Public-interest groups said the letter raised the issue of whether the party was attempting to circumvent federal election contribution limits by using soft money contributions to the RNC as a back door in behalf of the ultimate GOP nominee. During congressional hearings, Republicans accused President Clinton of using the Democratic National Committee for the same purpose in 1996.
Soft money is supposed to build support for parties rather than assist specific candidates.
But both parties bent the rules during the 1996 presidential campaign. Campaign finance reformers say the soft money loophole made campaign spending limits meaningless during the 1996 campaign. The result, they say, is that the political system is awash in big donations given for favors that aren't available to the average voter. It illustrates the kind of fraud that the party-purchased ads are. They are pretending they're not campaign ads, and a letter like this shows this is just what they are.