BNA offers this interesting report which notes how the Emily’s List decision is already being felt at the FEC. The report notes that a new letter in the Black Rock AO controversy “came from prominent election lawyers, including some linked to Democratic candidates, unions, and liberal nonprofits generally supportive of Democrats. Signers included Michael Trister, Holly Schadler, and Laurence E. Gold of the firm Lichtman, Trister & Ross; Joseph Sandler, Neil Reiff, and James Lamb of Sandier, Reiff, & Young; and Patricia Fiori, Eric Kleinfeld, Margaret McCormick, Lyn Utrecht, and Karen Zeglis of Utrecht & Phillips. The letter from the lawyers identified with Democratic causes and candidates noted that their position was at odds with that taken in earlier comments filed by the national committees of the Democratic Party, as well as the reform groups Democracy 21 and Campaign Legal Center. The letter also noted concerns that the appeals court decision in the EMILY’S List case could provide much greater fund-raising clout to independent groups by allowing them to fund their activities with unlimited ‘soft money.’ Meanwhile, political parties continue to be governed by rules requiring them to use limited “hard money” contributions to finance their activities.”
You can find the letter here.
UPDATE: I understand that these links are not working (this is often a problem with the structure of the FEC website). To find these materials go to www.fec.gov, then go to “Law and Regulations” on the left side, then choose “Advisory Opinions,” and then choose “pending Advisory Opinions” near the bottom of the Advisory Opinions page. Black Rock (AO-2009-13) is at the top, and the letter I’ve referred to is currently the second to final item listed.