Democrats Plan to Complain to FEC About McCain

[Yellowdogtexan]

This should be fun to watch http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/02/24/democrats_plan_to_complain_to.html?hpid=topnewsThe Democratic National Committee will file a complaint Monday with the Federal Election Commission, alleging that Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has illegally blown through spending limits imposed by the presidential public financing system.

"This is a classic example of someone who talks one way and does the other," DNC Chairman Howard Dean said today. "Our purpose here is to get him to obey the law."

Alex Conant, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee, replied that Dean lacked credibility on the issue, while McCain spokesman Brian Rogers noted that Dean withdrew from the public financing system during his bid for president four years ago.

"Howard Dean's hypocrisy is breathtaking, given that in 2003 he withdrew from the matching funds system in exactly the same way that John McCain is doing today," he said.

The complaint is based on a dispute between McCain, who appears headed toward his party's nomination for president, and the FEC, which notified him last week that it had not approved his request to withdraw from the public funding system.

McCain had applied for public funds last year when his campaign was running on fumes. After he won a series of early primaries, he requested to withdraw from the system. The FEC typically permits candidates to withdraw if they have not spent any of the public matching funds, or have not used the promise of federal money to obtain a loan.

The DNC plans to argue that McCain did obtain a loan based on the promise of repaying it with federal funds, party attorney Joe Sandler said. The Democrats also plan to claim that McCain cannot withdraw from the public financing system without the FEC taking up the matter; the commission made that contention itself in its letter to McCain. The FEC has been unable to consider McCain's request because it lacks a quorum. (Congress is deadlocked over the confirmation of four appointees to the six-member commission.)

McCain's advisers have so far brushed off the FEC's concerns, noting that the lack of a quorum means the FEC chairman's letter carries no weight. But the Democrats' complaint could increase the pressure on McCain to respond to the matter.

If McCain is forced to remain in the federal funding program, it could prove an extremely unwelcome development for him. He would be limited to spending $54 million during the primary season, which ends at the Republican Party convention in September. He had already spent $49 million by the end of January.

One key difference between Dean's experience and McCain's is the unresolved question of whether McCain used the promise of federal money to secure $1 million just before heading into the key early primaries.

"The McCain campaign has incorrectly stated that McCain is doing what Dean did when he withdrew from public financing in his presidential bid, but they have the facts wrong," a DNC spokesman said in a statement. "Dean did not use the promise of matching funds as collateral for a loan. Dean withdrew before the FEC determined eligibility for funds, unlike McCain. And he spent millions of dollars to get his name on the ballot after withdrawing, unlike McCain, who had free ballot access in many states because he pledged to accept matching funds."McCain agreed to accept matching funds to get on the ballot in a number of states and now is claiming that he is not bound by the FEC spending limits.

If nothing else, the bushies are going to have to relent and give up on the concept of having a voter suppression attorney on the FEC. The only way for McCain to comply with the requirements is for the FEC to have a quorom which means that the bushies and the republicans in congress are going to have to back down or see McCain go to jail during the campaign

[Yellowdogtexan]

Here are some excerpts from an e-mail that I received from DNC Chairman Howard Dean. There was a lot of talk last week about John McCain's blatant hypocrisy on ethics and integrity in Washington.

Here we go again.

McCain is now breaking the law by ignoring the campaign spending restrictions for the Republican primary that came when he asked for federal matching funds -- funds he used as collateral on a loan that helped keep his campaign going.

But now that the lobbyist and special interest money has started pouring into his campaign, he's trying to back out of the promise he made just a few months ago. They're feeding so much cash into his bank account, this "reformer" wants nothing to do with federal campaign finance laws anymore.

That's why today, we're filing a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission demanding that John McCain be held to the campaign finance laws. Trying to back out shows a total lack of integrity and honesty -- he made a deal with the American people to to abide by the law, and in return, he was guaranteed taxpayer money that he used to back a loan.....

Here's the background on the situation.

A few months ago, John McCain applied for and was approved to receive federal matching funds. Because he couldn't find enough people to fund his campaign, he was also forced to apply for a $4 million line of credit, which he secured by using the federal matching funds as collateral.

By taking the federal funding, he agreed to spend no more than $57 million until the Republican convention. But so far, his campaign has spent at least $49 million -- leaving him with less than $10 million to campaign with through September.

Now that he's won the nomination and has the support of the Republican lobbyist and special interest machine, he's trying to ignore that the whole thing ever happened. He recently wrote a letter to the FEC telling them that he was backing out, even though the FEC is very clear that any request to withdraw from the agreement must be approved; you can't just change your mind and take it back -- legally, you have to be given permission.

McCain isn't asking because he knows he'll never be granted permission, and he doesn't want to have to accept the funding restrictions he agreed to when he used the money as collateral for a loan. He's ripping a page right from George Bush's playbook: ignoring the laws when they aren't convenient and hoping no one will notice.

Stand up and show him that hundreds of thousands of people have noticed -- he can't change the rules in the middle of the game because he doesn't like how things are going for himThis is going to a fun fight to watch. The law is against McCain as to needing FEC consent to withdraw. Even if bush backs down today, it may be weeks before the FEC is back up to the required number of members and if McCain goes over the spending limit during that time, he may need a presidential pardon

[Yellowdogtexan]

This is amusing. Here is an e-mail that I received this morning I'm Joe Sandler, General Counsel for the DNC. Yesterday we filed a complaint with the FEC after John McCain decided to break the law by ignoring the rules laid out as part of the federal matching funds program.

I don't know if you saw the news, but the press covered the complaint all day. John McCain himself directly responded to Governor Dean at a press conference, saying "We're doing exactly what Howard Dean did in a previous election and what the FEC ruled in the case of Congressman Gephardt."

But that's a lie -- John McCain isn't doing what Governor Dean and Congressman Gephardt did at all.

Governor Dean and Congressman Gephardt followed the law and were granted written permission by the FEC to withdraw from the federal matching funds program.

To prove it, we have a copy of the letter Governor Dean received from the FEC in 2003 granting him permission to drop out. If McCain is doing "exactly what Howard Dean did," he'll have no trouble producing a letter of his own.

But you and I know McCain's lying -- he doesn't have a letter like that from the FEC. Not only has he refused to get permission, he's been warned by FEC Chairman David Mason that he can't unilaterally drop out of the program. That's why we filed the complaint in the first place, and it's why tens of thousands of Americans like you signed your support......

John McCain abused the system to keep his campaign afloat until he could raise more money from special interests and lobbyists. Taxpayers don't want their money to be used by Washington politicians to help raise more money from lobbyists -- is this McCain's idea of ethics and reform?

Thanks to you, this "maverick reformer" is feeling the pressure of his own hypocrisy. From staffing his campaign with a team of lobbyists to breaking campaign finance laws, his total lack of integrity has never been more clear.

Keep it up,

Joe Sandler
General Counsel
Democratic National Committee