Pros And Cons Of Mccain Feingold Campaign Finance Reform
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The McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Laws The McCain-Feingold Act campaign finance reform law, also known as the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, (BCRA) has been more effective at shifting the tone of the campaign finance reform debate than at achieving any real progress in removing the nefarious influence of money on elections. In the twelve years following the BCRA’s passage, the Supreme Court has hamstrung the law piece by piece in rulings that favor corporate donors’ ability to influence elections in decisions. The most obvious example is Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. ___ (2010), in which §203 of BCRA regarding electioneering communications was overturned. The two cases associated with Federal Election Commission v. Wisconsin Right to Life (2007) prefigured the ruling in Citizens United by loosening spending limits (Stohr).
The McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform laws were intended to address the negative influence of money on American elections by setting limits on contributions and requiring advertising campaigns to identify their donors. The Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission law, “further established the illegality…show more content… If large campaign donations can come from specific corporations and political lobbyists, it is possible that the newly elected politicians will act beholden to these supporters in terms of policymaking, rather than serving the needs of constituents. Aside from general influence, specific votes may be bought that favor the donor’s interests, for example, pork barrel projects linked to specific businesses. This unfortunate reality means that elections can be dictated by the whims and purse strings of powerful interests, rather than being marshaled by an impartial media and informed voting