I am speechless (which I guess is the intent of the McCain Feingold CFR bill):
A federal court Monday temporarily restored limits on political donations and advertising that it had struck down as unconstitutional, making 2004 candidates operate under the law passed by Congress last year until the Supreme Court settles the matter.
In other words, “it’s unconstitutional, and we said so, but what the hell, let’s give it a whirl.” As Attorney James Bopp Jr. puts it:
“The court agrees these provisions strip us of our rights, but they’re going to allow them to be enforced anyway,” Bopp said. “That’s just astonishing.”
JKC
How about this for a compromise?
Repeal McCain-Feingold: let the parties spend what they want on what they want. I’d add a rule requiring honest disclosure of funding sources. “This ad brought to you by Big Pharma, not “Concerned Americans for bigger jumps in Pharma stock portfolio values.”
At the same time, bring back the fairness doctrine and make stations give free blocks of time to political candidates once a week. (They are public airwaves: broadcasting couldn’t exist without federal regulation of technical standards, channel spacing, etc.)
Should make both sides happy (or piss them off equally.)