The FEC Exempts Books Under Press Exemption

Two weeks ago, the FEC released the case file in MUR 6989.  The case involved Penguin Random House’s publication of A More Perfect Union by Dr. Ben Carson and its marketing of the book in the summer of 2015. A complaint was filed alleging that Penguin’s expenses on Dr. Carson’s promotional book tour constituted an illegal corporate contribution to Carson’s presidential campaign. The FEC, by a vote of four to one, concluded that Penguin and the book are exempt from regulation under the campaign finance law’s longstanding Press Exemption. Wiley Rein partner Lee Goodman discussed this legal development in an opinion column published by The Hill.