I've been reviewing some of the blog posts and mainstream media coverage of the FEC Complaint against Fred Thompson's illegal campaign activities. So, I wanted to comment on a few things.
First, credit for this really goes to the progressive blogosphere for their great research on this issue. Without their work, I would not have realized the extent of the violations nor had the information that was assembled to create the complaint.
Second, the complaint is on solid legal ground. Holly Bailey of Newsweek gives her analysis on MSNBC, courtesy of Crooks and Liars. The New York Sun editorial board, which is known to be somewhat conservative, also agreed that the complaint is valid. The final example I'll give is from Bob Bauer, an author and scholar on election law matters. He agrees that the complaint is thorough in its content. There are many more examples that have been published on blogs, in newspapers, on internet websites, and been broadcast on radio and television. Ultimately, the Federal Election Commission will decide. For now, I'm confident in the complaint and believe that the preponderance of public opinion is as well.
Also, some of the writings say that once Thompson announces his candidacy, this will all go away. That is incorrect. In a conversation with officials at the FEC today, they confirmed what I already believed. By announcing and registering his campaign committee, it does not undo the illegal activity already committed. He is still obligated to respond to the FEC complaint and the FEC is still obligated to act on the complaint and render a decision.
Finally, I'd like to thank the active participation of folks from both sides of the political spectrum in discussing this in the comment thread. It honors me to have the supportive comments as well as the hateful ones. Yall are the best!
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6 comments:
It looks to me like your appeal rests on weak ground. Nobody knows if Thompson is going to enter the race. It's likely that Thompson will enter the race and it very well may be that he has known for quite some time. However, it's impossible to really know his mind on an absolute basis. All anyone can do is make conjectures. The problem here lies in the ambiguity of the law. The law doesn't set specific limits that are quantifiable. So, I expect that Thompson won't have a problem with the FEC. In addition, compared to other candidates, the amount Thompson has raised and the amount that he has spent is almost negligible.
I think it should be fun watching this play out. The only way that I could see this not working for us is if Bush has corrupted the FEC and somehow pressures the director to leave it alone. That, of course, would be a terrible blow to our cause. It really depends on just how corrupt Bush is.
Thank you, Lane, for your continued hard work on this. It's great to see TradMed play up this story, and tremendously amusing to see the commenters attracted to it.
You rock!
I would vote for Fred no matter what party he ran under. Hearing Rachel Maddow talk about needing to pull Law and Order reruns though has really gotten under my skin. If people really push to prevent the broadcast of shows from years ago I will fight tooth and nail against and (D) candidates. This from a person that has never voted Republican.
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