Review Citizens United v. FEC (2010)

Which of the following quotes from the Federalist Papers best supports the decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) ?

• “But the most common and durable source of factions has been the various and unequal distribution of property. Those who hold and those who are without property have ever formed distinct interests in society.”

• “Liberty is to faction what air is to fire. . . . But it could not be less folly to abolish liberty, which is essential to political life, because it nourishes faction, than it would be to wish the annihilation of air, which is essential to animal life, because it imparts to fire its destructive agency.”

• “If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.”

• “If, then, the courts of justice are to be considered as the bulwarks [defensive walls] of a limited Constitution against legislative encroachments, this consideration will afford a strong argument for the permanent tenure of judicial offices, since nothing will contribute so much as this to that independent spirit in the judges, which must be essential to the faithful performance of so arduous a duty.”

The decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) led to the creation of super PACs that can legally raise unlimited amounts of money and engage in electioneering with few limits. Madison argued in The Federalist 10 that factions, like super PACs, would not be detrimental to society because the Constitution

• left most of the powers to local governments where factions are unlikely to form

• placed financial limits on factions to prevent them from creating problems

• created an independent judiciary that would prosecute those forming factions

• created a large republic with many factions that would cancel each other out

In Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010), the Supreme Court ruled that corporations and labor unions could spend unlimited amounts of money on political advertising. Which of the following was the basis for the Court’s ruling?

• The freedom of assembly in the First Amendment

• The freedom of speech in the First Amendment

• The due process clause in the Fourteenth Amendment

• The equal protection clause in the Fourteenth Amendment

A chief executive officer (CEO) of a corporation believes that the Republican candidate for president will enact policies that are more beneficial to her business. The CEO donated the maximum amount allowed by law directly to the candidate’s campaign fund. To increase the candidate's chances for election, the CEO also directed her corporation to donate funds to an independent political action committee to create ads criticizing the opposing candidate. According to the decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010), which provision of the Constitution protects her actions?

• Reserved powers in the Tenth Amendment

• Due process clause in the Fifth Amendment

• Freedom of association in the First Amendment

• Freedom of speech in the First Amendment

Which of the following scenarios is most closely related to the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) ?

• A member of Congress establishes a political action committee to gain influence within the chamber.

• A labor union spends millions of dollars to independently run negative advertisements about a presidential candidate shortly before the election.

• A state senator receives a large cash donation from a corporate executive in exchange for specific political favors.

• A lobbyist writes the language of a bill that is later introduced into both chambers of Congress.

There is an ongoing debate over the role of money in elections. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) of 2002 banned soft money and restricted advertisements in the weeks before an election. Parts of this act were challenged and struck down in the Supreme Court case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010). Which of the following was a consequence of that ruling?

• The Federal Election Commission cannot place any restrictions on political advertisements because they are protected by the freedom of speech.

• PACs may spend unlimited funds on advertisements that are not coordinated with the campaign because they are protected by the freedom of speech.

• Advertisements produced in coordination between campaigns and PACs cannot be restricted because they are protected by the freedom of speech.

• The Federal Election Commission can place restrictions on all advertisements because they are not protected by the freedom of speech.

  
  

An advertisement airs on television attacking a candidate running for office. The advertisement was produced and distributed by a group that was not affiliated with nor funded by any political campaign. Which of the following statements explains why this expenditure is not prohibited by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 ?

• The press can freely criticize elected officials in their publications.

• The press can protect the confidentiality of their sources with regard to campaign funding violations.

• Political spending by groups not directly affiliated with a campaign is a form of protected speech.

• Restrictions on individual contributions to political campaigns violate the First Amendment.

Identify the civil liberty that is common to both Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

(2010) and United States v. Eichman (1990).

Explain how the reasoning in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission and United States v.

Eichman led to a similar holding in both cases.

Explain how those unhappy with the precedent established in Eichman can use a constitutional process to have it overturned.