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Obama’s Jimmy Fallon appearance violated campaign law
We do still pretend to be a nation of laws, right?
Ben Shapiro at Breitbart.com points out something that apparently didn’t occur to anybody who planned President Obama’s creepy love-fest appearance on Wednesday night’s Jimmy Fallon show: it was a blatant violation of campaign law.
The equal time rule states that if a licensee permits a person “who is a legally qualified candidate for any public office to use a broadcasting station, he shall afford equal opportunities to all other such candidates for that office in the use of such broadcasting station.”
There are exceptions to the rule: appearances on (1) a bona fide newscast, (2) a bona fide news interview, (3) a bona fide news documentary, or (4) on-the-spot coverage of bona fide news events.
Only the second provision could be construed as saving NBC from giving Mitt Romney equal time. But this was not a bona fide news interview. In fact, it wasn’t an interview at all – no questions were asked, no answers were given. It was literally Obama reading a campaign speech over a guitar, a horn, a keyboard, and some drums.
Libra
April 26th, 2012
Laws! We don’t need no stinkin’ laws.
Jason in SD
April 26th, 2012
Doesn’t matter, even if somebody sued, it would be thrown out due to lack of “standing.”
hanoverfist
April 26th, 2012
Get over it.
He’s black.
/sarc
Buddy
April 26th, 2012
“We do still pretend to be a nation of laws, right?”
Are you trying to be funny?
RosalindJ
April 26th, 2012
It also violated laws of taste concerning the position of POTUS. I thought the three and two dollar raffles for a chance to be at the same table with himself and possibly Clooney were the cheesiest. I was wrong.
moarkdave
April 26th, 2012
They will probably let Romney on with the stipulation that he “slow-Jam” also.
At least Romney would never sink that low for a few minutes of air time to a million people or so. If Fallon really even has a million watching his show. More people have seen the repeat online that who saw it when it first aired.
Birdie Num Num
April 26th, 2012
The National Socialist Obama Party gets more brazen with this and other outlandish violations of laws.
The reason they do is that they realize there is no being called to public account because they know that the MSM-”journalists”-are part of their team and will cover for them or ignore it.
It can’t be stressed enough that this is the mortal danger of having a media (including the entertainment media) overwhelmingly populated and dominated by those with allegiance to one political philosophy and party.
Noelegy
April 26th, 2012
Obama’s breaches of taste, etiquette, propriety, law, and ethics are legion, yet like a child who’s never heard the word “No,” he’s learned that no one’s going to stop him, so he keeps doing what he does.
Jack Daniels
April 26th, 2012
And?…your point is?
This is violation #28759 and still nothing will be done and he will continue until he has secured his presidency for life.
Jack Daniels
April 26th, 2012
And the only laws will be his laws and his interpretation of those laws.
Left Coast Dan
April 26th, 2012
Stirrin the B.S.
April 26th, 2012
NBC – the National Barack Channel
MAJ Mike
April 26th, 2012
As I said about Slick Willy Clintoon, “I want to be inspired by my President, not embarassed by him.” Well, THE WON embarasses me as a citizen.
By the way, former President G.W. Bush today is leading a bike marathon for Wounded Warriors. THE WON ate dog.
Twellsy
April 26th, 2012
Just add it to the 4,898 page list of the laws he has broken. He’s getting a pass on everything else.
Blink
April 26th, 2012
I think he has previously violated campaign laws before. Nothing was done then by those with the authority do enforce the law. Why would it change now?
Eipisto Wahdmekha
April 26th, 2012
I think the “Legally qualified ….” clause lets him off the hook on this one.