Larry Lessig on the Maine Case That Could End Super PACs

This episode features Larry Lessig, Harvard Law professor and founder of Equal Citizens, a nonprofit dedicated to democracy and campaign finance reform. Everyone blames Citizens United for Super PACs. Lessig says that's wrong. In this episode, Nancy and Larry will unpack how a case in Maine has the potential to get rid of Super PACs without overturning Citizens United. Larry explains how it was a 2010 lower court case, Speech Now, that actually opened the door to Super PACs and how that case got the law wrong. Nancy and Larry also discuss how the Maine case, Dinner Table Action vs Schneider, could give the Supreme Court the opportunity to overturn Speech Now using its own precedent and aligning with the majority’s own originalist philosophy. If the stars align, there is a chance that a Supreme Court ruling on this case could place limits on Super PAC contributions in time for the 2028 elections.Lawrence Lessig is the Roy L. Furman Professor of Law and Leadership at Harvard Law School. Prior to returning to Harvard, he taught at Stanford Law School, where he founded the Center for Internet and Society, and at the University of Chicago. Lessig is the founder of Equal Citizens and a founding board member of Creative Commons, and serves on the Scientific Board of AXA Research Fund. He clerked for Judge Richard Posner on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals and Justice Antonin Scalia on the United States Supreme Court.Thank you for being a listener!Stay up to date on New Faces of Democracy by signing up for the newsletter here.If you or someone you know would like to be a guest on the podcast, send us an email at [email protected] you like this podcast, please subscribe/rate/review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. It makes a huge difference!Follow New Faces of Democracy on Instagram, Threads and Bluesky.