candidates and officeholders are not involved in the solicitation of such funds. 52 U.S.C. § 30125(b)(2)(C) & (e)(3). Section 30125(d) Section 30125(d) prohibits any national, state, or local committee of a political party, as well as agents thereof, from soliciting, making, or directing any contribution or donation to any organization that is exempt from federal taxation under the provisions of 26 U.S.C. §§ 501 or 527, if said tax-exempt organizations have made expenditures or disbursements to fund “federal election activities.” Again, these include primarily “generic” expenses such as paying for get-out-the-vote or voter registration drives, or public communications that benefit simultaneously both federal and non-federal candidates. This far-reaching prohibition was also upheld in McConnell as a necessary measure to prevent evasion of the ban on the use of soft money in federal campaigns Section 30125(e) Finally, Section 30125(e) addresses what are commonly known as “leadership PACs.” Prior to BCRA, these PACs were established and controlled by a federal candidate or officeholder to raise funds for candidates at the federal, state, and local levels in the expectation that such activities would also enhance the candidate’s or officeholder’s own political power. Specifically, Section 30125(e) provides that a federal candidate or officeholder, or an entity controlled by such a person, may not “solicit, receive, direct, transfer, or spend” funds raised in violation of FECA’s limitations and prohibitions in connection with the election of any candidate for federal, state, or local elective office. § 30125(e)(1). The statute contains an exception for a federal candidate or officeholder who is also running simultaneously for a state or local office, which permits the candidate to solicit, receive, or spend “soft money” on behalf of his or her nonfederal election campaign, provided that the transactions are 147

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