Nobody likes a bully

The Institute for Justice is out with a great new animated video telling the story of a citizen activist who is being forced to tell a lie or face a stiff fine. Robin Farris never cared much for politics until accusations arouse about the corruption of a public official. When she tried a recall campaign, she came up against the dead hand of the bureaucracy on many different levels. The government tried to shut her down, but IJ was there to take the case. Now the government wants her to say that the Institute for Justice’s legal help is a campaign donation, in order to be able to stop future challenges to their power. The lawsuit IJ is campaigning for deals with first amendment rights and is an important battle in the fight for free speech and citizen recall.

From IJ:

Washington’s Public Disclosure Commission, which works to shut down political debate, is now seeking to drastically restrict free civil rights advocacy—advocacy that has guided our nation to live up to its ideals of freedom and justice. A first-of-its-kind legal battle over the agency’s actions is now raging in Washington state and will answer important questions about the limits of government power, the right of free speech and political participation, and the ability of civil rights advocates to represent their clients against a government agency when that agency is violating constitutionally enshrined rights.

