7 GOP Senators Threaten Filibuster on 527 Bill
Congratulations are in order for Senator George Allen and six other Republicans who this morning publicly declared their opposition to the outrageous anti-free speech provisions added to the House version of the lobby reform bill. They sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist that concluded "We strongly oppose adding the anti-free speech provisions of H.R. 513 to the lobbying reform bill, or any other bill. "If such provisions are added to legislation scheduled for a Senate vote, we would give serious consideration to supporting extended debate on the bill." By leading the effort in the United States Senate against the House-passed provisions added to the lobbying reform bill that would stifle "527" nonprofit organizations, these senators are helping to block what could be the broadest attack on the First Amendment by the Federal Government in modern history. Our heartfelt thanks go to Senators Allen, Sam Brownback, Tom Coburn, Jim DeMint, Michael Enzi, John Sununu and David Vitter for their outstanding work to defend the First Amendment. Here is the text of their letter. We have also posted a copy of the signed version of the letter in Adobe Acrobat: bq. Dear Majority Leader Frist: bq. As Republicans, we strongly believe in freedom, including freedom of expression and association. We campaigned for office on the principles of a limited and constitutional government. As elected officials we took an oath of office to "support this Constitution." bq. The First Amendment's dictates are a model of clarity: "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech." Yet the House of Representatives approved a bill (H.R. 513) that proposes new restrictions on speech about politicians and policies to be enforced under the threat of criminal penalties. The House then added the provisions of H.R. 513 to the Senate's lobbying reform bill. bq. One of the four pillars of a free and just society is freedom of speech. As George Washington once said, "If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter." bq. The targets of the bill's speech restrictions are nonprofit advocacy groups organized under section 527 of the tax laws. The groups pose no threat of corruption as they are required to disclose all donors, barred from urging voters to support or oppose a candidate, and prohibited from coordinating with political parties or elected officials. Rather than restrict others, we should expand people's freedom of association and speech to political organizations and committees. bq. While many rightly criticized the McCain-Feingold bill for banning TV and radio ads within 60 days of an election, what justification is there to prohibiting any communication costing over $1,000 that mentions a congressman's name in any medium, 365 days a year, if done through one of these independent citizens' groups? bq. Some say this bill is needed to stop the wealthy from funding propaganda, but the bill appropriately places no limits on the wealthy to fund speech on their own. Instead, it foolishly restricts the ability of hundreds of thousands of citizens to join together to speak out about the nation's future. bq. Republicans do not need, and should not attempt, to muzzle their opponents. The increase in free speech over the last two decades made possible by the growth of talk radio, cable TV and the Internet has benefited our Party, which allowed us to promote individual freedom and opportunity that has led to unprecedented prosperity for our nation. bq. We strongly oppose adding the anti-free speech provisions of H.R. 513 to the lobbying reform bill, or any other bill. bq. If such provisions are added to legislation scheduled for a Senate vote, we would give serious consideration to supporting extended debate on the bill. It is important that the American public have the opportunity to learn that their freedoms are at stake and have the sufficient time to express their opinions prior to a vote of the Senate.
