The 'Next Citizens United' May Fuel a Popular Uprising

By Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation

11 March 14

ity poor Shaun McCutcheon.

McCutcheon is the Alabama businessman suing the Federal Election Commission for abridging his First Amendment right to free speech - that is, if we define free speech as McCutcheon's right to donate upward of $123,200 in a single election cycle. He claims eliminating federal limits on an individual's aggregate campaign contributions is "about practicing democracy and being free." To underscore his love of freedom, McCutcheon wrote checks to 15 Republican candidates in the symbolic sum of $1,776.

The Supreme Court is expected to hand down its decision in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission any day now. Given the Roberts court's track record, the biggest campaign-finance decision since Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission is likely to blow another gigantic hole in the fabric of our democracy.

Such a ruling will fuel popular outrage and increase pressure for fundamental reforms such as disclosure and public financing. Already, Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) and Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) have introduced a constitutional amendment allowing campaign spending limits. This would finally supercede the Supreme Court's infamous 1976 ruling in Buckley v. Valeo, which equated money with speech and effectively turned our elections into auctions.