Fishman Files FEC Complaint Against WCVB
He's been left out of a debate, and he's not backing down.
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Libertarian congressional candidate Daniel Fishman has filed a complaint against WCVB with the Federal Elections Commission.
WCVB is planning a 6th District congressional candidates' debate on Thursday, and Fishman was not invited because he did not meet their criteria: A candidate must have a certain number of staff members, a daily campaign schedule, communicate on a regular basis with news media, garner at least 10 percent in two recent independent polls and have campaign contributions of at least $50,000.
Fishman's complaint alleges that WCVB's criteria are in violation of FEC guidelines.
First, the FEC mandates that a station use "pre-established criteria" to determine who is allowed to participate. In his complaint, Fishman says that the debate criteria were announced two weeks before the debate, which he says does not qualify as pre-established.
Fishman also takes issue with the station's requirement that a candidate receive more at least 10 percent in two independent polls since there have not been two independent polls in which Fishman was included and garnered less than 10 percent. He also alleges that the $50,000 requirement is discriminatory against candidates who do not take corporate contributions.
What do you think, Salem? Should Fishman be allowed to participate in the WCVB debate? Leave a comment below and discuss.
gene
2:21 pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Ironic - a Libertarian suing someone not for violating the lawbut for not following a government agancy's rule. And I thought Libertarianswere against these kind of agencies.
Bill
9:02 pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Yes, Isn't CVB making a decision based on the free and open market?
Daniel Fishman
2:50 pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Libertarians are not anarchists -- we believe in limited government, but we don't believe in no government. This is common disinformation spread by the two main parties. Libertarians love individual liberty, but recognize that one of the primary purposes of government is to defend civil liberties.
Cwheels
4:19 pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Daniel, You are fighting a good fight and I wish you the best of luck. That said there are just to many voters with their heads in the sand, voting for the party instead of where a candidate stands on issues. Tierney needs to go for a variety of reasons and I think Tisei is our best chance at getting that done.
Bill
9:00 pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Something fishy about the way he entered the race late with no realistic chance to win. Too much like Cahill in the 2010 Gov race. straw man. I agree with Channel 5
Tisei is the best option for this district