Opinion ID: 215223
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Distinguishing Characteristics.

Text: Thus far, our analysis has focused on the First Amendment rights of policymakers ousted from public employment due to political affiliation and/or speech. The plaintiff does not fit that mold precisely. For one thing, he was not a government employee but, rather, a volunteer. For another thing, he was not fired but, rather, denied reappointment. In the circumstances of this case, however, neither of those distinctions inhibits the applicability of either Pickering or Elrod/Branti principles. We explain briefly. Although some courts have ruled that volunteers hold their unpaid government positions in the unfettered discretion of the appointing authority, see, e.g., Griffith v. Lanier, 521 F.3d 398, 404 (D.C.Cir. 2008); Versarge v. Twp. of Clinton, 984 F.2d 1359, 1370 (3d Cir.1993), we need not solve that riddle. For present purposes, it is enough to say that the government's interest in ensuring that its policymakers sing from the same sheet music applies equally to policymakers who are hired hands and policymakers who are unpaid advisors. By like token, the fact that the plaintiff was denied reappointment, rather than dismissed, does not alter the relevant calculus. See Barton v. Clancy, 632 F.3d 9, 26 (1st Cir.2011); Ward v. Hickey, 996 F.2d 448, 452 (1st Cir.1993). Where, as here, the adverse action involves the denial of an appointment to an unpaid advisory post that deals with policy matters, the government's interest in effective and efficient operation is on a par with its interest when the action involves the removal of an employee from a paid policymaking position. See Barton, 632 F.3d at 26.