Reform groups call on presidential campaigns to disclose details on ‘bundlers’

A coalition of eight nonprofit organizations that seek to limit the influence of money on politics is calling on the campaigns of Barack Obama and John McCain to release  more details on political supporters who "bundle" contributions. Individuals are prohibited from giving more than $4,600 to a candidate during the entire campaign, but donors routinely seek to impress candidates by handing over a stack of donations from various friends and business associates at once. It’s another means by which wealthy individuals and corporations seek to circumvent the McCain-Feingold law and buy influence with campaigns.

The nonprofit groups — which include the Campaign Finance Institute, the Center for Responsive Politics, Common Cause and the Sunlight Foundation — wrote letters to both candidates today urging them to provide more details about donors who engage in such practices. Currently McCain and Obama voluntarily disclose the names of bundlers and a dollar range (i.e. $50,000 to $100,000) for how much they’ve forked over to the campaign. The reform groups are requesting that the two campaigns provide a specific dollar amount for each donor, along with biographical details such as where the individual lives and works.

The advocacy organizations are also requesting that both campaigns disclose information on donors who give less than $200, the details of which aren’t public under Federal Election Commission rules. They’re not seeking individual names, but rather a breakdown of these individuals by zip code and foreign country.

"We recognize that our organizations are asking you to share information that presidential candidates have not provided in the past," the letters conclude. "But, to borrow a phrase, for those to whom much private money has been contributed, much is required."