Supreme Court agrees to hear Republican-backed effort to lift caps on campaign spending
CNN1 day
Supreme Court to Hear GOP Challenge to Campaign Finance Limits
Above: U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on June 28, 2025. Image copyright: Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg/Getty Images
The Spin
Republican narrative
The NRSC is right to challenge coordinated campaign spending limits. These restrictions weaken political parties, letting small-dollar donors and fringe groups dominate primaries — pushing candidates to extremes. Overturning the rule would empower parties to back electable candidates, reduce radical influence, and restore institutional balance. Free speech includes party coordination.
Democratic narrative
Overturning coordinated spending limits would unleash corruption, letting megadonors funnel unlimited funds through party committees to directly influence candidates. This violates the First Amendment’s spirit by amplifying wealthy voices, drowning out average Americans. The 2001 FEC v. Colorado ruling rightly curbed such influence peddling, and upholding these limits is vital to protect democracy from being bought.
Cynical narrative
While they pretend to bicker over such issues, both parties are beholden to corporate donors, sidelining workers. Democrats, once champions of labor, now cater to the managerial elite, ignoring job losses from NAFTA and corporate greed. Republicans, led by billionaires, offer no real worker advocacy, only tax cuts for the rich. Neither party fights mass layoffs or prioritizes job security, proving they're two sides of the same corporate-owned coin.