Recall that president-elect Donald Trump’s campaign is the target of a class action lawsuit that alleges it sent text messages without consent in the months leading up to the election. (May 2016 Blog Story)
Sending text messages without express consent can be a violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Plaintiffs are seeking $500 in statutory damages for all class members. The Trump campaign has recently moved to dismiss the complaint, arguing that the TCPA violates the First Amendment’s freedom of speech.
They’re also arguing that the lawsuit is a form of “content discrimination,” as some text messages and calls related to government debts are exempt from the TCPA. The federal government itself is even considering intervening in the case and has until November 22, 2016 (next week) to do so. First Amendment challenges to the TCPA have been presented in the past, although courts have not generally been favorable towards those challenges.