Sam Petulla talks to Sheila Krumholz about the real effects of the Citizens United decision on the midterms.
What about out-of-state donations influencing local elections? Is this having an effect, or is it just buzz-generating?
Most of these organizations have a national focus, so they’re looking at all the seats most likely to get them to tip the scales to their party. And they are, I think, having an enormous effect in this cycle, in particular with the amount of money being dedicated to advertising and advocacy. Constituents can’t escape the barrage and scarily forget how negative and flat out irresponsible these ads are. So I think it’s pretty effective. That’s why these organizations do it.
