Court ruling threatens GOP cash advantage

A federal appeals court ruling Tuesday could erase a new midterm advantage for Republicans.

Why it matters: The 2-1 ruling would block Republicans from using cash-rich party committees to buy more political TV ads at discounted rates.

• Republicans plan to appeal the decision, setting up another high-stakes campaign finance fight as the fall ad wars heat up ahead of November.

Driving the news: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled the FCC was wrong to extend discounted candidate broadcast rates to political parties and joint fundraising committees that include non-candidate groups for ads they coordinate with candidates.

• The rates paid by super PACs and other outside groups are often several times higher than candidate rates.
• The case was brought by four Democratic candidates running this cycle — Sen. Jon Ossoff (Ga.), former Sen. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), former Gov. Roy Cooper (N.C.) and Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet (Mich.)
• The U.S. Supreme Court in June struck down limits on how much committees can spend in coordination with campaigns.

Between the lines: Republicans believed the Supreme Court decision, paired with FCC guidance extending candidate rates to certain coordinated ads, would allow party committee cash to stretch further.

• The ruling applied to both parties.
• But while Democratic candidates generally have stronger grassroots fundraising, Republican Party committees have amassed larger war chests, fueled by megadonors
• Republicans believed the Supreme Court decision, paired with FCC guidance, allowed party committee cash to stretch further by accessing lower rates reserved for candidates.

What they're saying: "Put plainly, today's ruling makes clear that lowest unit rate is an exclusive right given to candidates and incumbent campaigns and that is the law of the land," DSCC executive director Devan Barber and DCCC executive director Julie Merz said in a joint statement.

• "Democratic candidates' strong grassroots fundraising amplifying the voice of everyday Americans remains a fundamental advantage in the midterms," they continued.
• "This was an incorrect ruling that ignores decades of precedent," NRSC communications director Joanna Rodriguez said in a statement.
• "We plan on appealing and this is the first word not the last," she continued.