DNC: Investigate McCain For Election Law Violations

WASHINGTON — Democratic Party officials plan to file a new lawsuit to compel federal regulators to investigate whether Sen. John McCain violated election laws by withdrawing from public financing.

The Democratic National Committee announced Tuesday it will sue next week in U.S. District Court. It will ask the court to order the Federal Election Commission to examine, within 30 days, the legality of McCain's decision to reject $5.8 million in taxpayer funds.

By turning down the money, the presumed Republican nominee was able avoid strict spending limits between now and the GOP's national convention in September.

At issue is a $4 million line of credit the McCain campaign obtained late last year. While the loan was not secured by the promise of public funds, his agreement with the bank required McCain to reapply for public funds if he lost early primary contests and to use that money as collateral.

The DNC filed a complaint with the FEC in February, arguing that the bank arrangement violated federal regulations. But the six-member FEC has been unable to act because it doesn't have a quorum. Four nominees are awaiting Senate confirmation.

In throwing out an earlier DNC lawsuit, a federal judge pointed out that federal rules give the FEC up to 120 days to act on a complaint. That deadline expires next Tuesday.

McCain's campaign and his bankers adamantly deny that they used the public funds as collateral. On Tuesday, Republican National Committee chief counsel Sean Cairncross called the suit "meritless," and noted that McCain was entitled to withdraw from the public finance system because he did not receive any public funds during the primary.

Still, FEC Chairman David Mason in February asked McCain to explain the terms of the loan and informed McCain that he would need approval from the full FEC before withdrawing from public financing. McCain's campaign said it did not need such approval.

Comments

[Liberoservative]

I am very confused so can somebody please educate me?
We... the Dems, are suing McCain for not taking public financing...

BUT.. aren't we, the Dems, not taking pubic financing either? I don't think that Obama has consented to public financing... he's doing great raising money all on his own....

are we holding McCain to a different standard?

Just thoughts... I am ready for the explanation because I do not presume to understand all the nuances of this election.... the only truth I know is that it MUST be Obama 08!

[aztecdiva]

The reason why it is an issue for the DNC is that he could not raise the funds for his primary campaign and used the taxpayer funding to secure a loan for the primary. Because he used the taxpayer dollars as collateral he is in violation of his own campaign financing laws.

When McCain realized that he wouldn't be able to raise the money from contributions to his campaign he tried to smear Obama by saying that he promised to use the taxpayer money and he has now changed his mind. When the argument didn't hold water, he moved on.

[Liberoservative]

Even more confused now...
It is a good thing that I am not a lawyer.... :)

[psnyder]

In addition to what aztecdiva says, because of the taxpayer funding, McCain was able to skip the requirements in a number of states where a candidate needs to submit a petition with the signatures of thousands of registered voters in order to gain access to the ballot. By accepting public funding, McCain was accorded automatic access to those ballots, a significant value which he cannot deny. The mere fact that he has taken no taxpayer cash is irrelevant. He clearly gained substantial benefit for the primary season by his having accepted public financing. That alone makes his subsequent "withdrawal" from the public financing system a fraud.

[Tommygun264]

McSame accepted taxpayer funding, then used the promise of that funding to secure a loan, but once the loan came through he decided he didn't need to funding because it would set limits on spending, so he said "never mind" to the funding AFTER using it to get more money. He also used it to get onto the ballot in several states for free. Obama never accepted or used taxpayer funding, so you might say that Obama and McSame are being judged by different standards, in the same way that you could say that when a bank gets robbed, the police hold the guy running away wearing a mask, carrying a gun and a bag of money to a different standard to everyone laying on the floor inside the bank who had nothing to do with the robbery.

[ObserverinVancouver]

Lucid explanation. Thanks.

