Supreme Court Lets Disclosure Law Stand

[babylonsister]

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/eyeon2010/2010/11/supreme-court-lets-disclosure.html

Supreme Court Lets Disclosure Law Stand

By CQ-Roll Call Staff | November 1, 2010 7:32 PM


As millions continue to pour into election ads, the Supreme Court decided Monday not to hear a case that could challenge whether the public has the right to know who is behind such commercials.

The Supreme Court decided not to hear the case of SpeechNow.org v. FEC, which allowed a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals decision requiring federal political committees to disclose their receipts and spending to stand.

The decision means that groups which intend to affect elections will have to disclose their disbursements on independent expenditures as well as their donors. The Supreme Court's decision significantly affects only independent expenditures committees that are commonly referred to as "Super-PACs."

The campaign finance reform community broadly welcomed Monday's decision.

"The Court's decision not to take the case is a victory for disclosure," said Tara Malloy, Associate Legal Counsel with the Campaign Legal Center, which filed amici briefs along with Democracy 21. It is also "a reaffirmation of its little-noted but nearly unanimous ruling in Citizens United upholding federal disclosure provisions," she said.

Malloy said the overall effects of Monday's decision may lie with the Federal Election Commission's actions on how to regulate such groups. She also anticipates many organizations that run political and legislative advertisements will continue to seek loopholes in the disclosure laws.

-- Alex Knott

[LiberalFighter]

1. Now go after Thomas's wife for her group.

[AtomicKitten]

2. They're effectively walking it back because Pres Obama was right and Alito was wrong.

---> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pB5uR3zgsA