Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito appeared to mouth the words “not true” during President Obama’s State of the Union address Wednesday. Alito was reacting to Obama’s criticism of last week’s court ruling overturning campaign-finance laws (Alito was part of the 5-4 majority). Obama said that the court’s reversal of a century of law will “open the floodgates for special interests, including foreign corporations, to spend without limit in our elections.” David N. Bossie. president of Citizens United, the group that sued to overturn the law, disagrees with any effort to limit U.S. corporate spending on elections but shares Obama’s concern about foreign corporations.
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., was among seven GOP senators who had sponsored legislation to create an independent debt-reduction commission, then voted against it this week. Brownback and others supported the idea before it was associated with President Obama. Republicans also fear the commission would end up recommending tax increases to reduce the deficit — a radioactive idea for Republicans trying to cater to conservative voters. Co-sponsor of the failed bill, Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., called the outcome “yet another indication that Congress is more concerned with the next election than the next generation.” Meanwhile, Brownback has introduced legislation to create the Commission on Accountability and Review of Federal Agencies.
Pro-choice groups are making too much of an anti-abortion commercial that CBS plans to broadcast during the Super Bowl featuring University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow and his mother. It’s just a commercial, after all. Still, it’s worth noting that CBS’ decision reflects a policy change. In the past, CBS has prohibited advocacy ads. For example, CBS refused to broadcast a commercial during the 2004 Super Bowl by the United Church of Christ about how “Jesus didn’t turn people away,” including gays. CBS said this week that, under its new policy, the UCC ad would air.