[zookeeper]

Tommygun, Your name make you sound like the guy running from the bank with the bag. But in reality your probably a primery school teacher. You made that so simple , Even I can understan it , And I'm a layman I dont know nothing bout nothing, It's like 2 from 6 leave 4

[LexLuthier]

This smells like a dem sockpuppet routine to me, which I don't like, but the points are valid

[nonconformist2]

If you haven't watched the brand new moveon.org ad re Mc Cain, watch it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sq30lapbC9c

[BGDiNLV]

I said it months ago and I will say it again. The ONLY way to keep this war up is REINSTATE the draft!!!! We live in Vegas and for the last 3 months,I have heard so many SELECTiVE SERVICE ADS,it is unreal. The military is overextended,and the repugs want a perpetual war,the ONLY way to make this happen is trying to reinstate the draft. Selective service ads,wow!!! They need new blood.Thank god my children are to young for that right now.But those who are thinking of voting REPUBLICAN,then take the chance if your child is 18 or over.Scary thought...GREAT AD!!!!!!


Obama"08"

[DMW1]

That appears to be the way we're heading. Look at the state of the military here and how many elected officials and top military officials have been calling for the draft ever since we went to war in Iraq:
http://www.stopthinkvote.com/facts/militaryfacts.html

[Liberoservative]

I was with you BG... we have an all volunteer military force that has been reinforced with mercenaries.... an all volunteer military only allows the Commander in Chief to use it at his/her will.... because we will follow our CIC as in our oath of enlistment and officer.... I am an officer in the US Navy... I am barred from campaigning for any political figure but you can pretty much see that I am a moderate democrat and very much for Barack Obama....

In order to continue on the path that John McCain wishes us to continue there is no doubt that the draft will be instituted... nobody wants to volunteer anymore... and those that are volunteering are doing so for 40K signing bonuses and (I hate to say this)... but they are not the best and brightest... we have decimated our recruiting base through this administration... and the ones that we are recruiting are not the ones we want running the world.. that may sound bigoted... it may sound racist to others... but it is just plain facts... I am a victim of racism and sexism.. and I speak from my own power... and I speak to truth

[TheHandyman]

I guess you really don't understand the draft, do you? The real word for the draft is conscription. It is based on the old Roman system of forcing people into the military. The Draft did not keep the US from sending millions of soldiers to Viet Nam for one year of service. It did not keep the US from loosing 58,000 plus citizens in another war in which the public was lied to about. Please notice that none of the Repuglicans who instigated this invasion served in Viet Nam, they managed to weasel out of it just as der shrub did. The people responsible for recreating the draft will never allow it to have no exceptions as to serving, they will fill the draft with loopholes to keep the rich and powerful and their sons and daughters from serving. The only people who clamor for the draft are people who believe that they will never have their number called or they are too old to get their numbered called. People who think that somehow that reinstituting the draft will stop the government from engaging in war use the same "logic" that somehow torturing detainees will somehow make them tell the truth.

[AaaBee]

So, being lawful is coming back into fashion. My, how trends to change.
I suppose this new set of clean clothes will come into fashion RIGHT AFTER Obama wins.

You watch, suddenly after 8 years of nice quietude, our dead silent media will vigorously rediscover investigative reporting again and with relish, start publishing lots of revealing...no not facts, but rather intimations, presumptions, suggestions, and other innuendos about the presumption of corruption in Washington, if you tilt the page and squint hard enough, whether it is really there or not.

Limbaugh and Savage and Hannity will be screaming about liberals tearing up this great nation, Coulter and O'Reilly and Thomas will be screaming that our moral values are being undermined, and Fox News will feed those twisted platitudes to the general public.

So expect 4 more years of the US atmosphere continuing to be divided, wearied, and distraught without us bothering to shut off these internal terrorists and shutting them up for good.

That is all it takes....shutting them off for good. Thomas's ratings drop, so goes his 6 figure salary and his mouth.

[FrictionSoul]

The right wing nuts obituary has already been written. They're no longer a force, and their bosses will have to face the ratings sooner or later.

But being the stubborn cuckoos that they are, they will fold and others will take their place. They'll fold because when you don't play by the rules, you wind up losing. Doh!

