What Happens Next: The Supreme Court's political cash cow roams free

The Huffington Post - Today's Supreme Court opinion marks a very bad day for American democracy, and one that was totally avoidable. Make no mistake: the Supreme Court had ample ways (I count at least six) to have avoided deciding the issues in the case. The case will affect not just Congress, but also state and local races, including judicial elections. In no elections will corporate or labor union spending limits be constitutional.

So what can happen now? There are a few options, but most appear either politically unrealistic, unconstitutional, or both:

1. Reenact narrower corporate spending limits. Some are suggesting that a narrower ban, such as one that targets only wealthy corporations. I don't think that will fly. Unlike many recent opinions from the Supreme Court in recent years, this one is not fractured. You have a united, five-Justice majority saying pretty much per se that spending limits are unconstitutional (except perhaps foreign corporations). There seems little wiggle room in the opinion. Read more.