Court Okays Issue Ads During Elections

WASHINGTON — A federal court yesterday loosened restrictions on corporations, unions, and other groups that run political advertising in peak election season. The 2–1 ruling said groups may mention candidates by name in commercials as long as they are trying to influence public policy, not sway an election.

The ruling came in a challenge to the so-called McCain-Feingold law designed to reduce the influence of big money in political campaigns. The law banned groups from using unrestricted money to run ads that name candidates two months before a general election or one month before a primary.

Wisconsin Right to Life, an anti-abortion group, has been fighting the law since 2004, when it sought to run an ad urging voters to contact their senators and ask them not to hold up President Bush's judicial nominees.