Cox Assails Growth of PACs

The increasing role of political action committee money in American politics "poses a serious threat to the whole political system," former Professor of Law Archibald Con '34 told a group of about 25 Democratic Club members last night.

Cox, who now chairs Common Cause-a non-partisan lobby concerned with honesty and accountability in government institutions-said that "PACs have made elections more and more a competition of money rather than of the ideas, character, and merit of the candidates."

According to Cox, political contributions by PACS have leaped from $12.5 million in 1974 to $120 million in 1984. In effect, that huge increase has created a vicious cycle. Cox suggested. PACs have made politics a more expensive business, and because it has become more expensive, politicians have to rely increasingly on PACs to fund their campaigns.