Democrats Hurry to Limit Effect of Supreme Court Ruling on 2010 Campaigns

When the Supreme Court issued its decision in Citizens United v. FEC lifting restrictions on corporate and union spending in federal elections, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called it "poisonous," "un-American," and "a threat to our democracy."

On Thursday, he and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) announced they will take the lead in Congress to limit the impact of the Supreme Court's decision on the mid-term elections. They intend to introduce legislation banning donations from certain types of corporations, including foreign companies, TARP recipients, and federal contractors.

In its January ruling, the Supreme Court struck down limits to political contributions from corporations and unions, saying they can spend unlimited amounts of money from any source in an effort to affect the outcome of an election.

The decision is expected to hurt Democrats' campaigns more than Republicans because corporations are more closely aligned with GOP interests.

Van Hollen called the decision "radical" and said that his goal is to draft and pass legislation as soon as possible. "This should not be a partisan issue," he said. "Time is of the essence and we should act now."