Here is something on soft money from a hostile group:
Soft Money
In the eyes of many observers – and many political practitioners who make use of it – the principal loophole in the federal campaign spending law is something that has come to be called "soft money." In the broadest sense, soft money encompasses any contributions not regulated by federal election laws. The exemption was made to encourage "party-building" activities which benefit the political parties in general, but not specific candidates. In reality, though, the loophole has emerged as the parties' primary means of raising tens of millions of dollars from wealthy contributors during the fall presidential campaigns, when direct contributions to candidates are prohibited. They are also used to support congressional candidates in key battleground states during off-year elections.
Technically, soft money contributions are supposed to be used only for state and local political activities – such as voter registration, get-out-the-vote drives, and bumper stickers – and for such generic party-building activities as TV ads supporting the Democratic and Republican platforms, but not naming specific candidates. Typically, however, the funds pay for much more – including office overhead, the purchase of expensive computer equipment, and other behind-the-scenes expenses – thus freeing up other contributions to the party to be used directly to support candidates.
opensecrets.org |
