The Lewiston Sun Journal published a new oped by FSFP Legal Director Ron Fein and Maine Citizens for Clean Elections’ Attorney John Brautigam on the case for limiting political spending by foreign-influenced corporations in Maine.

The article states:

Most people agree that foreign entities shouldn’t be able to influence our elections. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Russian military intelligence, a Canadian energy conglomerate, or a collection of European financiers. In fact, the leading court decision, written by then-Judge (now Justice) Brett Kavanaugh and later upheld by the Supreme Court, involved a Canadian who wanted to print some election flyers and pass them around New York’s Central Park. But, as Kavanaugh explained, foreign entities “do not have a constitutional right to participate in, and thus may be excluded from, activities of democratic self-government,” including “the campaign process that seeks to influence how voters will cast their ballots in the elections.”

Federal law addresses part of this issue, but leaves enormous gaps that have started to become exposed in Maine.

Fein recently testified on a number of proposed bills that could limit political spending by foreign-influenced corporations in Maine, and detailed a number of amendments that could strengthen the proposed bills. Free Speech For People has researched, drafted and fought for similar legislation in St. Petersburg, FL, Seattle WA, and other states to challenge foreign-influenced corporate spending.

Read the full oped in the Lewiston Sun Journal here.

Learn more about how we’re challenging foreign influence in elections here.