Supreme Court campaign finance

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22 States Back Montana's Citizens United Challenge

State wants to keep power to limit political spending

(Newser) - Montana's attorney general is fighting to preserve his state's ability to curb corporate political spending, and almost half of America's states are backing him. Some 22 states and the District of Columbia have filed a brief urging the Supreme Court not to use its Citizens United decision...

Time to Make Souter Dissent on Citizens United Public

It could air the court's 'dirty laundry': Richard Hasen

(Newser) - The Supreme Court could soon revisit the issue of campaign finance, and it's time we heard David Souter's opinion on the matter. Souter wrote an unpublished draft dissent against Citizens United, the case that opened the door to super PACs; it was an issue dear to his heart,...

High Court Strikes Campaign Finance Reform Law

Arizona law violates First Amendment, says ruling

(Newser) - The Supreme Court struck down an Arizona law today in a decision that advocates for stricter campaign finance regulation see as a blow, the National Journal reports. The law allowed the state to give additional subsidies to publicly financed candidates for every dollar their wealthier, privately financed opponents raised over...

Supreme Court Refuses to Hear 'Citizens United' for Nonprofits

Won't consider looser donation rules on PACs

(Newser) - The Supreme Court today declined without comment a case that sought to extend Citizens United's lax spending rules to nonprofits, the Christian Science Monitor reports. SpeechNow.org, a conservative advocacy group, had sued the Federal Election Commission in an attempt to loosen restrictions on political action committees, which it likens...

Dems Slam 'Front Groups'—Then Use Them

Nonprofits' secret donors help fund negative ads

(Newser) - Democrats have hammered Republican “front groups” for paying for negative ads with secret cash—but they themselves are employing a similar maneuver, using money from nonprofits who don’t release their donors’ names to fund their own advertising, reports MSNBC . Dems are thus following Republicans’ lead in using a...

Dems Swamped By GOP Ad Buys

Party blames Supreme Court ruling for free-spending GOP groups

(Newser) - Republican-leaning interest groups are grossly outspending their Democratic-leaning counterparts on TV ads in election races around the nation, and the gap is widening as races heat up. Democratic officials say the trend is a direct result of a Supreme Court decision lifting a ban on direct corporate spending on political...

Roberts Court Flexed its Muscle
 Roberts Court: Most 
 Assertive in Decades 
Term in Review
Jun 30, 2010 9:00 AM CDT

Roberts Court: Most Assertive in Decades

More bold, controversial decisions than any term since New Deal

(Newser) - It was not a quiet term for the Supreme Court. In addition to its landmark campaign finance reform and gun rights decisions, the court flexed its muscles on a host of cases, making independent, assertive decisions, the Washington Post observes. “I see this as the least deferential court since...

Obama Aide: Change Is Out, Reform Is In

Plan is to scale back agenda, focus on government clean up

(Newser) - President Obama’s new 2010 strategy, arrived at after weeks of internal debate, is to replace his sweeping “change” agenda with a more modest push for government reform. First up: a tough new campaign finance law, pushing back against the deeply unpopular Citizens United Supreme Court ruling. “Americans...

Clarence Thomas: State of the Union 'Too Partisan'

Justice makes a point of skipping them

(Newser) - Clarence Thomas says he skips State of the Union addresses—including President Obama’s last week—“because it has become so partisan,” he told a Florida law school this week. “It’s very uncomfortable for a judge to sit there,” he said. “There’s a...

GOP Set to Cash In On Campaign Spending Ruling

Obama promises 'forceful response' to Supreme Court decision

(Newser) - The Supreme Court's decision to lift a ban on direct corporate campaign spending will be a bonanza for the Republicans and another blow to the Democrats ahead of this year's elections, analysts say. Business lobbies that had been persuaded to back President Obama's initiatives are now taking stock of the...

Schumer: Campaign Ruling 'Undermines Democracy'
Schumer: Campaign Ruling 'Undermines Democracy'
supreme court
Jan 21, 2010 12:28 PM CST

Schumer: Campaign Ruling 'Undermines Democracy'

Democrats, good-government groups blast Supreme Court decision

(Newser) - Democrats and campaign reformers alike are railing against today’s Supreme Court decision allowing corporations to use their money how they please in the political arena. “This decision allows Wall Street to tap its vast corporate profits to drown out the voice of the public in our democracy,”...

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