Bopp is back. James Bopp Jr., the lawyer who brought Citizens United v. FEC to the U.S. Supreme Court has been retained by the organizations that lost their suit to overturn Montana’s ban on corporate independent expenditures to take their appeal to the nation’s high court.
The political advocacy group American Tradition Partnership, along with two other corporate plaintiffs, Champion Painting and the Montana Sports Shooting Association, on Thursday asked the Montana Supreme Court to delay enforcing its decision to uphold Montana's law that bans corporations from independently spending money to support or oppose candidates for public office. They argue that the state court's decision should be put on hold until the U.S. Supreme Court reviews it.
Despite the 2010 ruling in Citizens United, which struck down a similar federal ban on corporate independent expenditures, the Montana Supreme Court last month said the 2010 ruling did not apply and that Montana’s unique history of corporate corruption and influence in Montana politics justified the state law prohibitions.
“The Supreme Court was clear in its Citizens United decision that corporate political speech is protected by the First Amendment, and you cannot ban political speech just because the speaker is a corporation,” said Bopp of Bopp, Coleson & Bostrom in Terre Haute, Ind. “Montana is not exempt from these principles.”
AG Bullock stands with the extreme socialists in MT. They are still running on rules developed in the 1890's...They are still hoping that we all revert back to horse and buggy. Well, I am afraid to tell them that this is the 21st century. They need to get off their horse and motor into the future. Old contribution laws do not allow the public any real say in elections and that is what socialists thrive on ..Their out of state PAC's can then rule and control local politics..And local politics has turned MT in to a bedroom society. Those that own businesses and those that work for them a minimum wage..The big business is changing sheets for the elite...Ouch. Before MT new Constitution in 1972 MT businesses thrived.....Jobs jobs jobs is what we need. Go BOPP, Go Fight Win.
Posted by: Ericshrugged | January 14, 2012 at 01:45 PM