OBAMA ATTACKS: Has problems with John Edwards help from Working Americans

In discussing the role being played by 527 groups in the 2008 presidential caucuses and primaries, some published media reports have stated that these political groups can raise and spend unlimited contributions in the presidential race, as long as they do not explicitly urge people to "vote for" or "vote against" a presidential candidate and do not coordinate their efforts with a presidential candidate or campaign.

This statement is wrong.

In fact, the Federal Election Commission found that numerous 527 groups illegally spent unlimited contributions in the 2004 presidential election, without explicitly urging people to "vote for" or "vote against" a presidential candidate, and without coordinating their efforts with a presidential candidate or campaign.

In a number of enforcement cases arising out of the 2004 presidential election and decided within the last year, the FEC found that these 527 groups had violated the campaign finance laws by failing to register as federal "political committees," and by failing to abide by the limits that apply to contributions made to such committees.

In each case, the Commission made a determination that the 527 group was spending money to influence the election or defeat of a presidential candidate, even though the group did not explicitly urge people to "vote for" or "vote against" a candidate. And in each case, the Commission found that the 527 group had a "major purpose" to influence federal elections.

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"Despite the FEC findings of widespread illegal conduct by 527 groups in the 2004 presidential election, it appears that 527 groups are blatantly and arrogantly at it again in the current presidential race," Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer stated.

"These 527 groups are spending large sums of unlimited contributions on what they claim are 'issue ads' but what instead are unquestionably 'campaign ads' being run to influence the 2008 presidential election." Wertheimer said.

"Given the past FEC determinations that illegal expenditures were made by numerous 527 groups in the 2004 presidential election, no one should be making the assumption that the 527 groups currently spending millions of dollars in Iowa and New Hampshire are doing so legally," Wertheimer stated. "In reality, these 527 groups may be making illegal expenditures in 2008, just as 527 groups did in 2004."