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Home / Washington State House Approves Bill Limiting Campaign SpeechWashington State House Approves Bill Limiting Campaign Speech
Last Updated on Tuesday, 24 February 2009 11:13 Written by rslcpol Tuesday, 24 February 2009 10:54
Are we the only ones who this legislation, though very well intentioned, as a bottomless pit of problems related to just what is exactly a falsehood? This would be an endless, both in time and cost, source of litigation in years to come. Who will police this type of speech regulation? From SeattlePI.com:
Political candidates in Washington would once again be banned from telling lies on the campaign trail under a proposed law approved Monday by the state House.
The bill, passed out of the House on a 92-2 vote, seeks to reinstate an old law that was thrown out on free speech grounds by the state Supreme Court in 2007. The court said the state’s former ban on lying in campaigns violated the First Amendment because it did not require proof that campaign falsehoods were defamatory.
Rep. Mark Miloscia, D-Federal Way, said this year’s attempt at reinstating the ban on campaign lies addresses the court’s problems with the old law