Senate Republicans on Thursday quashed a proposed Democratic constitutional amendment to limit campaign spending, an amendment GOP lawmakers have criticized as an assault on free speech.
The amendment targeted Supreme Court rulings in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission and McCutcheon v. FEC which say that certain campaign spending is protected under the First Amendment. Citizens United struck down a handful of restrictions that prohibited corporations from using general funds to support or oppose candidates; McCutcheon eliminated aggregate limits on individual contributions.
Senate Democrats fell short of the 60 votes needed to pass the amendment in a 54-42 vote that fell largely along party lines.
The amendment was politically unviable from the start, as it would have been impossible for Democrats to muster the required two-thirds support needed to pass the Senate. But, in the name of political theater, nearly two dozen Republicans voted with Democrats to advance the amendment earlier this week in order to force a discussion of its merits.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Tuesday called the proposal “bar none the most radical … that has been considered by the United States Senate in the time I have served.”
“The First Amendment is not about reasonable speech, the First Amendment was enacted to protect unreasonable speech. I for one certainly don’t want our speech limited to that speech that elected politicians in Washington think is reasonable,” he said.
Other Republicans noted that the Democratic proposals reeked of a political stunt to provide campaign fodder for the 2014 midterm elections.
“I have to say it’s a little disconcerting to see the Democrat-led Senate focusing on things like reducing free speech protections for the American people,” The Hill quoted Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) saying Thursday. “This is what they chose to make their top legislative priority this week? Taking an eraser to the First Amendment.”
http://personalliberty.com/senate-gop-quash-democrats-attack-free-speech/
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