Preview

Citizens United V. Federal Election Comission

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
809 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Citizens United V. Federal Election Comission
Resolved: On balance, the Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission harms the election process. My partner and I stand in firm negation of today’s resolution. If my partner and I uphold that the Citizens United decision does not directly harm our election process, then we win today’s round.
Contention 1: Citizens United has negligible effect on public participation in elections.
In fact, the decision actually supports voter turnout. Many would argue that a bombardment of ads and excessive spending discourage voters, but this is not the case. In fact, there aren’t any studies that back up this claim sufficiently. There are many studies however, that say that ads pique the interest of voters and encourage them to educate themselves about the candidates. The Journal of Politics reports that respondents in 2000 were as much as 10 percentage points more likely to vote if they watched much television (particularly daily news shows) in media markets that were bombarded with presidential ads. Exposure to the ads increased intentions to vote by 18 percentage points. Clearly, campaign ads are very helpful when it comes to voter turnout, and after the case, there was a major increase in the amount of ads aired during a campaign according to a Wesleyan study. We have seen a 40% increase in ads since 2008. In addition, the number of ads only increased by 10,000 from 2004-2008 compared to the 300,000 increase from 2008-2012. Allowing corporations to fund ads and Political Action Committees raises awareness for elections, and potentially increase voter turnout.
Contention 2: The decision by the court actually prevents corruption. Matthew Melone, a professor from Depaul University, notes that, “To believe that corporate advocacy will distort the political process and lead to public lack of confidence in the system is to miss the point that influence will continue to be sought by other means. As long as elected officials offer themselves up

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    A unanimous court in National Right to Work did not think the regulatory burdens on PAC’s, including restrictions on their ability to solicit funds, rendered a PAC unconstitutional as an advocacy corporation’s sole avenue for making political contributions.…

    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In his opening statement, Stewart cited the Wisconsin Right to Life case that established that “a court should find that an ad is the functional equivalent of express advocacy only if the ad is susceptible of no reasonable interpretation other than as an appeal to vote for or against a specific candidate.” This functional equivalence test does not depend on either the length or medium in which the advertisement is distributed. By this standard, the film in question is still considered express advocacy and is subject to regulation. Furthermore, the main premise of the BCRA, and the premise of the corporation’s willingness to spend money is that enough people will be interested in the advertisements and can potentially effect an election. This is what the BCRA set out to…

    • 1441 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The District Court incorrectly held that the Pickering protections are only meant to protect full-time governmental employees, and not employees of private agencies who may be acting as independent contractors for the government. The United States Supreme Court has clearly established that…

    • 863 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Section 4 Pros And Cons

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Whoever proves the Supreme Court’s decision based on constitutionality wins. The round shall not stray to the effectiveness or benefits of Section 4 and instead should focus on constitutionality.…

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Citizens United v. FEC allowed for corporations and labor unions to spend as much as they wanted in order to convince the public either to vote for or against a candidate. They are protected by the First Amendment, which allows for them to have unlimited spending. However, the Supreme Court argued that it is illegal for corporations or labor unions to give money directly to candidate. The Supreme Court argued that if corporations or labor unions give money directly to a candidate, it could lead to corruption. Ultimately, I agree with the Supreme Court decision that it is illegal for them to do this and agree that they can persuade the public through other methods. For instance, corporations and labor unions can persuade the public through ads…

    • 194 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In this essay, I will explain why Texas should retain the partisan election of judges. Texas is one of the few states that choose their judges using a Partisan voting method. Partisan elections can be unreliable and deceitful. A high legal position such as a judge should never be chosen in such a manner. Judges are not chosen based on merit or skills.…

    • 553 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Brennan states that one of the proposed majority decisions is changed into a dissent before the final ruling is announced, then the Justices will figure out the final form of the opinion. In “Separate but Equal”, a dissent never existed, the Supreme Court just skips it and goes right to writing the final form. This article shows how the Supreme Courts decisions can cause major issues and controversies among the country. “Separate but Equal” proved to be a great example of all the controversies and problems that can result from decisions made by the Supreme Court by dealing with the issue of Segregation in public…

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Bush V. Gore Case Study

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000), is the United States Supreme Court decision that resolved the dispute surrounding the 2000 presidential election. Three days earlier, the Court had preliminarily halted the Florida recount that was occurring. Eight days earlier, the Court unanimously decided the closely related case of Bush v. Palm Beach County Canvassing Board, 531 U.S. 70 (2000).…

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dahl starts by asking what he believes to be a simple question, “Why should we Americans uphold our Constitution?” p.1 this is not as simple it could be argued as what Dahl would have us believe. However, it is the question that needs to stay in the mind of the reader when you discover the arguments of this text. In that the Constitution is undemocratic and outdated and that has worked in manners to which people like Madison did not intend, for instance political parties and the election of president by electoral college to which Dahl…

    • 799 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Bcom 275 Article Rebuttal

    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages

    “The initiative proponents, however, have appealed. Now the California Supreme Court must decide whether unelected and unaccountable initiative proponents have the power to trump the judgment of the democratically elected attorney general.”…

    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Brown V. Board of Education

    • 2492 Words
    • 10 Pages

    “To what extent was the case of Brown v. Board of Education effective in the scope of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950-60s?”…

    • 2492 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Supreme Court decisions that changed the nation : Brown v. Board of Education. Mount Kisco, N.Y. Guidance Associates, 1986. Follows each step leading to the Supreme Court 's unanimous overruling of Plessy vs Ferguson, culminating in the Court 's declaration that segregation in the public schools is unconstitutional.…

    • 1331 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    1st and 2nd Amendment

    • 1723 Words
    • 7 Pages

    References: Davis v. Federal Election Commission (2008) Retrieved October 11, 2009 from U.S Supreme Court Media Oyez http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2007/2007_07_320…

    • 1723 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Supreme Court case of Brown v. Board of Education dates back to 1954, the case was centered on the Fourteenth Amendment and challenged the segregation of schools solely on the basis of race. The Brown case was not the only case of its time involving school segregation, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was leading the push to desegregate public schools in the United States (Gold, 2005). Brown v. Board of Education was a consolidation of four cases that had made their way through the court system.…

    • 1762 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The case of Brown v. Board of education started when Linda Brown was forced to walk a mile to school although there was an all white school only seven blocks from her house. Mr. Oliver Brown went to the NAACP for help in presenting the case to the county, state, and if needed the federal governments. It was presented then to the state, but because of the Plessy v. Ferguson case, the state thought to have no jurisdiction over such an affair. Later that year it was presented to the Supreme Court for its judicial review. The Supreme Court unanimously decided and the Browns emerged victoriously, this caused a ripple in the American government starting the desegregation of schools across the nation.…

    • 728 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays