Five Supreme Court Justices Bow to the Love of Money

April 3, 2014

Temple, TX

USA

By Gary Revel

Back row (left to right): Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen G. Breyer, Samuel A. Alito, and Elena Kagan. Front row (left to right): Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Anthony Kennedy, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg

In a 5-to-4 decision on Wednesday changed the campaign finance law by lifting limits on campaign contributions. The court’s 88-page decision contrasted meanings of the First Amendment with the majority, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., Samuel A. Alito, Clarence Thomas, Anthony Kennedy, and Antonin Scalia ending the government efforts to control participation in politics as related to the use of money to do so, while 4 Justices, Justice Stephen G. Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan stood on the principle that oversight of the amount of money used in political campaigns was needed to ensure a functioning democracy.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. offered that the overall limits could not survive First Amendment scrutiny. “There is no right in our democracy more basic,” he wrote, “than the right to participate in electing our political leaders.”

Justice Stephen G. Breyer's dissented calling the majority opinion a disturbing development that raised the overall contribution ceiling to “the number infinity. If the court in Citizens United opened a door,” he said, “today’s decision may well open a floodgate.”

Wednesday’s decision did not affect familiar base limits on contributions from individuals to candidates, currently $2,600 per candidate in primary and general elections. But it said that overall limits of $48,600 by individuals every two years for contributions to all federal candidates violated the First Amendment, as did separate aggregate limits on contributions to political party committees, currently $74,600.

In his written opinion, Justice Breyer said Wednesday’s decision would allow “a single individual to contribute millions of dollars to a political party or to a candidate’s campaign.”

Contact: Gary Revel
gary@garyrevel.com

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