No Labels' Threat to Free Speech

Democracy needs loud, clear voices.

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution reads:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Last month, No Labels, the Republican-backed group attempting to run a third-party presidential candidate in 2024 sent a letter to the US Department of Justice accusing The Lincoln Project and other pro-democracy groups of violating their First Amendment rights. Cash-flush from Republican mega-donor money, No Labels wanted to save a buck by outsourcing their political attacks against pro-democracy groups to the Justice Department.

Their grievance? Our efforts to highlight No Labels’ lack of transparency, accountability, and honesty with the press, its donors, and the states.

Our efforts to illustrate how their presidential ticket would have no hope of winning one Electoral Vote, let alone 270. Our analysis and public statements are what enrage them: we’ve said it clearly and publicly that a No Labels ticket would almost certainly return Donald Trump to the White House and used math and political data to prove it.

No Labels has demonstrated a continuous and growing arrogance about its ability to operate without accountability or transparency. Under rules they’ve invented mainly for themselves, they’ve used their status as 501(C)4 dark money group to cover their activities as a de facto -- and in many states, de jure -- political party. Indeed, in 2022, No Labels founder and CEO Nancy Jacobson told Tara Palmieri of Puck that “democracy requires anonymity.”

Because their hapless, hopeless, and ham-handed DOJ gambit didn’t work, No Labels is now in contact with Republican Attorneys General, exploring the possibility of filing RICO lawsuits against their political opponents. That’s right: No Labels wants Republican political hacks to treat pro-democracy groups like the mob.

Like their attempt with Justice, No Labels will soon be asking Republican law enforcement officials to use state power to silence their political opponents. This is positively Trumpian and not at all surprising. After all, No Labels classified Trump a ‘Problem Solver’ and called the Select Committee on January 6^th a ‘partisan exercise.’

There’s a deeper reason why No Labels will do anything to deny our right to free political speech. Since they launched their fantastical journey, No Labels has struggled to identify a ‘unity ticket’ with any credibility. They seem further away from that objective now than ever.

To date, No Labels hasn’t hit any of their public goals:

• The group was supposed to announce how they would nominate their ticket in October of last year. That has not happened. We can only assume the candidates will be chosen secretly (as was always the plan.) It’s now been reported that a “blue ribbon” group rooted in “No Labels” leadership will make the decision.
  

• They told their donors and supporters they’d be on 30+ ballots by the end of 2023. To date, they’ve secured a place on less than 20, the well-known battleground state of Kansas being a new addition.
  

• They’ve teased and touted multiple potential candidates from Joe Manchin and Mitt Romney to Larry Hogan and Nikki Haley; been rejected by all.
  

• They originally scheduled an in-person nominating convention in Dallas this coming April. That event has been canceled and replaced with a ‘virtual’ version next month. Even those being screened as delegates don’t yet know how it will operate or what its purpose will be.

These are not the hallmarks of an organization ready to wage a world-changing campaign. 

Their shortcomings are precisely the things

Rick Wilson

and I outlined to Ms. Jacobson and her chief strategist Ryan Clancy, a year ago during a Zoom meeting. Both of us have experience in the third-party-presidential space. We told them they didn’t know what they were doing then, and their lack of progress inclines us to believe we were correct in our initial assessment.

One moment stood out to use as a sign of their naivete or mendacity: No Labels continues to circulate a ludicrous electoral map that asserts with a straight face that their (as yet imaginary) ticket will win Florida, Texas, Washington, Oregon, and every swing state save Ohio. Their map claims their ticket will win 286 Electoral College votes, leaving the GOP with 66 and the Democrats with 64. They even claim they’ll win Joe Biden’s home state of Delaware.

No serious person can look at their record to date and believe we are wrong to level critical opposition to their plan.

It’s necessary to set the stage to demonstrate that when No Labels announces their “blue ribbon” ticket in the coming weeks, they’ll still be well short of enough ballot lines to garner 270 Electoral Votes. Without this (among myriad other reasons) they’d lose whatever credibility they have left.

No Labels is hoping to use the cover of a “free speech” argument, and the threat of action by either the Justice Department or state attorneys general to give them cover and either frighten or prevent their opponents from waging what would be an active, vigorous, and devastating political campaign against a ticket designed to help Donald Trump.

The groups explaining and highlighting No Labels’ so-called strategy and its vast problems operate under various designations. Some have no formal organization, others operate within the bounds of a 501c4 or, like the Lincoln Project, operate in a purely political space and with appropriate reporting of our contributions and expenditures.

To date, there is no rule that No Labels hasn’t violated in spirit (or letter) with its Rube Goldberg contraption of dark money, super PACs, and state party committees. In a development earlier this month, End Citizens United filed suit with the IRS and the Arkansas attorney general’s office. In their press release, ECU stated:

“In its attempt to run a third-party presidential ticket, No Labels is abusing its nonprofit status in Arkansas and we believe Attorney General Tim Griffin should investigate and hold them accountable,” said End Citizens United President Tiffany Muller. “No Labels is a shadowy dark money political group that is grossly exploiting Arkansas laws which are designed to benefit legitimate social welfare organizations. If No Labels’ corrupt charade continues unchecked, it will set a dangerous precedent for future elections.”

The IRS complaint, first reported by the Associated Press, alleges that No Labels cannot be considered a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization as its work primarily benefits the No Labels Party, and does not meet the minimum 50% threshold of promoting social welfare. Instead, it appears that nearly the entirety of No Labels’ spending is on political activity. ECU is submitting copies of the IRS complaint to the 27 states No Labels is registered to solicit charitable contributions.”

These attempts by No Labels go beyond just the 2024 election. If successful, this effort will have a chilling effect on political speech across the country. Say something your opponent doesn’t like? Ask the government to shut them up, or shut them down. 

What starts with No Labels could end in a much darker place. Imagine a Republican governor simply switching off the ability of a progressive group to register voters because he didn’t like their rhetoric. Imagine a Democratic governor bringing RICO charges against the Koch network. This slope is slippery indeed, and will make our politics a game of lawfare, not ideas and policies. 

The branding of No Labels is appealing; moderate, centrist, a new way forward to a better politics. This branding has been a shield for pernicious and nefarious actions. That they would seek to use the power of the law to gag freedom of speech and assembly will, in our belief, be as much of a legal humiliation to them as the political humiliation they’re headed for in November of this year. 

Given the existential fight for America we face between now and November, No Labels, its leaders, and its donors would do well to get on the right side of history and democracy before it’s too late.