The McCain Feingold bill sought to restrict the influence of big money in politics. Yesterday it was struck down as a violation of free speech. It should have been.

When one avenue of influence is cut off it just finds another road. The restrictions of McCain Feingold just made lobbyists more valuable. I would rather see organizations and individuals free to support who they want, but I would want to see full disclosure to the public to show where the money came from.

Obama’s first broken promise was to restrict his campaign to public financing. McCain restricted his campaign to public financing and was killed by Obama’s record $750 million campaign. It was ironic that McCain’s campaign was killed by his own legislation.

Yet in spite of the disparity in the Obama / McCain Campaign, money in a political campaign reaches a critical mass where another dollar is largely ineffective. You need a certain amount to run a campaign but beyond that it does not really buy that many votes. There are lots of campaigns that were outspent yet still won.

The real losers in this Supreme Court decision are the lobbyists. I consider their influence more sinister because there is no transparency in their actions. The real enemy is not money, it is secrecy.

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