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By DAVID ESPO AP Special Correspondent

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans call the Supreme Court's latest ruling on campaign donations a victory for free speech. Democrats say it's more like a win for the wealthy.

Either way, it's likely to benefit the two major political parties and their candidates for Congress, who are now able to seek donations from deep-pocketed contributors who can give more without running afoul of the law.

The court "has once again reminded Congress that Americans have a constitutional First Amendment right to speak and associate with political candidates and parties of their choice," Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said Wednesday after the court struck down a limit on the amount donors may give to candidates, party committees and political action committees combined.

He added that the court's ruling makes it clear that it is the "right of the individual, and not the prerogative of Congress, to determine how many candidates and parties to support."

Yet two Senate Democrats told a news conference the ruling was another in a string of decisions by a conservative court majority that strengthens the ability of wealthy donors to have an impact on politics. "It advantages wealthy people over everybody else," Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said.

Said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., "We see the Supreme Court behaving in a way that would be matched if the five conservative judges made it a strategy to go off and sit in a room by themselves and decide how best to implement the Republican agenda and then came out and did it."

The court's 5-4 ruling was a fresh declaration that many limits on big-money contributions violate the givers' free-speech rights, continuing a steady erosion of the restrictions under Chief Justice John Roberts. The biggest of those rulings was the 2010 decision in the Citizens United case that lifted restrictions on independent spending by corporations and labor unions.

Another Democrat, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, was quick to inject the ruling into his own campaign for re-election. In an email from his campaign, the Senate's second-ranking party leader wrote, "Republicans love the judicial dismantling of campaign finance laws, because it disproportionately benefits them and their corporate friends."

In particular, Wednesday's decision voided the overall federal limit on individuals' contributions - $123,200 in 2013 and 2014, broken down as $48,600 to all candidates combined and $74,600 to all party committees and political action committees in total. Limitations on the amounts a donor may give an individual candidate or committee remain in effect.

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Republicans like campaign money ruling, Dems don't - NBC40.net

The Best Gift Progressives Can Give To the World - Van Jones
This is a section of an hour long conversation that can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErSWS... Van Jones speaks to Konda Mason in an online co...

By: The Pachamama Alliance

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The Best Gift Progressives Can Give To the World - Van Jones - Video

Nathan Barrett #39;s Plan | Country Liberals
Terry Mills is 100% behind Nathan Barrett and fully endorses his plan for Blain.

By: countryliberals

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Nathan Barrett's Plan | Country Liberals - Video

CTV Montreal Published Wednesday, April 2, 2014 5:33PM EDT Last Updated Thursday, April 3, 2014 1:10PM EDT

Philippe Couillards Liberal Party has grown its lead over Pauline Marois Parti Quebecois with just days to go before the April 7 provincial election, an CTV News Ipsos Reid poll reports.

The poll gives the Liberals 37 percent of decided voters, with 28 percent going to the PQ, 19 percent to Francois Legaults CAQ and 13 percent to the Quebec Solidaire party, led by Francoise David.

Support for the Liberals is unchanged, but the PQ has lost four points since the last CTV-Ipsos Reid poll on March 19. The CAQ has risen three points, as has the QS.

Seven percent of voters remain undecided.

While the poll is good news for the Couillard Liberals, who have maintained their support and bad news for the PQ, it's a particularly welcome result for the Coalition Avenir Quebec, whose leader was praised for his performance in the leaders debate last Thursday.

"It looks what Francois Legault is doing is, being very visible and being on all of the tribunes seems to be working well for him because there are significant increases in his support," said Luc Durand of Ipsos Reid.

PQ loses lead among francophones

The PQ, which until recently held a large lead among francophones, has seen that advantage disappear, as the Liberals and PQ are now tied at 31 percent support among French-speaking Quebecers, while the CAQ has 21 percent and the Quebec Solidaire clocks in at 14 percent. Other parties have just two percent support among those who opted to complete the online survey in French.

The Liberals have a massive lead people who chose to complete the survey in English, as 83 percent of that demographic supports the Liberals, while only three percent say that they will cast votes for the PQ, four percent support the CAQ. Six percent of anglophones support the QS, one percent the Option Nationale and three percent chose other parties.

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Poll shows Liberals' lead grows while PQ support fades

Finance Minister Diana Whalen said earlier this week that the provincial budget would contain few surprises and she lived up to that promise Thursday.

Whalen introduced a $9.9-billion budget with a $279-million deficit. The document contains a collection of announcements from the Liberals election campaign platform, as well as some new initiatives, with about $80 million in new spending. Department spending increased overall by 5.4 per cent, or $455 million.

The net debt is estimated to be $14.6 billion as of March 31. Its projected to top $15 billion in the next fiscal year.

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The numbers say what Nova Scotians already know: the status quo isnt working, Whalen said. The hard truth is that we have significant challenges and a steep hill to climb.

Much of the department spending resulted from increased service pressures as well as negotiated wage increases, said Whalen. The minister said there would need to be a new approach to wage agreements, which cost about $50 million per percentage increase.

We just cant afford those kind of pressures, she said. We all need to work together to recognize we have a problem and together we can fix it. When things improve, we can offer bigger increases.

The Liberals are hanging a lot of importance on a review of taxes, regulations and fees that wont be complete until autumn. As such, Whalen said more significant changes would come in future budgets.

As for whats in this one, the majority of new spending focuses on education and health.

The Liberals will spend $32.6 million on home-care support, $10.6 million on doctor recruiting and training with a focus on rural areas, and $1.9 million for improved access to oncology and other drugs.

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Liberals stick to playbook with first budget