Super PACs Spent $83.7M on Election

Even though the Supreme Court now allows nonprofits, unions, corporations, and interest groups unlimited spending on campaigns, this year’s election spending still raised some eyebrows. A final report released Saturday shows that most of the donations stemming from financial groups went to interest groups or political action committees attacking Democrats. Among the top spenders was American Crossroads, a conservative super PAC that received $500,000 from Aragon Global Management. A $650,000 gift from J.W. Childs Associates went to the Club for Growth, an anti-tax group. And a private-equity firm in Oklahoma handed the First Amendment Alliance $250,000 to support their Democratic Senate candidates. Democrats are trying to seek some regulation for this spending, but the creation of super PACs—groups that are cleared to accept any kind of donations so long as they report it—is just one of the effects of the Supreme Court decision.