WASHINGTON — A conservative group must abide by campaign finance laws if it wants to run ads promoting its anti-Hillary Rodham Clinton movie, a federal court ruled Tuesday.
Citizens United had hoped to run the TV ads in key election states during peak primary season. The court ruling means the group must either keep its ads off the air or attach a disclaimer and disclose its donors.
Attorneys for the group had argued that its 90-minute “Hillary: The Movie” was no different from documentaries seen on news shows “60 Minutes” and “Nova.” Citizens United argued that the advertisements promoted the movie and should be treated as commercial speech, not advocacy against the Democratic New York senator and presidential candidate.
A three-judge panel unanimously disagreed. The film does not address legislative issues and was produced solely “to inform the electorate that Senator Clinton is unfit for office, that the United States would be a dangerous place in a President Hillary Clinton world, and that viewers should vote against her,” wrote U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth.