[donballz]

You had me on the edge od my seat, agreeing with every word....and then you started talking about shutting the up. SO Close! But no, If you do not believe in freedom of speech for those who disagree with you, then you do not believe in it at all. I may hate every word that comes out of Hannity's mouth, but I would die for his right to say it. I take it you are "progressive" without being liberal.

[MsLiz]

Let the free market do away with Hannity, Savage, Coulter, Ingraham, O'Reilley, etc.

[shades3]

More important, while there is still time to do something, MAKE SURE THAT EVERY SINGLE PERSON ELIGIABLE TO VOTE CAN DO SO.
If voting machines are hackable, turn them into planters and print paper ballots and appoint people to be monitored while they count them.
Make sure that there is NOT ONE person who is disenfranchised erroneously by being put on a phoney list of felons.
THEN worry about John McCain financing his campaign.
Do not waste time on things that are not concerns of those who want to fairly elect the next President.

[edwarvir]

I hope they hold his feet to the fire.

[idealist100]

DNC needs to drop this bad idea. It's a needless distraction. Obama will win without this kind of mucking around.

[BlackLeatherRain]

It would be a bad idea if it were frivolous. The time for progressives to ignore GOP lawlessness has passed.

[AlphaDoc]

Indeed. This kind of thing: "McCain's campaign said it did not need such approval" has got to stop. Neither Presidents nor Presidential candidates get to make up the rules as they go along.

[psnyder]

And whatever happened to ours being a government of laws, not men? What do we have courts for if not to determine whether a law has been broken? After nearly eight years it seems that executive disdain for the rule of law has spread beyond the executive.

Apart from the question of whether McCain used his federal financing as collateral for a loan, by virtue of it he also was placed on several states' ballots without needing to go to the trouble of gathering and submitting signatures. This was an unequivocal and irreversible benefit that accrued to him by virtue of his public financing. He may not have taken any federal money, but he undeniably derived substantial benefit from his participation in the public financing system.

[Seattlelite]

I say take every shot they have against McCain, don't leave a stone unturned. We thought Kerry had it in the bag as well, we all know how that turned out.

[donballz]

If nothing else, it gets this story in the news and brings up the fact that Mr. Campaign Reformer is a Campaign Fianace Felon. Challenges this maverick narrative that the media insists on. A filed lawsuit against a major Pol. Party Candidate is big news and does nothing for McW's image. Thats what this lawsuit is really all about. The DNC knows it will never stick. The FEC still doesnt even have a quarum, its all about tarnishing his image. GO DNC!

[buddhistMonkey]

It's not a bad idea at all, it's a necessity. John McCain has broken -- and continues to break -- campaign finance laws, and needs to be held accountable. As the Republicans repeated endlessly during Bill Clinton's impeachment, "it's about the rule of law." Besides that, from a political perspective, if the DNC wins their case (and legally, they should), it will cripple the McCain campaign's financial structure, which is already pretty wobbly.

[NotMcCain]

A return to the rule of law? What a concept!

"Change we can believe in."

Obama/Clark '08

[JiminNC]

Repulicans cheating? Republicans above the laws they enact? Naw ... can't be from the party of family values.

[Colingavignet]

What surprises me in all this is that we're in an election year "But the six-member FEC has been unable to act because it doesn't have a quorum. Four nominees are awaiting Senate confirmation."
Is this going to last for long?
What about electoral fraud and voting machines, where are the articles on that.
This election better be a clear cut otherwise its going to be a mess.
I'm really starting to get worried.

[macbabe]

if the GOP find a away to stay in power, all hope will be lost in the American people and we will continue to get screwed and the criminals will continue to be in power... We ALL better get involved and get this done right in Nov; if you don't there's no one else to blame but ourselves!!!

Volunteer people PLEASE!!!
http://www.democrats.org/page/content/volunteer/

[psnyder]

That surprises you? Under the Bush Administration?

The Bush Administration lives off and for such "messes," for when we are surprised, confusion, thrown off our balance, it is easier for them to cheat and steal. That's an old confidence game technique.

