring government to citizens' control and reasserting the traditional American values of limited government, free enterprise, strong families, and national sovereignty and security. Citizens United Productions is dedicated to producing thoughtful documentaries to educate citizens about significant public policy issues. Its most recent production, Rediscovering God in America, is available on DVD. Other films include "Celsius 41.11," "Border War" and "Broken Promises: The United Nations at 60.      

Gov. Romney: All Parts Of The Conservative Coalition

Michael Novak: "Why I Decided to Support Mitt Romney"

Why I Decided to Support Mitt Romney
By Michael Novak
 
National Review beat me to it, alas, but I have been deciding to come out publicly for Mitt Romney for some days now. I have been supporting him privately for weeks, though I was trying to avoid supporting anybody publicly.
 
But the attacks upon Romney's religion have been a last straw. They are just not fair. I remember his father's campaigns and what an upright man he was — and no one even breathed a word against him because of his religion.
...
Over two public generations now, the Romney family has given us examples of upright, decent, warm lives, given to public commitment even though they did not have to be.
...
Someone has to protest, in the name of Christianity itself, that spreading bigotry and hatred for the sake of winning a political campaign is wrong. I for one don't want to let this issue of bigotry and suspicion pass by without protest — and without open support for its victim. The least Americans can do is speak up for each other on matters of religious liberty.
 
Romney is a good, executive-keen man, and without this mud he would earn the respect and love of the American people on his own.
 
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=NTc5NjdiNWVhNThmZDJhZWYwMzM4ZmIyNjgxM2MwODI

MITT ROMNEY AT THE DES MOINES, IA GOP DEBATE

Fox News' Frank Luntz: "When we do these debates, usually there is some sort of a split in how people react in terms of winners or losers. We do not have a loser this time, but clearly, Mitt Romney was the winner." (Fox News' "Live," 12/12/07)
 
·        Luntz: "When Mitt Romney talked about education, it was an absolute home run. Romney's communication of education talked about his background and it was very effective in his presentation." (FOX News' Post-Debate Coverage, 12/12/07)
 
·        Luntz: "[Romney] united both elements of the Republican Party.  And not only was his language effective, but they thought that the job that he did was very well-communicated." (FOX News' Post-Debate Coverage, 12/12/07)
 
·        Luntz: "It was a very good day for Mitt Romney – very effective." (FOX News' Post-Debate Coverage, 12/12/07)
 
National Review's Kathryn Jean Lopez: "Mitt won – sounded presidential, competent, made a case for himself, and was optimistic but realistic about the threats we face. He's hit his stride." (Kathryn Jean Lopez, "Romney, the Manager," National Review's The Corner, http://corner.nationalreview.com/, Posted 12/12/07)
 
·        Lopez: "…he seems to be focusing on his managerial skills in a big way this debate. Strikes me as a smart idea." (Kathryn Jean Lopez, "Romney, the Manager," National Review's The Corner, http://corner.nationalreview.com/, Posted 12/12/07)
 
The Atlantic's Marc Ambinder: "Mitt Romney had a hell of a good afternoon." (Marc Ambinder, "First Take: The Final Republican Debate," The Atlantic, http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com, Posted 12/12/07)
 
·        Ambinder: [Romney] seemed more sinewy than usual, less programmed, quite (dare we say) presidential, and even-tempered." (Marc Ambinder, "First Take: The Final Republican Debate," The Atlantic, http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com, Posted 12/12/07)
 
National Review's Rich Lowry: "Romney wins in a romp. Positive and substantive." (Rich Lowry, "Luntz Focus Group," National Review's "The Corner," http://corner.nationalreview.com/=, Posted 12/12/07)
 
·        Lowry: "Romney nails his answer to the tax question." (Rich Lowry, "Middle Income Families," National Review's "The Corner," http://corner.nationalreview.com/=, Posted 12/12/07)
 
·        Lowry: "I think Romney's tax answer was so good with its emphasis on 'middle class families' is that so far the only candidate to try to address the anxieties of the middle class is Huckabee. Romney needs to get on that territory, but provide better policy answers than Huckabee. Which is exactly what he did." (Rich Lowry, "Off The Charts," National Review's "The Corner," http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/=, Posted 12/12/07)
 
·        Lowry: "Another plug for 'middle class families' from Mitt. It's important for him to keep hitting on it." (Rich Lowry, "Another Plug For 'Middle Class Families'," National Review's "The Corner," http://corner.nationalreview.com/=, Posted 12/12/07)
 
Commentary's John Podhoretz: "Romney says it's incredibly important that the next president should be a conservative. We need to follow Ronald Reagan's model: social conservatives, economic conservatives and foreign policy conservatives. I want to draw on those strengths. Very strong answer." (John Podhoretz, "LIVE: Blogging the Republican Debate Part Two," Commentary's "Contentions" www.commentarymagazine.com/, Posted 12/12/07)
 
