Michael Toner Takes Part in Citizens United Panel Discussion

Michael Toner, co-chair of the Election Law & Government Ethics Practice, was part of a panel discussion sponsored by Thomson Reuters that reviewed the Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United ruling. Under Citizens United, corporations and unions are able to spend unlimited money to fund ads through Super PACs that back specific political candidates.

Mr. Toner, former chairman of the Federal Election Commission, was part of a panel that included Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), former Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA) and David Keating, president of the Center for Competitive Politics. Reuters reported that "McCain and others on the panel agreed that the new dynamics of campaign finance have diminished the influence of the political parties."

"What's really happened is, 'soft' money funds that used to go to the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee have gone underground, to the third-party groups," said Mr. Toner.