[buddhistMonkey]

((( "Is this going to last for long?" )))

It will probably last until Obama kicks George Bush out of the White House next year. Bush wants to pack the FEC with cronies, like he has every other agency in government, and his appointees would be expected to take John McCain's side of this issue regardless of the law or the merits. The Senate is thwarting Bush by refusing to hold confirmation hearings during its term. This is one of the few areas in which the Congressional Democrats have actually shown that they possess a backbone.

[TXfemmom]

Hell, McCain is just another version of BUSH AND CHENEY. LAWS, I DON'T NEED TO OBEY NO DAMN LAWS...MCCAIN says about the financing.

[knowhelpnow]

You caught that too!!!

[LJMinOKC]

Please, can we get rid of the criminally stupid? John McCain, is such a flip-flopper he makes fish look like straight arrow. Now he says how can the Supreme Court give detainees their day in court, but in 2003 he was writing the Secretary of Defense to do just that, to give them their day in court. This guy has such a low IQ and is such a delinquent that has never grown up or taken real responsibility, that I don't want him near the White House or any other government buildings. Please send him home to Arizona and keep him away from the public. Let him do what he has always done, drink and chase women, although I think the clock is about to run out on those activities if it hasn't already. This guy is a danger to himself and all around him. On second thought, tell him to take Lieberman, Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell with him.

[JustifiablyParanoid]

They want to sue over this. Meanwhile, the constitution keeps getting ripped apart, and crimes after crimes (see WAR crimes) have been committed by this current administration -- but no, we don't go after them, because that would be a waste of time.

What a sick, sad, twisted little country we've become.

[realtalk]

That is why we have laws, and rules. John McCain is not exempt from them, and we should not want him to be. John McCain needs to follow the rules now, just like we will expect him to follow the rules if he becomes president. John McCain is NOT special, and he should NOT be treated like he is special, John McCain is a citizen like everyone else, and has to follow the rules like everyone else.

[numbnuts]

Can we say Reid?
How about Pelosi?
The leadership in congress has a job to do!
I am disappointed in them. I had high hopes.

[AaaBee]

Don't loose heart. Investigations and gathering of evidence continues in Washington. Why do you think shredders are the ticket items there these days. LOL

[Iscarius]

"It will ask the court to order the Federal Election Commission to examine, within 30 days, the legality of McCain's decision to reject $5.8 million in taxpayer funds."

Okay, I'm pretty sure this sentence doesn't bother anyone else here, but it made my jaw hit the floor. The government now makes laws AGAINST the taking of taxpayer money! They collect tax money by force from people that don't want to give it to McCain, and then they force him to take that stolen money. What the hell kind of government is this? It definitely isn't a republic.

[BLinCincinnati]

No, what bothers us is your complete lack of knowledge on the subject at all, but your willingness to give an opinion on something you know nothing about.

1) Public financing dollars come from VOLUNTARY donations when a person fills out their taxes. It's that little box asking if you want to donate $3.

2) The issue isn't forcing him to take it. The issue is by accepting public financing you are limited to how much you can spend! THAT is the key issue. McCain is the one who proposed these changes. He agreed to take the public money, which then comes with a spending limit, because he was broke. But now that he's got lobbiest and pacs giving him money he wants to get rid of that spending limit. THAT is the issue.

[timeforachangenow]

now here's an interesting scenario for you....8)

what if....8)

Hillary was to change her party afiliation back to her original Republican party affiliation that she had in college...

and then got drafted by the repubs to run against Obama again in the General Election....8)

now wouldn't that just beat all....8)

not thinking it will happen....BUT ...what if????

[mrBlue1]

Aren't thinks screwed up enough in this country and these elections without borrowing trouble via conjecture on fantastic possibilities? Hmmmmmmm?

[Taaj]

There is a new sheriff in town, and maybe the DNC will grow some real 'cojones' and work for the real bosses the American people. We need all the crooks thrown out, no matter what's their party affiliation.