Wrong, but right... Speaker Pelosi and TV footage of House debate

Beltway Blogroll discovers that some Republicans are complaining about Speaker Pelosi misusing, in her blog, C-Span footage of Congressional floor debate. The House Republican Study Committee complained to Speaker Pelosi that this was in violation of C-Span's copyright.

The RSC is wrong about the copyright, but right that the practice is in violation of something. Embarrassingly, they really should have looked to the House's own rules [pdf] first. The cameras generating the footage from the House Floor is owned by Congress, paid for by the taxpayers. The House provides a feed to C-Span, a feed which may be used by anybody who wants it. As with all things created by the federal government, there is no copyright on the floor speeches of Members of Congress.

So Pelosi's use doesn't violate any copyright. But it may very well violate the House Rules:

RULE V
BROADCASTING THE HOUSE
1. The Speaker shall administer a system subject to his direction and control for closed-circuit viewing of floor proceedings of the House in the offices of all Members, Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, and committees and in such other places in the Capitol and the House Office Buildings as he considers appropriate.

***

2. (a) The Speaker shall administer a system subject to his direction and control for complete and unedited audio and visual broadcasting and recording of the proceedings of the House. The Speaker shall provide for the distribution of such broadcasts and recordings to news media, for the storage of audio and video recordings of the proceedings, and for the closed-captioning of the proceedings for hearing impaired persons.

***

(c) Coverage made available under this clause, including any recording thereof—
(1) may not be used for any political purpose;
(2) may not be used in any commercial advertisement; and
(3) may not be broadcast with commercial sponsorship except as part of a bona fide news program or public affairs documentary program.

The Speaker's use of just these particular Democratic clips, to further her political agenda, would certainly seem to be a political purpose to me. I don't pass judgment on the wisdom of the Rule, but the Speaker, of all people, should scrupulously adhere to it as long as it exists.

Hat tip: Instapundit