Category Archives: Campaign Finance Reform

Abortion, Campaign Finance Reform, History of the Court, Politics

The Rise and Fall of the No-Litmus-Test Rule

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For decades, presidential candidates disclaimed the idea that they would have “litmus tests” for their nominees to the Supreme Court. Republicans and Democrats alike agreed that to demand that their judicial nominees decide particular cases particular ways would be wrong. Judicial litmus tests were bad. They were what candidates accused opponents of having. In the … Continue reading The Rise and Fall of the No-Litmus-Test Rule →

Campaign Finance Reform, First Amendment, This Day In Supreme Court History

This Day in Supreme Court History—April 26, 1978

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On this day in 1978, the Supreme Court decided First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti, a seminal case involving corporate speech rights. In a 5-4 ruling, the Court struck down a Massachusetts law that prohibited corporations from spending money to influence the outcome of referenda, unless the referenda issue “materially affected” them. Justice Lewis Powell … Continue reading This Day in Supreme Court History—April 26, 1978 →

Campaign Finance Reform, OT 2013

Coming Up At The Court – McCutcheon v. FEC

Case: McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission Campaign financing is a touchy subject, pitting concerns about free speech against concerns about the corrupting and other negative effects of money in politics. With the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be prohibited. This … Continue reading Coming Up At The Court – McCutcheon v. FEC →

Campaign Finance Reform

Court to Review Campaign Finance Limits

Case: McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission On February 19, the Supreme Court announced that it would hear argument in a case challenging some of the contribution limits in federal campaign finance laws. (The lower court rejected the challenge.) One possible outcome of the case, McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, is for the Supreme Court to … Continue reading Court to Review Campaign Finance Limits →