Judge Criticizes FEC Over Heavy '04 Soft Money Spending.

The FEC failed to give a good reason for refusing to rein in nonprofit political groups that spent large sums in the 2004 presidential elections, a judge has ruled in a case brought by President Bush's campaign and lawmakers, the Associated Press reported. In a 34-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan said the FEC failed to give "a reasoned explanation" for its decision not to issue rules to require so-called 527 groups to register as federal PACs and face the same strict fundraising, spending and disclosure rules that PACs do. But Sullivan stopped short of saying the FEC had abused its discretion, nor did he order it to develop rules to crack down on the groups' fundraising and spending. "We are very pleased with Judge Sullivan's opinion,'' said Fred Wertheimer, president of the Democracy 21 campaign finance watchdog group and an attorney for the two lawmakers who sued, Reps. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., and Martin Meehan, D-Mass.