• Washington Post, Wednesday, June 2, 2010 10:05 AM

Carol D. Leonnig reports that corporate CEOs and trade groups are wrestling with how they can take advantage of the recent Supreme Court ruling that allows them to spend without limit in political campaigns without leaving tracks that may alienate some members of Congress, customers or employees. As a result, predictions that partisan ads would flood the airways have yet to materialize.

Some big firms are considering giving money to business coalitions and conservative political groups "that are going to fight their battles for them and not come back to them," says Stefan Passantino, a campaign finance law expert at McKenna Long & Aldridge. Fundraisers suggest, for example, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and American Crossroads, a political action group founded by Karl Rove. The two groups and an affiliate of American Crossroads have pledged $127 million to elect business-friendly GOP candidates in 2010.

Democrats, however, have proposed legislation that would require CEOs to appear personally in campaign ads they finance. Umbrella groups would have to list the top five corporate donors for an ad. "[Corporations] see the regulation on their horizon -- and how it can really affect their bottom line," says Passantino. "But if corporations are forced to put their corporate logo on it, most won't do it."

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