Divided Supreme Court Strikes Down Key Provision of Arizona Public Financing Law
Kagan, who took the unusual step of reading her dissent from the bench, said: “No fundamental principle of our Constitution backs the court’s ruling; to the contrary, it is the law struck down today that fostered both the vigorous competition of ideas and its ultimate object — a government responsive to the will of the people. Arizona deserves better.”
The Arizona law, called the Citizens Clean Elections Act, was passed in 1998 following a string of corruption scandals in the state. The ruling will affect public financing laws in several other states with similar trigger mechanisms, but it won’t affect those public financing systems, such as the presidential system, that do not. The ruling leaves standing a 1976 Supreme Court decision that found public financing in general was constitutional.
More better private campaign funding. Another big loss for real democratic campaign finance reform.