by Stephen Klein On Friday the Institute for Justice (IJ) won an important free speech victory against the Washington Public Disclosure Commission (PDC). IJ charitably refers to the PDC as "bullies." I think a more apt description of the PDC is "free-speech-hating thugs." Following a victory against such opposition, gloating is not only appropriate...

With last week's tragedy in France, it is important to pause and reflect on the importance of that most inimical of liberties, free speech. It is with fortune that America is not a regular witness to physical retaliation when dissident and unorthodox ideas are communicated. However, our national cultural and legal respect for free speech slowly dwi...

In late September I submitted comments to the Wyoming Department of Administration and Information ("A&I") opposing two proposed changes to the State of Wyoming Personnel Rules. My memo discussed two vague and overbroad provisions, one which could lead to unconstitutional abridgements of free speech and the other which unequivocally punished ap...

As Wyoming and other states consider expanding the reach of campaign finance laws to capture "dark money," some consideration of what's happening in Chicago is helpful. Aggressive campaign finance regulations, touted as combatting corruption, allow for easy manipulation of the law. We learned last week that Rahm Emanuel pulled in $400,000 in campai...

CHEYENNE – Wyoming Liberty Group attorneys Benjamin Barr and Steve Klein filed an amicus curiae (friend-of-the-court) brief in the Texas Fifth Court of Appeals at Dallas, arguing that a political contributor's convictions for organized crime, bribery and money laundering for campaign finance violations unconstitutionally abridge his First Amendment...

Steve Klein speaks with Glenn Woods on Boldrepublic.com about Internet regulation and the likely and negative outcome for free speech as the Federal Election Commission tries to expand its jurisdiction to online speech. 

After five years of gridlock, last week a majority of four of six commissioners at the Federal Election Commission finally voted to update the FEC's regulations to comply with the Citizens United decision. For years, the three commissioners representing the Democrats insisted that along with updating the regulations the commission should add new "d...

An unfortunate trend in election law is emerging across America. Campaign finance laws—first designed to supposedly eliminate corruption in government—often instead become the tools of political operatives used to delay, impede, and harass opponents. In other words, campaign finance reform itself is corrupting; its tool is the criminalization of Am...

One of the silliest carve-outs (or exceptions) in modern campaign finance law is the so-called "Socialist Workers" exemption to campaign finance reporting. The Supreme Court ruled in the 1976 case Buckley v. Valeo that if certain groups could show retaliation and oppression due to their views, they could be exempted from disclosing their contributo...

CHEYENNE – WyLiberty attorney Steve Klein submitted comments in a memorandum to the Wyoming Department of Administration and Information ("A&I") today, discussing constitutional problems with two proposed changes to the State of Wyoming Personnel Rules. The memo argues that these provisions are vague and overbroad, and threaten the free speech ...