In the 20 years since Watergate, special interests have devised ingenious ways to take advantage of cracks in the federal laws and regulations. The justifications offered to defend the widespread use of these loopholes cannot mask the damage they do to the campaign finance system. Others are less well known or are exploited on a smaller scale. In some cases, it is difficult to distinguish one loophole from another, because their use is overlapping. What all the loopholes have in common is that they render the law's limitations on contributions and its provisions for public disclosure virtually meaningless.
Political players reach into a large bag of tricks to find ways to skirt the law's restrictions.
This report examines the way that big money seeps through the cracks in the campaign finance system.