Since the Citizens United ruling, attention has largely focused on concerns around how much money will be spent on elections. However, groups are already spending heavily, particularly since the Wisconsin Right to Life decision when the Supreme Court decided that the electioneering communications ban is unconstitutional when applied to genuine issue ads. Subsequently, groups have been allowed to run issue ads that may come quite close to arguably resembling a campaign message, without having to disclose donors.

The Senate Judiciary committee held a hearing tilted, "We the People? Corporate Spending in American Elections after Citizens United." During the hearing opponents of the ruling argued that the case exemplified that the Roberts Court has abandoned judicial restraint. Conversely, witness Bradley Smith, described the responses to the Citizens United decision as "hysteria." Smith also caused hysteria during the hearing when he referenced Vermont legislators as "freaking out" about the decision.

The LA Times reports on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's growing grassroots initiative, Friends of the U.S. Chamber, which "has begun to rival those of the major political parties, funded by record-setting amounts of money raised from corporations and wealthy individuals."