United States Fourth Circuit

In a First Amendment challenge to Federal Election Commission regulations claiming that the regulations chilled plaintiff's right to disseminate information about a presidential candidate, denial of a preliminary injunction is affirmed where the regulations' words "support or oppose the election of a clearly identified Federal candidate" when used to identify regulated campaign funds were constitutional.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/05/2009
• Published 08/05/2009

Judges

• Before NIEMEYER, Circuit Judge, C. ARLEN BEAM, Senior Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, sitting by designation, and JOSEPH F. ANDERSON, Jr., United States District Judge for the District of South Carolina, sitting by designation.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  James Bopp, Jr., Bopp, Coleson & Bostrom, Terre Haute, Indiana, for Appellant.  Harry Jacobs Summers, Federal Election Commission, Washington, D.C., for Appellees.   ON BRIEF:  Michael Boos, Law Office of Michael Boos, Fairfax, Virginia;  Richard E. Coleson, Clayton J. Callen, Bopp, Coleson & Bostrom, Terre Haute, Indiana, for Appellant.  Thomasenia P. Duncan, General Counsel, David Kolker, Associate General Counsel, Adav Noti, Federal Election Commission, Washington, D.C.;  Gregory G. Katsas, Assistant Attorney General, United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.;   Dana J. Boente, Acting United States Attorney, Office of the United States Attorney, Alexandria, Virginia;  Michael S. Raab, Eric Fleisig-Greene, United States Department of Justice, Civil Division, Washington, D.C., for Appellees.  Donald J. Simon, Sonosky, Chambers, Sachse, Endreson & Perry, LLP, Washington, D.C., Fred Wertheimer, Democracy 21, Washington, D.C., for Democracy 21, Amicus Supporting Appellees;  J. Gerald Hebert, Paul S. Ryan, Tara Malloy, The Campaign Legal Center, Washington, D.C., for Campaign Legal Center, Amicus Supporting Appellees.