Some candidates will go to great lengths to win a campaign. Some may even snub the Constitution in the process.
That’s precisely what the Obama campaign has been doing in an attempt to keep the National Rifle Association (NRA) from airing political ads accusing presidential candidate Barack Obama of hiding a long-standing anti-Second Amendment record.
In what appears to be a direct assault on Constitutionally-protected speech, the Obama camp is bullying media outlets with threats of lawsuits in an attempt to censor the ads. According to news reports, Robert Bauer, general counsel to the Obama campaign wrote a letter dated September 23, 2008 to various TV stations in Pennsylvania and Ohio, stating that “[f]or the sake of both FCC licensing requirements and the public interest, your station should refuse to continue to air this advertisement.” The controversy continues with reports that Obama and the Democratic National Committee are calling on followers to contact the stations and demand that they pull the ads.
Recently, Reid A. Cox, Legal Director for the Center for Competitive Politics, joined CFIF’s Renee Giachino to discuss campaign finance laws and First Amendment precedent applicable to elections and candidates.
What follows is the interview originally heard on "Your Turn — Meeting Nonsense With Commonsense" on WEBY 1330 AM, Northwest Florida's talk radio…[Listen to the interview here.]