ABSTRACT
Political parties, advocacy groups, corporations, unions, and individuals spend large sums of money to communicate their views on candidates and policies to the electorate. Such expenditures are "independent" when they occur without prior consultation or coordination with the candidate. The constitutionality of regulating these independent expenditures implicates a classic conflict in US politics between civil liberties and governmental interests. Although independent expenditures enable the free speech rights protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution, they may also undermine the public's faith in American democracy. Congress in the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 and the US Supreme Court will continue their struggle to balance the civil liberties of those who wish to engage in genuine issue advocacy with the public's interest in regulating independent expenditures that impact public elections.
