McCain the Opportunist

Reports over the last few days have highlighted Senator John McCain’s ties to certain lobbyists, and the favorable treatment he has given their clients.

McCain has challenged Obama to accept public financing in the general election – not out of principle, but simply because Obama can raise more money than McCain. How do we know it is not out of principle? Because, as the Washington Post details in a report today, over the course of his current presidential campaign, McCain has repeatedly opted in and out of public financing, depending on what best suits his campaign. The man’s “principles” are nothing more than opportunistic positioning.

Here’s the scoop, coming from the Washington Post, in a story reported by Matthew Mosk and Glenn Kessler:

“Within hours of the [New York Times’ publication of a controversial article detailing McCain’s ties to a young, attractive lobbyist for the telecommunications industry, which McCain oversees], McCain sought to turn it to his advantage, sending out a fundraising appeal decrying the "baseless attacks" and urging contributions. "With your immediate help today, we'll be able to respond and defend our nominee from the liberal attack machine," McCain's campaign manager, Rick Davis, said in an e-mail.

“But McCain's attempts to build up his campaign coffers before a general election contest appeared to be threatened by the stern warning yesterday from Federal Election Commission Chairman David M. Mason, a Republican. Mason notified McCain that the commission had not granted his Feb. 6 request to withdraw from the presidential public financing system.

“The implications of that could be dramatic. Last year, when McCain's campaign was starved for cash, he applied to join the financing system to gain access to millions of dollars in federal matching money. He was also permitted to use his FEC certification to bypass the time-consuming process of gathering signatures to get his name on the ballot in several states, including Ohio.

“By signing up for matching money, McCain agreed to adhere to strict state-by-state spending limits and an overall limit on spending of $54 million for the primary season, which lasts until the party's nominating convention in September. The general election has a separate public financing arrangement.

“But after McCain won a series of early contests and the campaign found its financial footing, his lawyer wrote to the FEC requesting to back out of the program -- which is permitted for candidates who have not yet received any federal money and who have not used the promise of federal funding as collateral for borrowing money.

“Mason's letter raises two issues as the basis for his position. One is that the six-member commission lacks a quorum, with four vacancies because of a Senate deadlock over President Bush's nominees for the seats. Mason said the FEC would need to vote on McCain's request to leave the system, which is not possible without a quorum. Until that can happen, the candidate will have to remain within the system, he said.

“The second issue is more complicated. It involves a $1 million loan McCain obtained from a Bethesda bank in January. The bank was worried about his ability to repay the loan if he exited the federal financing program and started to lose in the primary race. McCain promised the bank that, if that happened, he would reapply for matching money and offer those as collateral for the loan. While McCain's aides have argued that the campaign was careful to make sure that they technically complied with the rules, Mason indicated that the question needs further FEC review.

“If the FEC refuses McCain's request to leave the system, his campaign could be bound by a potentially debilitating spending limit until he formally accepts his party's nomination. His campaign has already spent $49 million, federal reports show. Knowingly violating the spending limit is a criminal offense that could put McCain at risk of stiff fines and up to five years in prison.”
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The sad truth is that McCain is just as opportunistic -- just as willing to break the law when it suits his own ambitions -- as his fellow republicans Delay, Abramoff, Cunningham, Dolittle, Renzi, Cheney, Gonzalez, Rumsfeld, Scalia, Thomas, Bush, etc.

I suspect the story of McCain’s duplicity and opportunism is just getting started. After all, McCain was one of the infamous Keating 5. And his current campaign is run entirely by lobbyists, supposedly for free. He may do it for a different reason than some – rather than calculating, he seems easily swayed (some would say duped) by swaggering, powerful people – but the end result is the same. Ethics take a back seat to the quest for power. Pure and simple, the man does not have what it takes to be a good president