On the PFF blog, Randy May yesterday expressed the hope that Congress would see the light and pass H.R. 1606, the Online Freedom of Speech Act, which provides:

SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF DEFINITION OF PUBLIC COMMUNICATION.

Paragraph (22) of section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(22)) is amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: `Such term shall not include communications over the Internet.'.

His hope was thwarted, as the bill failed to gain the supermajority it needed.

This is madness. The purpose of the campaign finance laws is to suppress speech and protect incumbents. They do not eliminate the influence of money, as was blatantly shown in the last election. The nefariousness of this purpose is particularly obvious in the context of the Internet, where communication is cheap, and the speech suppressers are concerned with using minor expenditures as a jurisdictional hook to pass restrictive laws.

The most precious asset any governmental body has is its political legitimacy, the public view that it has a moral claim on authority. Congress seems absolutely determined to forfeit this claim, and the inevitable consequence will be massive disobedience as the Internet community refuses to acquiesce. Remember the 55 mile-an-hour speed limit, which destroyed respect for all speed limits.

But it will be interesting. The Internet as the organizer of a massive campaign of civil disobedience. Is that a genie Congress really wants out of the bottle?