National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Comm’n · ¶85

Starting here with the asserted egregiousness of the error: In Colorado II, JUSTICE THOMAS dissented, joined by Chief Justice Rehnquist, Justice Scalia, and Justice Kennedy. He explained that “the ordinary means for a party to provide support is to make coordinated expenditures.” Federal Election Comm’n v. Colorado Republican Federal Campaign Comm., 533 U. S. 431, 469 (2001). He added “that parties and candidates have shared interests, that it is natural for them to work together, and that breaking the connection between parties and their candidates inhibits the promotion of the party’s message.” Id., at 473. JUSTICE THOMAS further noted that the Court had “never upheld an expenditure limitation against political parties.” Id., at 475. And critically, he reasoned that there “are better tailored alternatives for addressing” the Government’s interests, including earmarking rules that…

slip opinion
Source edition
Passage preview. Read in context for the complete text, notes and references.