While President Obama used last year's State of the Union speech to criticize the U.S. Supreme
Court's ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, it seems unlikely he will focus on campaign financing during next week's national address, reports BNA Money & Politics.

The speech on Jan. 25 probably won't touch on increasing disclosure of funding sources for groups that spend money on campaigns and tightening rules for corporate campaign spending - two ideas Democrats have pushed to limit the effects of the Citizens United decision.

These two legislative approaches may not fare well in the 112th Congress. Even when Democrats controlled the House and Senate, bills designed to incorporate these ideas into campaign finance law didn't get far.  

During last year's State of the Union, Obama criticized the high court for striking down as unconstitutional longtime restrictions on direct campaign spending by corporations, unions and associations. The ruling, Obama said, would "open the floodgates for special interests-including foreign corporations-to spend without limit in our elections." Obama's words elicited Justice Samuel Alito's now-infamous mouthing of the words "not so," as he sat nearby and listened to the speech.

The campaign finance limits that remain intact after the Citizens United ruling include the $2,400 per-election limit on individual campaign contributions to a federal candidate and the $30,400 annual limit on individual contributions to national political parties. Those limits will be adjusted upward for the 2012 election cycle to account for inflation. The Federal Election Commission is expected to announce new contribution limits in February.

Read the full story at http://news.bna.com. (A subscription may be required).