Juan Williams: For ’16, a tidal wave of cash

The most stunning political news of the year to date is last week’s revelation that a group of super-PACs has already raised $31 million to support the presidential bid of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

And last week also brought the most intriguing political news of the year — the federal indictment of Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.). 

{mosads}The heart of the prosecutor’s case against Menendez is that a PAC donation by a wealthy donor amounted to a bribe to get the senator to use his office to help the businessman avoid federal fraud charges. 

Menendez denies wrongdoing, as does the businessman.

The bigger point, however, is that there is no restraint on the amount of big money suddenly flowing into political action committees. In addition, anonymous money pouring into non-profit groups affiliated with candidates is reaching flood levels.

And don’t forget the unprecedented big money being raised directly for each of the 2016 presidential campaigns. 

The Cruz campaign raised $4 million for the candidate in just 8 days after he announced his candidacy. That was sensational. But the $31 million super-PAC money is beyond amazing.

“It’s unbelievable…I don’t think in the first round anyone would have expected them to raise that much,” Dave Carney, a Texas GOP strategist, told the New York Times. “It is going to change everyone’s calculation.”

What is really unbelievable is that this phenomenon moves American politics farther away from anyone who is not rich — and that means most voters.

Cruz, for example, got his $31 million even though recent polls have him as just another middle-of-the pack contender in a large GOP primary field. 

In a head-to-head match-up, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the prohibitive favorite for the Democratic nomination, leads him by double digits. 

The day after Cruz announced his presidential bid, the Wall Street Journal editorial page described him as a “polarize and conquer” candidate who is “wrong to think that conservatives alone, especially white conservatives, can elect the next president.”

So why are the super-rich putting so much money into Cruz?

The rich are rewarding him for voicing their opposition to any regulation on their industries; their opposition to unions; and their disdain for populist anger over income inequality. 

They want a college debate champ on the political stage able to draw applause for damning government spending on food stamps and Social Security. Those programs are harmful to their tax bills.

The blizzard of outside money coming to Cruz does not have the name of the donors attached to it yet. 

But the Times’ reporting pointed to Long Island hedge fund billionaire Robert Mercer as a key donor to the Cruz super-PAC effort. 

Mercer has a history of giving generously to right-wing groups such as Club for Growth, which in the past bestowed upon Cruz more than $700,000.

The power of America’s super-wealthy to dictate presidential politics in the wake of the 2010 Citizens United Supreme Court decision is now in full flower. 

The Washington Post news story on the Cruz windfall put it bluntly, noting the “extent to which multimillionaire and billionaire donors are influencing the Republican race, where unlimited donations to super PACs are the rule and seven–figure checks have become routine.” 

During the 2012 presidential cycle, two billionaires used Citizens United to essentially enter their own private candidates in the race for the White House. 

Sheldon Adelson, the Las Vegas casino king, put $20 million of his money into former Speaker Newt Gingrich’s (R-Ga.) campaign. And billionaire investor Foster Friess played a similar role for former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.).

During the 2008 election — before the Supreme Court ruled — the total amount of independent campaign spending, including PACs, amounted to more than $143 million. During 2012, the first presidential race after the ruling, the spending rose to more than $1 billion. 

Now these new fundraising vehicles — outside non-profit groups — open opportunities for the nation’s rich to anonymously contribute. The course of the money is anonymous to the public but not to the non-profit groups working for their favorite candidate. And it is not anonymous to the candidate.

It is obvious that 2016 will be the most expensive campaign in American history. 

The talk among Washington’s political class is that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will raise $500 million before the GOP primary campaign goes into full gear, with the first debates in early fall. 

After Cruz’s incredible haul, Bush may have to raise even more to scare away challengers. Bush has so far laughed off concerns about big money donations, saying some critics want to portray him as “Dr. Evil.”

Bush is far from “Dr. Evil.” But big money getting bigger and bigger does look to fit the bill. And unless federal prosecutors are able to tie PAC money to political favors in the Menendez case, there is no restraint in sight.

Juan Williams is an author and political analyst for Fox News Channel.