DIONNE: “How to Beat Citizens’ United” (Washington Post, US)

Now that the Citizens United decision is firmly embedded in the political process, attention has turned to the ways that legislation can mitigate its negative effects.  EJ Dionne looks at New York state’s novel approach.

The legislation, proposed by Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo, is a populist touch on the delicate supreme court decision.  It promises to match contributions made from poorer citizens of the state as a way to counterbalance the influx of money coming from wealthy donors based in New York City.

The proposal has broad support from advocates who fear the recent flow of cash into the political process.  Also, quite interestingly, it upholds the principles of Citizens United – that freedom to donate should not be restricted.  It’s a move that will make criticism of the legislation quite difficult, even by those who would seek to protect the interests of the wealthy donors.

The post by Dionne is the first major new piece about counter legislation, and therefore deserves more credit than the pieces whose sole purpose is to denigrate the system without offering any new analysis.

(Article here)