NBC News: How Democrats use dark money — and win elections
When it seemed as if Democrat Doug Jones could actually beat embattled Republican Roy Moore, a new super PAC supposedly based in Birmingham, Alabama, appeared just one month before Election Day. The super PAC, called Highway 31 after a route that bisects Alabama, spent $5.1 million to boost Jones, more than any other group active in the general election.
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"You oftentimes hear Democrats say, 'We support campaign finance reform, but this particular election we need to use every arrow in our quiver in order to win,' or 'but we need to set some of these principles aside because the stakes are so high,'" said Brendan Fischer at the Campaign Legal Center. "It's one thing to play in the system as it currently exists, and it's another one to cook up legally dubious strategies that are going to be exploited to a great degree on both sides."