claim: "‘dark money’ spending" in the 2016 election cycle "is 10 times what it was at the same point in the 2012 election cycle," when it topped $308 million.
author: tammy baldwin
evidence_1: sep 1, 2016 ... total outside spending for the 2016 election has already reached a ... million  spent by outside groups by this point in the 2012 election. ... the nearly $530  million is almost three times the amount spent by super pacs in the 2012  election by ... earlier this cycle, dark money spending was well ahead of 2012 ...
evidence_2: dec 3, 2015 ... ... "'dark money' spending" in the 2016 election cycle "is 10 times what it was at  the same point in the 2012 election cycle," when it topped $308 ...
evidence_3: sep 1, 2016 ... total outside spending for the 2016 election has already reached a record $660  ... this ad, is likely to be one of the top-spending super pacs of the 2016 cycle. ...  $289 million spent by outside groups by this point in the 2012 election. ... earlier  this cycle, dark money spending was well ahead of 2012 levels.
evidence_4: "'dark money' spending" in the 2016 election cycle "is 10 times what it was at the  same point in the 2012 election cycle," when it topped $308 million.
evidence_5: outside group advertising (nearly 2.8 million television ad spots) from 2000  through the 2016 elections and an outline of known unknowns about dark money  spending that is ... and the involvement of different groups at various points in an  election cycle, this .... 2016 they only made up 10 percent of that outside  spending.