McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission: A Landmark Case on Campaign Finance Laws

The McCutcheon case, also known as McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, was a landmark Supreme Court decision in 2014 that dealt with campaign finance laws and the limits on political donations.

In this case, the plaintiff, Shaun McCutcheon, a conservative activist and businessman, challenged the constitutionality of the aggregate limit on campaign contributions to federal candidates and political committees. The limit in question was $123,200 per year, which was the maximum amount that an individual could contribute to all federal candidates and committees combined.

The Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the aggregate limit was unconstitutional, as it violated the First Amendment's protection of free speech and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The majority opinion, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, held that the limit on campaign contributions was an impermissible form of viewpoint discrimination, as it restricted the ability of individuals to express their political views by contributing to certain candidates or committees.

The decision effectively struck down the aggregate limit on campaign contributions, allowing individuals to contribute more money to federal candidates and committees. However, the Court also emphasized that the ruling did not invalidate all campaign finance laws, and that the government still had a compelling interest in preventing corruption and the appearance of corruption in the political process.