President Bush said this week that he would veto any legislation that came to his desk seeking to re-institute the Fairness Doctrine, a policy abolished twenty years ago that requires that equal time be given to opposing view points on the airwaves (Democrats want to reinstate the practice in order to weaken the influence of Conservative talk radio).

I was glad to hear President Bush say, in no uncertain terms, that the practice would not be allowed.  Speaking to the National Religious Broadcasters Convention this week, he said:

“This organization has had many important missions, but none more important than ensuring our airways – America’s airways – stay open to those who preach the ‘Good News.’ The very first amendment to our Constitution includes the freedom of speech and the freedom of religion. Founders believed these unalienable rights were endowed to us by our Creator. They are vital to a healthy democracy, and we must never let anyone take those freedoms away.

“I mention this because there’s an effort afoot that would jeopardize your right to express your views on public airways…”

Right to express your views on the public airwaves?  Where was that argument when he decided to sign the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform bill six years ago.  It prevents organizations from running ads that mention a candidate by name within thirty days of a primary election or within sixty days of a general election.

In other words, we have the right to express our views on the public airwaves except for one to two months before an election.  Does that make any sense?

The Fairness Doctrine would be an egregious violation of the First Amendment, but the McCain-Feingold Act already is, and for the exact same reasons which were, ironically, articulated pretty well by the President who signed it into law…