Bradley A. Smith
The PG notes that in 2012, about $570 million was spent in the presidential race by independent groups. This, it says, is “often called ‘dark money,’ ” with donors “kept secret.”
This confuses two issues. Independent spending is merely spending by groups of citizens not affiliated directly with a candidate or political party. It amounts to approximately 20 percent of total spending on presidential campaigns. In congressional races, it is approximately 15 percent. The vast majority of spending comes from the candidates themselves.
Furthermore, most independent spending is not “dark money” — it is done by “super PACs,” which are required by law to disclose all donors over $200. So-called “dark money” is spending by nonprofit organizations such as the Sierra Club and National Rifle Association. These organizations must report their campaign expenditures, which may not exceed half of their total activity. They are not required to report the names of their members and supporters (hence the pejorative “dark money” label), but total spending by such organizations amounted to less than 4.5 percent of political spending in both 2012 and 2014.
