Citizens United
The law that allows corporations to outvoice, outfund, and outvote citizens without accountability or retribution. The most ironically named Supreme Court decision.
How We Say It
si·tə·zənz yoo·nī·təd
Where It Comes From
Named for the conservative nonprofit Citizens United, plaintiff in Citizens United v. FEC, decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2010. The case began as a dispute over a film about Hillary Clinton. The 5–4 ruling held that political spending by corporations and unions is protected speech under the First Amendment.
How It's Been Used
Used as shorthand for the broader regime of unlimited independent political spending it enabled — though the ruling addressed a narrower question. Spawned the rise of super PACs and dark-money 501(c)(4) groups. Has been the target of decades of failed constitutional amendments seeking to reverse it. The name's irony — 'citizens' meaning corporations — is widely noted.