U.S. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del. sharply criticized the U.S. Supreme Court ruling today that struck down an aggregate cap on federal campaign contributions as a violation of the First Amendment.
"America's political system is broken," Coons said in a written statement. "Gerrymandering and draconian election laws are systematically drowning out the voices of Americans at the same time that reckless Supreme Court decisions are radically expanding the political influence of the wealthiest Americans."
The ruling does not eliminate the $2,600 limit that a donor can give to a single candidate per election cycle. But it found that aggregate caps on what donors can contribute to federal elections every two years - $48,600 to individual candidates and $74,600 to party committees - violate free speech rights.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the majority.
"Money in politics may at times seem repugnant to some, but so too does much of what the First Amendment vigorously protects," Roberts wrote. "If the First Amendment protects flag burning, funeral protests, and Nazi parades—despite the profound offense such spectacles cause—it surely protects political campaign speech despite popular opposition."
Contact Jonathan Starkey at 983-6756, on Twitter @jwstarkey or at firstname.lastname@example.org.