cross-posted at the blog of the Center for Competitive Politics: Ed Schultz, scofflaw on speech restictions?
As many followers of politics know, Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota has announced that he will not run for re-election in 2010, leaving the Democratic Party with the task of recruiting a candidate to take his spot on the ballot.
The Democrats apparently contacted popular progressive talk show host Ed Schultz, who spent nearly 30 years in North Dakota as a sportscaster and then host of a political radio show. Schultz is currently, among other things, the host of a political show on MSNBC, The Ed Show. In recent days on his MSNBC show, Schultz has mentioned that he was contacted about running, and mused on-air about a potential candidacy.
Not surprisingly, in doing so he may have run afoul of the complex web of laws, regulations, and policies enacted over the last 100+ years that limit what American citizens can say about candidates, campaigns, public policy, and politics in general. And it isn’t just Schultz that may have crossed into disallowed political speech, but MSNBC as well.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee* has sent a letter to the Federal Election Commission detailing the alleged transgressions of Schultz and MSBNC.
From the letter:
It has come to our attention that on January 6, 2010, Ed Schultz, host of MSNBC’s program "The Ed Show" began utilizing MSNBC as a vehicle for promoting and exploring his potential candidacy for the Democratic Party nomination for United States Senate in North Dakota...
In the absence of either a furlough on Mr. Schultz’s part from the air, or his ceasing to explore a federal candidacy while appearing on air, Mr. Schultz’s use of MSNBC airtime to explore his candidacy potentially constitutes an illegal in-kind corporate contribution by MSNBC to Mr. Schultz. Mr. Schultz’s multiple statements make clear that he is exploring a Senate candidacy, and he has discussed the matter on a television program MSNBC, at a minimum, airs, pays Mr. Schultz to host, buys advertising space for, and provides production facilities and resources. Setting aside Mr. Schultz’s own legal obligations under federal campaign finance and The Internal Revenue Code related to such candidate exploration, liability for which falls solely and squarely upon Mr. Schultz himself, MSNBC as a corporate entity is prohibited from contributing in any way to his exploration of a Senate candidacy.
If ever there were a perfect example of the absurd depths to which our campaign finance laws and regulation of political speech have descended, this has to be at least a contender for the title. Imagine, a public figure who has hosted radio and television broadcasts for the better part of 30 years, all of a sudden being dictated what they can and cannot say on the air simply because they are considering running for public office, and relating the details of their considerations?
*Ever notice how it’s almost always rival campaigns, political parties, or advocacy groups filing complaints like this? There’s a lesson here about the use of campaign finance regulations and their use as a form of political harassment by opponents.
Sean Parnell
President
Center for Competitive Politics
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