Brad Smith

WaPo headline: "They’re rich. They’re anti-Trump. And they don’t want their big tax cut." The teaser: "Many of the biggest beneficiaries of the GOP tax law say they are getting millions of dollars they don’t want or need." Hey guys, IRS will accept your voluntary tax overpayment.

🚨NEW via @Trentonian: @InstFreeSpeech Chairman @CommishSmith notes NJ lawmakers are rightly seeking greater privacy--but those same protections should extend to ordinary citizens whose info is exposed online for donating just $200+ to candidates. READ: trentonian.com/2025/07/24/gue…

My op-ed in today's Trentonian (NJ). Paywalled, but the thrust is simple--as NJ lawmakers consider measures to assure legslator privacy after the shooting of 2 Minnesota lawmakers, they should not forget that their constituents also have legit reason for privacy regarding their…

The Senate should confirm Emil Bove to the Court of Appeals. I’m dismayed at the number of Republicans who don’t know Bove opposing him based on speculation provided by partisans.

Brilliant!

This was fun to do. Watch at link below. Thanks for the invite @citizenjeff

IFS Senior Attorney @ChipMiller76 is quoted by @OpenSecretsDC 's @davelevinthal in a story about our recent First Amendment victory in Maine. Story in comments.

It really is not the government's business--or your neighbor's, let alone strangers'--who you give money to.

With over 15,000 commercial radio stations and 1700 TV stations, not to mention that interwebs thingy, I think America will survive the public defunding of NPR and PBS. "Even some Republicans agree that the President has gone too far. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski: ... "

I don't know him well, but I worked w/ Bove briefly last summer. He was extremely smart, an excellent writer, and, though under incredible pressure, was unfailingly calm, thoughtful, & courteous--the attributes you want to see on the bench. @DAGToddBlanche Ignore outrageous…

IFS Chairman @CommishSmith's excellent Balkinization post titled, "Campaign Finance and Free Speech: The Extreme and the Mainstream" is now available on our website: ifs.org/news/campaign-…

9th Circuit Revives Challenge to Community College "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility" Requirements for Teaching and Other Professional Work reason.com/volokh/2025/07… via @reason This is @InstFreeSpeech in action.

My essay from Balkinization, “Campaign Finance and Free speech: The Extreme and the Mainstream,” has been republished by the Free Speech Center at Middle Tennessee State. firstamendment.mtsu.edu/post/campaign-… @FreeSpeechMTSU

🚨 The City of Oxnard in California crafted a campaign finance law to silence its most vocal critic, blatantly violating the First Amendment’s protection against government viewpoint discrimination. Read our amicus brief: ifs.org/news/californi…

Fascinating post by IFS Chairman @CommishSmith, titled "Campaign Finance and Free Speech: The Extreme and the Mainstream:" balkin.blogspot.com/2025/06/campai…

A second excellent piece by @RodDMartin on this 3d party business. I’ve often noted that the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (“McCain-Feingold”) made it all but illegal to start a new party, by making it impossible to raise the funds and build the infrastructure.

This column by my friend @RodDMartin is must reading for those wanting a new political party, and those who are convinced the GOP is a monolith inexorably run by a handful of “insiders.” Third Party Myths; or, Why You'd Be Nuts to Leave the GOP open.substack.com/pub/rodmartin/…

Thread. Most of life is complex. But every now and then, history yields a moment of complete moral clarity. You cannot wish the Nazis had won WWII and be a moral person. You cannot support Hamas and be a moral person.

1/10 What if your daughter was dancing at a festival, believing she was safe, and monsters came? On Oct 7, Hamas dragged women from crowds—beaten, stripped, raped beside friends or corpses. This could happen anywhere. Share, don’t look away. Read next—what they did next… 🩸