What political activity did the group Citizens United engage in during the 2008 primary election? How was this activity potentially illegal under the BCRA?
Citizens United engaged in the production and distribution of a documentary film called "Hillary: The Movie" during the 2008 primary election. This film was critical of Hillary Clinton, who was then a candidate for the Democratic nomination for President.
This activity was potentially illegal under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) because the law prohibits corporations and unions from using their funds to produce or distribute electioneering communications within 30 days of a primary election or 60 days of a general election. The BCRA was enacted to prevent the influence of corporate and union money in federal elections and to prevent corruption or the appearance of corruption through political spending.
Citizens United challenged the BCRA provisions that restricted their ability to air "Hillary: The Movie" in federal court, arguing that it violated their First Amendment right to free speech. The case eventually made its way to the Supreme Court, which ruled in a landmark decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) that the BCRA's restrictions on corporate and union spending on independent political broadcasts were unconstitutional. This decision opened the door for unlimited corporate and union spending in elections through Super PACs and other means.