Appeal court lifts restrictions on gifts to non profits for political ads

Washington Times:

A federal appeals court on Friday dramatically expanded the ability of politically oriented groups such as Emily's List or the National Rifle Association to raise and spend money to help candidates get elected to federal office.

The opinion, issued by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, nullifies the $5,000 annual cap on individual giving to nonprofits. The Federal Election Commission enacted the rule after the 2004 presidential election that saw a flood of money from independent groups including Swift Boats Veterans for Truth and MoveOn.Org.

It was the latest in a string of court rulings that are collectively unwinding the restrictions on campaign giving that have taken effect over the past two decades, most notably with the passage of the landmark McCain-Feingold legislationin 2002.

"The First Amendment, as interpreted by the Supreme Court, protects the right of individual citizens to spend unlimited amounts to express their views about policy issues and candidates for public office," the court ruling said. The First Amendment also "safeguards the right of citizens to band together and pool their resources as an unincorporated group or nonprofit organization in order to express their views about policy issues and candidates for public office."

Emily's List, which advocates for women candidates who support the legal right to an abortion, brought the case against the FEC. The group objected to the restrictions on "hard money" contributions for political activities.

"As a result of this decision, Emily's List will be able to allocate its federal and non-federal expenses in a manner that reflects our actual work and we will continue to support state and local candidates across the country," said Ellen R. Malcolm, president and founder of Emily's List.

Reform groups strongly condemned the ruling as overly broad because two of the three judges - all appointed to the Washington-based court by Republican presidents - declared the restrictions to be First Amendment violations. It follows an even more potent case that has the potential to erase a longstanding ban on targeted corporate and union spending during the campaign season, argued earlier this month and now pending before the United States Supreme Court.

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This is another example that shows the judicial winds are blowing against those who would restrict speech, or paying for speech. While Emily's List is a liberal group, these restrictions were aimed mainly at conservatives. The irony of having liberal activist bring teh case that lifts the restrictions is pretty sweet.