Mitch McConnell, eternal protector of the voiceless (oh, wait…), recently submitted an amicus curiae to the Supreme Court in regards to Citizens United and the more recent Montana ruling that questioned it. In brief, McConnell has looked at the two years that have passed since the C.U. ruling and has come to the conclusion that it has, if anything, only made our democracy richer. Per David Firestone at the Times:
Mr. McConnell has outdone himself with a legal brief submitted recently to the Supreme Court that’s blind to how unlimited contributions damage the political system. Not only is there no reason for the court to reconsider or overturn its 2010 Citizens United ruling, he wrote, but the events of the last two years actually support the correctness of the decision.
Outside spending in the presidential election (through early March) was $88 million, more than twice as much as in the same period in 2008, and more than six times as much as in 2004.
But this wash of money, most of it buying attack ads, actually pleases Mr. McConnell, who sees it all as an exercise of speech (by those who can afford to speak in this way, most of whom happen to be Republicans). In his brief, urging the court to strike down the Montana law, he says the money has allowed “far more political speech in 2012 than would otherwise have been the case,” making the campaign less predictable and more interesting. (In fact, predictably, the guy with the most money won the Republican nomination.)
Read the whole article! And if you have the time / seratonin levels necessary, read McConnell’s brief itself – it’s not that long, actually, and quite illuminating.
