The Federal Election Commission on Friday dismissed a complaint against Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) based on her appearance in an environment-related ad with former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) during the 2008 election season.In May 2008, Judicial Watch sent a letter to the FEC stating that Pelosi’s appearance in a television commercial produced by Alliance for Climate Protection constituted a violation of campaign finance laws. The letter triggered an FEC probe into whether the ad could be considered a form of electioneering, which would make the money paid by the nonprofit group a prohibited “soft money— donation.By a 5-0 vote, however, the FEC dismissed the complaint on the grounds that the ad fit the goal of focusing public attention on a policy issue, rather than advocating Pelosi’s role as a candidate.