Supreme Court Strikes Down Campaign Donor Limits

“The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a major campaign finance decision, striking down limits on federal campaign contributions for the first time. The ruling, issued near the start of a campaign season, will change and most likely increase the role money plays in American politics,” the New York Times reports.

“The decision, by a 5-to-4 vote along ideological lines, was sort of a sequel to Citizens United, the 2010 decision that struck down limits on independent campaign spending by corporations and unions. But that ruling did nothing to disturb the other main form of campaign finance regulation: caps on direct contributions to candidates and political parties.”

Wall Street Journal: “Justice Stephen Breyer read his dissent from the bench, signifying significant disagreement from the court’s liberal wing. He said that the aggregate cap fights corruption by making harder to circumvent the limits on contributions to individual candidates.”