Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

The purpose of this Twitter and those that immediately follow is to briefly explain the holdings and effect of a decision of the United States Supreme Court in a case captioned Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 130 S. Ct. 876 (decided in 2010). The decision dealt with the serious constitutional question of whether the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech, prohibits the government from placing limits on political broadcasting ads in candidate elections when the broadcast ads are funded by corporations or unions. The case has been discussed in detail by legal scholars, academics, politicians and journalists. I am attempting only to acquaint you with the nature of the 5-4 decision and some of its broader effects. Those interested in detailed and scholarly analysis of the decision and its effects will have little trouble locating countless articles and comments which have followed the decision.