Why are advocates of campaign finance reform so upset?
For nearly 40 years there has been a fundamental debate raging over how best to finance American political campaigns. On one side, liberal reformers have sought to limit the influence of wealthy corporate interests by emphasizing the importance of maintaining a “level playing field.” They have argued that corporations and labor unions could dominate the airwaves with slick and highly effective attack ads, leaving no time for the targeted candidates to respond. If American democracy is based on the principle of one person, one vote, they say, then corporations must be muzzled during political campaigns to prevent their amassed wealth from dominating and corrupting a political campaign. Conservatives and libertarians, on the other hand, have countered that limiting the amount of money a corporation – or anyone – can spend to make their political point is censorship and a violation of the letter and spirit of the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech. Corporate power and influence ar
