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Keywords

plaintiffstatuteprecedentmotionsummary judgmentvisaliensmotion to dismissmotion for summary judgment

plaintiffprecedentmotionsummary judgmentvisacivil proceduremotion to dismissmotion for summary judgment

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Bluman v. FEC

Facts

The plaintiffs, Benjamin Bluman and Asenath Steiman, are foreign citizens residing in the United States on temporary work visas. They sought to contribute to U.S. political candidates and parties, as well as engage in express advocacy for candidates, but were barred from doing so by federal law. The law in question, 2 U.S.C. 441e(a), prohibits foreign nationals from making contributions or expenditures in connection with U.S. elections.

Plaintiffs are foreign citizens who temporarily live and work in the United States. They are neither U.S. citizens nor lawful permanent residents; rather, they are lawfully in the United States on temporary work visas.

Issue

Whether the federal statute barring foreign nationals from making contributions or expenditures in U.S. elections violates the First Amendment rights of those foreign nationals.

Whether the federal ban on their proposed activities is unconstitutional.

Rule

The government may exclude foreign citizens from activities that are part of democratic self-government, including contributions to political candidates and parties, based on longstanding Supreme Court precedents.

The Supreme Court has long held that the government (federal, state, and local) may exclude foreign citizens from activities that are part of democratic self-government in the United States.

Analysis

The court applied the rule by examining the historical context and legal precedents that support the exclusion of foreign nationals from participating in the electoral process. It noted that the Supreme Court has consistently upheld the government's right to limit the political activities of non-citizens to protect the integrity of the electoral system. The court concluded that the statute in question serves a compelling government interest in maintaining the political community's integrity.

Under those precedents, the federal ban at issue here readily passes constitutional muster.

Conclusion

The court denied the aliens' motion for summary judgment and granted the FEC's motion to dismiss the complaint, affirming the constitutionality of the federal ban on contributions and expenditures by foreign nationals.

We therefore grant the FEC's motion to dismiss plaintiffs' complaint under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), and we deny plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment.

Who won?

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) prevailed in the case because the court upheld the constitutionality of the statute barring foreign nationals from participating in the electoral process.

The FEC counters that 441e(a) manifests a congressional judgment on a matter of foreign affairs and national security, and is thus subject to deferential rational basis review.

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