Dakota Beacon

Imagine bloggers being prohibited by law from publishing opinions or analysis on political issues during a time period close to elections. Can't happen in America? If the Democrat proponents of the "DISCLOSE Act" prevail, then the Soviet style scenario is precisely what will come to pass.

According to testimony given before the Committee on House Administration, the squishy language of the DISCLOSE Act would give the federal government the power to limit political speech throughout all modes of "electioneering communications" including internet bloggers. A particularly insidious aspect of the potential new law, according to attorney William McGinley, would be the ability of the feds to:

...[give] a free pass to labor unions and federal officeholders to attack... [companies with government contracts over $50,000] because the companies will be subject to criminal penalties for publicly defending themselves.

You read that correctly. Office holders and unions can make any accusations at all about a company and the company would be criminally prosecuted for mounting a public defense.

At the Reason Foundation, Bradley Smith and Jeff Patch of the Center for Competitive Politics observe that:

The bill... would radically redefine how the FEC [Federal Election Commission] regulates political commentary. A section of the DISCLOSE Act would exempt traditional media outlets from coordination regulations, but the exemption does not include bloggers, only “a communication appearing in a news story, commentary, or editorial distributed through the facilities of any broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine or other periodical publication…”

The DISCLOSE Act actually provides for government deciding what is and isn't political speech and what media outlets (and bloggers' websites) are and aren't covered by the act's censorship powers. If the act becomes law, then the federal government will have authority to silence any commentators that government or unions wish to silence. The threat of stiff fines or jail time would be enough to give bloggers pause before publishing posts on politics too close to election time.

How about a little memory jogger?

The First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The Obama administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress have already erased much of the power of the Constitution by passing a law that will lead to government takeover of citizens' health care. Should any clear-thinking American believe that the same big government ideologues would shy away from Soviet style speech control?

Angry yet? 162 days and counting until November 2, 2010.

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© 2010 Chuck Rogér