Supreme Court Ruling a Victory For Americans’ First Amendment Rights

Boston, MA: The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, a nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy group dedicated to promoting better government and right-of-center fiscal and economic policy solutions, today noted that the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, a major win for free-speech and free-association rights in the U.S., has hit its fifth anniversary.

"Despite opposition from those who prefer ever-sharper limits on the First Amendment’s guarantees of free speech and free association, the Citizens United case has proven a major boon to our political system,” said Paul Craney, the group’s executive director. “The Supreme Court rightly chose to strengthen the rights of citizens to express their political beliefs in the public square without undue fear of retribution.”

Particularly through efforts to publish op-eds and letters across the state, the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance has devoted significant time and resources to the cause of advancing the rights of those wishing to make their voices heard about the political issues of the day. The group is firmly committed to the notion that our democratic process is improved when more speech, rather than less, is encouraged.

“Ironically, lawmakers last session had the chance to bring equality to state campaign finance law by eliminating the union loophole that only allows unions to make political donations above the individual limit but instead chose to create an uneven playing field. The Supreme Court got it right in Citizens United, which allows anyone of any means to be heard, and we hope the decision will stand in the face of so much misguided activism,” Craney concluded.

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