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November 03, 2005

The US House of Representatives voted Wednesday not to exempt online political expression - blogs, emails, and other forms of Internet communication - from campaign finance laws. Lawmakers had warned that the Internet may have opened up a new loophole for election spending. The House voted 225-182 (check the roll call vote for your representative) in favor of House Resolution 1606 (pdf). But don't let the vote confuse you. It was on a motion to suspend the rules and adopt the bill, which required a 2/3 majority. The measure had a 225-182 vote, a clear majority, and suggests that it could yet pass. The Republicans voted in favor, 179 to 38, while the Democrats opposed the measure, 143 to 46.

The bill is necessary because the FEC has been instructed by the federal courts to promulgate rules governing political speech and campaign spending online in accordance with the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law (pdf). AP has more. Bloggers covering the bill: Foreign Dispatches, Lone Star Times

Posted by Joshua Claybourn at November 3, 2005 03:23 PM

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Posted by: Scof at November 3, 2005 09:35 PM | permalink

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