Democrats told us if George W. Bush were reelected in 2004, there would be attempts to use the Justice Department and the FCC to punish dissenting political speech.

And they were right.

Only it is the Obama campaign seeking to have the government punish political speech.

Sen. Barack Obama has launched an all-out effort to block a Republican billionaire’s efforts to tie him to domestic and foreign terrorists in a wave of negative television ads.

Obama’s campaign has written the Department of Justice demanding a criminal investigation of the “American Issues Project,” the vehicle through which Dallas investor Harold Simmons is financing the advertisements. The Obama campaign — and tens of thousands of supporters — also is pressuring television networks and affiliates to reject the ads.

As much as I've always disliked John McCain's cavalier attitude towards political speech, this attempt to criminalize such speech by Obama is much more frightening to me.

And not only that, but Barry Hussein's surrogates are threatening to revoke the broadcast licenses of any station that carries the ad -- a potent threat from a guy who will have appointment power over that agency's commissioners.

“The Obama campaign plans to punish the stations that air the ad financially, an Obama aide said, organizing his supporters to target the stations that air it and their advertisers.” … Obama’s campaign has written a pair of letters to station managers carrying the ads. The letter calls the ad’s attempt to link Obama to terrorism “an appalling lie, a disgraceful smear of the lowest kind on the senator’s patriotism and commitment to the rule of law.” Airing the ad “is inconsistent with your station’s obligations under Federal Communications Commission regulations,” the letter continues, saying Simmons’ group lacks formal incorporation.

In other words, the President of the United States (if we win) will personally argue that your airing of the ad is a violation of the terms of the broadcast license under which you operate -- a threat which could lead to a great many stations deciding to take a hardline view of any anti-Obama ad this year.

What is worst about the ad? How about the fact that everything in it is true. Barack Obama has a long association with a confessed terrorist who openly lamented not doing more to overthrow the American government. It doesn't matter that Obama was a child when the events happened -- his willingness to have such a close association with the man is a contemporary failure of moral judgment. If McCain had a close political and personal relationship with a former Kluxer who publicly lamented not doing more to save segregation, would he so easily be forgiven that association? Of course he would not -- nor would anyone with an ounce of decency suggest he should.

And in the end, that is why Barry Hussein needs to bludgeon his opponents into silence -- the truth will not set him free, but will instead cost him the election if the American public is confronted with the reality of Barack Obama's distasteful choice of friends.

H/T Patterico, Time, Belmont Club, Ben Smith, Malkin

UPDATE: Here's what Barry Hussein is afraid the American public might see.

You gonna come after me and the rest of the conservative blogosphere next?