Family Life

06.30.10 |

The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed fundraising limits for national political parties. Rejecting a free-speech argument advanced by the Republican Party, the court balked at the prospect of applying a recent ruling that approved free corporate spending for presidential and congressional candidates. The court refused to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling in a case brought by the national and San Diego County Republican parties. The decision applies only to what's called soft money used to pay for general campaign-related activities. It doesn't apply to money used for the direct support or opposition of federal candidates.

 The Supreme Court action affirms a provision in the 2002 campaign finance law named after Republican Senator John McCain and Democratic Senator Russ Feingold. That law places a 30-thousand-400-dollar cap on individual donor contributions to national political parties. The Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal on a six-to-three vote. Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Anthony Kennedy indicated they would have taken the appeal.