WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday further undermined restrictions on campaign funding by overturning part of a 2002 bipartisan law challenged by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, whom federal officials have called. advertised as a precautionary measure against corruption.
The judges, in decision 6-3, found that the $ 250,000 cap on political candidates’ money could be restored after the personal loan election for their own campaigns violated the guarantee of freedom of expression. of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution through unjustifiably burdensome political expression.
In a ruling written by Chief Justice John Roberts, conservative judges are in the majority and liberal judges disagree. Roberts writes that the law in question “burdens the main political speech without proper justification.”
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It was the latest in a series of rulings in which the Conservative majority has lifted restrictions on campaign funding, citing concerns about freedom of expression.
Roberts wrote that the government had failed to show that the measure “complements an acceptable goal of fighting corruption, not an unacceptable goal of simply limiting the amount of money in politics.”
In an unexpected dissenting opinion, Liberal Judge Elena Kagan said the court effectively supports and encourages corruption in Washington by allowing donors to contribute to the post-election campaign in a way that benefits the candidate personally.
“By repealing the law today, the court is giving green to all the heinous deals that Congress deems right to stop,” Kagan wrote.
Politicians will know that such payments will go directly to them through the campaign, Kagan added, and donors will hope for something in return.
“The politician is happy, the donors are happy. The only loser is society. It inevitably suffers from corruption in government,” Kagan said.
Cruz, first elected to represent Texas in the Senate in 2012, is suing the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the law enforcement agency, after his successful 2018 re-election race against Democrat rival Beto O’Rourke. Cruz had lent his organization $ 260,000 for the campaign, but was limited by law to recovering $ 250,000 from his campaign.
A Cruz spokesman called the decision a “huge victory for the First Amendment.” A FEC spokesman declined to comment.
Trevor Potter, president of the Campaign Legal Center, a non-partisan group that supports campaign finance laws, expressed disappointment with the decision.
“Allowing candidates to demand unlimited post-election contributions to pay off their personal loans for the campaign and to put donations in their own pockets provides an obvious and deplorable opportunity for special interests to buy official services and change the political system in their favor.” said Potter.
The administration of Democratic President Joe Biden, acting on behalf of the FEC, is appealing the decision of the Washington-based three judges from 2021, which unanimously repealed the provision on the grounds of freedom of speech.
The provision was part of a major campaign finance law that had already been repealed by the Supreme Court, including in a landmark 2010 ruling that allowed unlimited independent spending by corporations and unions during elections such as constitutionally protected freedom of speech.
The Supreme Court overturned various provisions of the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, often referred to as the McCain-Feingold Act, in recognition of its main Senate sponsors, John McCain and Russ Feingold.
Finding that the restriction was not justified to curb corruption, Roberts backed Cruz’s arguments, saying there were already limits on how much money people could donate during the election cycle, which is currently limited to $ 2,900. Roberts added that the status quo is likely to benefit incumbents over contenders, as new candidates often have to borrow money for their campaigns and may find it more difficult to attract donations.
“This remarkable decision will help revitalize our democratic process by making it easier for contenders to fight and defeat politicians in their careers,” said Cruz’s spokesman.
Cruz unsuccessfully fought for his party’s presidential nomination in 2016, later becoming a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump.
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Report by Lawrence Hurley; Edited by Will Dunham
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