ABSTRACT
The restructuring of the presidential campaign finance system was adopted to fulfill an array of laudable purposes. The regulations imposed conflicting pressures on candidates that complicated their strategic and operational planning. Precandidacy Political action committees (PACs) have become a common component of presidential campaign organizations because they allow an aspirant to conduct a wide range of campaign activities without triggering the regulations applicable to presidential candidates. The limit on individual donations has become meaningless in the wake of the rise of precandidacy PACs. The increasing sophistication of PAC fundraising operations has reduced the contribution limits of the Federal Election Campaign Act to little more than a legal fiction. The rise of candidate-sponsored PACs has also had a significant impact on the presidential selection process. The commission essentially sanctioned the role of precandidacy PACs in the presidential selection process through a number of advisory opinions that were decided between 1981 and 1986.
