Supreme court open the floodgate.

• Position: YOUR LIFE

The Supreme Court decision loosening campaign restrictions undoubtedly will increase money's influence in elections, possibly with serious consequences, according to research by two political scientists at Northwestern University, Evanston.

Using "web-scraping" techniques, Benjamin Page, the Gordon S. Fulcher Professor of Decision Making, and Jason Seawright, associate professor of political science, unearthed all searchable public comments, statements, and interviews by the richest of the Forbes 400 billionaires that mention any of 15 issues related to taxes or Social Security. The research shows that, while most billionaires are vague or totally silent about their political views, they often contribute large sums of money to highly specific, issue-oriented political action committees that take clear stands on the issues.

"Billionaires may be reticent about publicly sharing what policies they favor or oppose, but their money talks loudly, and they work hard to get their way," Page claims. 'They are heavily engaged in what we call 'stealth politics.' " The Supreme Court decision may encourage such stealth politics, he asserts. 'The strategy permits billionaires to have a great deal of influence over...