Bringing sunshine to an era of dark money and corporate influence

(Image generated by Gemini AI) Sunshine Week, an annual commemoration highlighting the need for open government and freedom of information, reminds us that democracy thrives only when light reaches the places where power and money meet. As we mark this annual celebration of transparency, and, more notably, as our nation nears its 250th anniversary, we should be clear-eyed about what that light must illuminate. With record-setting midterm spending expected, consequential legal fights over money in politics winding through the courts, and undisclosed private funds flowing to elections and government projects, the public needs faster, clearer access to who is shaping our elections and our laws. And that work is more important now than ever. For more than four decades, OpenSecrets has served as the nation’s chronicle of money in politics. In fact, its origins stem back to the 1980s, when two senators from opposing sides of the aisle (how novel, now) had the foresight to see money as a growing phenomenon in the political landscape and a risk to integrity in governance. They felt strongly that those flows needed to be transparent for the sake of holding themselves accountable as lawmakers, and to guard against their darker sides of human nature, but to also ensure that democracy didn’t descend into kleptocracy. As the influence landscape grows more complex these days, tracking alone is not enough. When spending from undisclosed sources surges and sophisticated information campaigns flood the public square, reporters, researchers, and everyday voters need integrated tools and timely context to make data understandable and actionable – actionable in the form of public exposure, due process, or policy change. Without such clarity, our democratic society will be overtaken by a system in which those who know how to work in the shadows can buy influence. We must take collective action to bring dark money into the light. Two examples highlight this need. Recently, Congress launched a probe into millions promised by ABC, Meta, Paramount and X for President Donald Trump’s planned library and the lack of oversight of those funds’ use. This isn’t the only time a presidential library has been criticized as a play-to-play scheme; these private institutions have long been viewed as vehicles for private influence to gain public favor. In fact, both Bill Clinton and George W. Bush faced scrutiny for trading political favors for donations to their libraries. Hillary Clinton also came under fire when, as secretary of state, she regularly held meetings with people who donated to her family’s foundation. Witnessing these unlimited millions being funneled to political causes like presidential libraries, foundations, inaugural committees and dark money groups with no disclosure requirements, there can be only one conclusion: The public’s ability to hold leaders accountable is at extreme risk. In the 2024 cycle, uncapped political committees known as super PACs spent $4.2 billion. Only 27 percent of their fundraising was fully disclosed and unfortunately, the trend is not toward more disclosure. Then there are the legal battles around political fundraising, such as NRSC v. FEC and Dinner Table Action v. Schneider, which will determine whether governments can set limits on campaign financing and establish more disclosure requirements. Those decisions will shape how money can be funneled into campaigns, what kinds of communications are permitted, and how transparent those transactions must be. As those cases move forward, the ability to follow the money and understand its pathways will determine whether voters can hold power to account or whether well-funded interests will operate deeper in the shadows. As we celebrate Sunshine Week and look ahead to our nation’s 250th anniversary, our ask is simple: Help keep the spotlight on democracy and transparency around how it works. That means supporting the groups, tools and journalism that translate disclosure into accountability. It means continuing to educate the young and old on how our democracy works and the data that brings it to life. It means insisting that the courts, lawmakers and regulators recognize the public’s right to know. And it means staying vigilant in the months ahead, so that the next 250 years of our experiment in self-government are built on transparency, not in secrecy. Hilary Braseth is the executive director of OpenSecrets. Republish this article We encourage you to republish our content. Please review our republication policy for guidelines. Support Accountability Journalism At OpenSecrets.org we offer in-depth, money-in-politics stories in the public interest. Whether you’re reading about 2022 midterm fundraising, conflicts of interest or “dark money” influence, we produce this content with a small, but dedicated team. Every donation we receive from users like you goes directly into promoting high-quality data analysis and investigative journalism that you can trust.