·        Podhoretz: "Quick call on the debate: Romney is very good." (John Podhoretz, "LIVE: Blogging the Republican Debate Part Two," Commentary's "Contentions" www.commentarymagazine.com/, Posted 12/12/07)
 
The Weekly Standard's Richelieu: "Romney on his game." (Richelieu, "Richelieu: The Iowa Debate," The Weekly Standard's "Campaign Standard," www.weeklystandard.com/, Posted 12/12/07)
 
National Review's Jim Geraghty: "The issues – education, the budget – played to [Gov. Romney's] strengths." (Jim Geraghty, "Iowa PBS and the Des Moines Register: Making CNN Look Good," National Review's "The Campaign Spot," http://campaignspot.nationalreview.com/, Posted 12/12/07)

an absolute home run

Frank Luntz at Fox News reviews Governor Romney's answer on education and deems it "an absolute home run" according to his focus group's dial testing.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AchGxcvPbQ4
 
FRANK LUNTZ: When Mitt Romney talked about education, it was an absolute home run. He united both elements of the Republican party, and not only was his language effective, but they thought that the job he did was very well communicated.  Let's take a look:
 
GOV. MITT ROMNEY: We've made the same effort in our state, actually before No Child Left Behind was passed. We test our kids. We have high standards. We teach them in English, English immersion. We say to be successful in America, you've got to speak the language of America. We also put in place incentives for kids to do well. For those that take the graduation exam, which you have to take to get out of high school, we say that you're going to get, if you score in the top 25 percent of the test, a four-year tuition-free scholarship to a Massachusetts institution of higher learning. The federal government insists on those tests and those standards and it's key. Let me continue: I think we also have to have higher pay for better teachers and people who are not good teachers ought to find a different career.
 
LUNTZ: Not good pay for not good teachers. Romney's communication of education talked about his background, and he was very effective in his presentation. 

Those who know him best.. DESCRIBE HUCKABEE'S RECORD ON EDUCATION

DESCRIBE HUCKABEE'S RECORD ON EDUCATION
 
RHETORIC:

 
Huckabee Claimed To Have The Most Impressive Education Record. HUCKABEE: "I had also the most, I think, impressive education record." (Iowa Public Television/The Des Moines Register, Republican Presidential Candidate Debate, Des Moines, IA, 12/12/07)
 
REALITY:

 
According To The National Assessment Of Educational Progress, Arkansas Ranked Below Average In All Four Major Criteria In 2007 – Mathematics And Reading In Both Grade 4 And In Grade 8. (U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
In 2007, Massachusetts Ranked 1st With An Average Score Of 252 By Fourth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Mathematics Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
·         In 2007, Arkansas Ranked 33rd With An Average Score Of 238 By Fourth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Mathematics Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
In 2007, Massachusetts Ranked 1st With An Average Score Of 298 By Eighth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Mathematics Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
·         In 2007, Arkansas Ranked 43rd With An Average Score Of 274 By Eighth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Mathematics Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
In 2007, Massachusetts Ranked 1st With An Average Score Of 236 By Fourth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Reading Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
·         In 2007, Arkansas Ranked 38th With An Average Score Of 217 By Fourth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Reading Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
In 2007, Massachusetts Ranked 2nd With An Average Score Of 273 By Eighth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Reading Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
·         In 2007, Arkansas Ranked 41st With An Average Score Of 258 By Eighth Graders On The National Assessment of Educational Progress Reading Exam. ( U.S. Department Of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, http://nationsreportcard.gov, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
For 2006-2007, Arkansas Was Ranked As The 32nd Smartest State. (Morgan Quinto Press Website, "Results Of The 2006 Smartest State Award," www.morganquitno.com, Accessed 11/23/07)
 
·         For 2006-2007, Massachusetts Was Ranked As The 2nd Smartest State.  (Morgan Quinto Press Website, "Results Of The 2006 Smartest State Award," www.morganquitno.com, Accessed 11/23/07)

Hitting Huckbottom

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Hitting Huckbottom

Posted by: Hugh Hewitt  at 8:41 AM

Huck asks in this Sunday's New York Times Magazine, "Don't Mormons believe that Jesus and the devil are brothers?"

No word yet on whether the former Arkansas governor asked if the Jews killed Jesus or if Catholics pray to Mary as a god.

When your campaign is in trouble, it is better to focus on the trouble and fix, not set it ablaze.

If asked about this I hope Governor Romney responds that "It is unfortunate that Governor Huckabee wants to turn a Republican primary into a theological shout down, but I won't be participating.  Questions about Mormon doctrine can be addressed to Church officials.  I'm not sure what kind of endorsement he is seeking with that sort of remark, but I am content to get the endorsement of the editors of The National Review."

Update: Dan Riehl has more.  As does Article VI Blog.