Virtually all of the campaign finance abuses exposed during the 1996 campaigns involved soft money, according to Common Cause. The first phase of the Senate investigation into campaign finance abuses which ended last week, has focused on the influence of foreign contributions in the 1996 campaigns - all in the form of soft money donations. Their job now is to keep building the case for reform. The American people seem to have gotten the message already. Mr. Lott and Mr. Daschle ignore it at their peril.
Hard money means contributions that are legal under federal law for federal elections.
Soft money means contributions made outside the limits and prohibitions of federal law, including large individual or PAC contributions and direct corporate or union contributions. Totals do not include transfers between party committees, bank loans or interest, offsets to operating expenditures or other business-related receipts.