In 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the conservative political action committee (PAC), Citizens United, in the landmark Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (FEC) case. The group argued that restrictions on promoting and funding a film critical of then-presidential nominee Hillary Clinton violated their constitutional right to free speech.
The Court based its decision on extending First Amendment protections to corporate political spending. The rationale focused primarily on freedom of speech, but the broader consequences are devastating for American democracy.
Regardless of the validity of this logic, the ruling opened the floodgates for unlimited corporate political spending. This effectively shifted power away from individual voters and into the hands of wealthy corporations and special interests. Nearly 15 years later, this decision allowing corporations unlimited election spending has had drastic consequences.
This issue is larger than Donald Trump or Kamala Harris and their affiliate parties. Citizens United v. FEC remains the single most prominent and dangerous threat to American democracy and its stakeholders.
Follow the Money
Citizens United effectively accomplished two things — more money in politics and diminished accountability regarding its place of origin. This money was delivered by the hands of super PACs or in the form of dark money.
Super PACs, a phenomenon that did not exist prior to the court ruling, are similar to PACs in the sense that their primary goal is to influence elections. The main difference is super PACs can receive unlimited amounts of money from donors.
Unlike PACs, which are far more regulated, super PACs have unrivaled power in raising money to promote the candidate of their choosing, including dark money, which refers to large sums of money which cannot be traced to a specific donor.
In the 2020 election, over 2,200 super PACs spent over $2 billion interfering with elections. The top two super PACs, one conservative and the other liberal, spent over $200 million dollars each.
In 2012, only two years after the landmark court case, super PACs spent $600 million. It’s clear that this issue will only continue to worsen. In the 2022 midterms, 21 families spent more than 3.7 million individual donors. It was the landmark case that made this possible.
Elections in 2024
The election this November will be historical for many reasons, one of which is regarding the impact of outside expenditures. Dark money expenditures towards endorsing candidates are reaching an all-time high.
This issue is non-partisan, with both presidential candidates receiving absurd sums of money from individual donors. Both Harris and Trump are backed by super PACs funding their campaigns.
Future Forward USA is one of the super PACs backing Harris, raising over $350 million. Make America Great Again Inc. has put more than $300 million behind Trump. Despite being labeled super PACs, these organizations receive funding from millions of donors, not just billionaires.
This election has also had its fair share of billionaires calling the shots. Bill Gates donated $50 million to the Harris campaign. Elon Musk alone donated $75 million in support of Trump, along with other large mega-donors. Musk has also found himself in legal trouble regarding his $1 million lottery for registered voters.
These large sum donations undermine the will of the American people and are perfectly legal due to the Citizens United court case.
Know Your Enemy
No one party exploits money to get their way, nor is there a winner. Either way, it’s American citizens who lose. Money in politics has existed as long as politics has. Studies show that candidates with the most money tend to win more often. Citizens United has only made this issue worse, likening the United States to an oligarchy. The average person is quickly losing their ability to influence politics.
As individual donors continue to be unburdened with less regulation, they only become more powerful in the political scene. When these donors happen to be extremely wealthy, the chances of their influence benefitting the common individual only decrease.
Republicans and Democrats tend to agree on this issue. Now more than ever, it is crucial for constituents of both parties to come together and resolve this issue.
“History will record that the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision is one of the worst decisions ever made by a Supreme Court in the history of our country,” Bernie Sanders said.
The court case remains the one true enemy plaguing American politics today.
The Future
As the 2024 election cycle approaches, the uncertainty of the victor seems nearly irrelevant in comparison to this issue. So long as democracy is sold to the highest bidder, it can hardly be defined as such.
The answer lies right in front of us, with states like New York attempting to take necessary steps to combat the court case decision. Citizens United v. FEC remains a significant barrier that makes it nearly impossible for common individuals to influence policy.
For democracy to survive and function the way it was intended, money must be removed from politics.
Patrick shea • Nov 12, 2024 at 8:09 pm
Excellent opinion Pease on the most significant problem Ing our election process. I would be most interested if the author was to formulate their own thinking on what a solution might be. I am old enough that the future implications are not going to have a major impact on me., But they will presently at the university. They need to take some action.