« Previous | Main | Next »

McCain Lobbyist Ties Questioned in Ad, Complaint

Share

June 08, 2008 3:22 PM

ABC News' Rick Klein Reports: A watchdog group is launching an advertising campaign and filing an FEC complaint questioning the McCain campaign's ties to lobbyists, as Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama spar over each other's ties to special interests.

The TV ad from Campaign Money Watch, set to run on Washington, D.C., broadcast and cable outlets starting Monday, focuses on McCain's role in the awarding of an Air Force contract that would eventually go to the French company Airbus instead of the American company Boeing.

"Seven of McCain’s staff and fundraisers lobbied for Airbus," the ad says. "And guess what? John McCain intervened, which helped Airbus get that Pentagon contract. Tell John McCain to kick those lobbyists off the Straight Talk Express."

The group is also asking the Federal Election Commission to investigate two other public reports that touch on McCain's connections to lobbyists: That a lobbying company, the Loeffler Group LLP, made payments this year to McCain's national finance director, Susan Nelson; and that a company controlled in part by campaign manager Rick Davis sliced more than $100,000 off of McCain campaign's tab, when the campaign was starved for cash last year.

While working for Loeffler, Nelson lobbied on behalf of Airbus. Newsweek reported last month that Nelson was rehired early this year as a consultant for the company, while on the McCain campaign's payroll. 

Campaign Money Watch alleges that the payments made by the Loeffler Group and the discount arranged by the company 3eDC could amount to illegal corporate contributions, according to an FEC complaint to be filed Monday. A copy of the group's letter to the FEC was provided to ABC News.

"That both of these matters involve excess or illegal contributions from for-profit entities raises serious questions about the McCain campaign that must be answered," the complaint states. "Simply asserting, without evidence, that they have done nothing wrong does not, in our judgment, satisfactorily answer the serious possibility that federal election law has been violated on at least two separate occasions."

The McCain campaign dismissed the allegations, calling them "baseless" and expressing confidence that the FEC complaint would be dismissed.

On the Boeing-Airbus deal, McCain aides note that the senator did not directly intervene on Airbus' behalf, but rather encouraged the Air Force to level the playing field during the bidding process.

"This is a joke," said McCain spokesman Brian Rogers. "John McCain's investigation of the bogus tanker deal saved taxpayers over $6 billion and exposed one of the biggest scandals in Pentagon history, for which executives and government officials went to jail. And now he's being attacked for fighting corruption and shaking up the status quo in Washington? It's absurd."

Campaign Money Watch is a project of the Public Campaign Action Fund, a nonprofit organization that seeks to highlight politicians' ties to special interests. Officials said they would not disclose the size of their advertising buy.

June 8, 2008 in Hunter, Duncan | Permalink | User Comments (44)

User Comments

Feed You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

Yep the Democrats have wasted billions in stupid invetigations on Republicans instead of doing their job but have never found one unpaid parking ticket.

They cry about the Iraq war but they all keep voting to fund the war and OBAMA DOES VOTE TO KEEP THE WAR FUNDED. The Democrats know that terrorism is big threat after 9-11 and so was Iraq but would rather lie to the jewsih poeple when the Democrats would care less if their is a islamic sheilkel standing on every street corner telling you when to worship. As long as the democrats keep the blacks as victims so they can vote Democrat again

Posted by: johnm done | Jun 8, 2008 4:10:05 PM

Obama bought a home from Rezko when Rezko was under investigation.

Rezko raised a quater of a million from Obama.


McCain went after Jack Abramoff. Abramoff is in jail because of McCain.

This country has gone so far left it is going off a cliff.

Posted by: david | Jun 8, 2008 4:14:11 PM

I'm no fan of McCain but there is no question his finest hour was exposing the corruption that led to the 1st tanker deal. In that respect the McCain aide is correct, however it doesn't address the allegation. The allegation is of a possible illegal donation to the McCain canpaign.

Come on ABC don't let people weasle out so easily, you're supposed to be good at this.

Posted by: Jason H | Jun 8, 2008 4:24:47 PM

David, you have added balance to the ethics question. How can anyone rise above the fact that Rezko helped get Obama into politics to begin with, funded his campaigns, and helped him to buy his house. It that a little like "the pot calling the kettle black"? Oops, there I go again playing the race card.

Just who is Campaign Money Watch, a Democrat friendly organization? Who runs it, and who funds it?

Will the media give a little more scrutiny to Obama's influential donors, like Echelon, energy companies et al? I doubt it. The coming months will be very interesting. McCain has already been vetted. Now we need some serious looking (finally) at the other guy.

Posted by: georgia | Jun 8, 2008 4:28:16 PM

If voters think of Sen Obama's church, friends in Chicago and what his wife said about America, NO one will vote for him this November.
Look at his pass we could predict his future.
Vote for our Country, not a Party.

Posted by: Alex | Jun 8, 2008 5:02:58 PM

McCain might be as even dumber than Bush Jr, having graduated 894th out of 899 in college, but he sure knows how to be JUST AS CORRUPT! McCain never met a lobbyist he didn't get down on his knees for.

Posted by: wilder5121 | Jun 8, 2008 5:11:24 PM

The problem for most of you is: Rev. Wright was right. I understand Obama had to disown him to get the vote of the average ignorant and prejudice American. The truth be known, the USA does whatever is best for its major corporations no matter how crooked or who gets hurt. The war in Iraq and soon Iran is a prime example. The only way the USA is going to continue to get an adquate supply of oil is to maintain a military presence in the Middle East. That is why we are in Iraq and why we will invade Iran. It has nothing to do with terroists, who BTW hate the West for very good reasons. Their countries have been occupied and controlled by Europe, and now the USA, which included the stealing of their land to give to European Jews. The chickens really are coming home to roost.

Posted by: Spirit Rebel | Jun 8, 2008 5:21:51 PM

Love the news about the lobbyist Abramoff probe involving McCain and a coverup.

It's over at Daily Kos. Meanwhile...

Clinton supporters who say they will vote for McCain may as well just cut out their own uterus with a scissors and leave it with the trash.

They're doing it anyway by voting for him.

Posted by: kravitz | Jun 8, 2008 5:40:10 PM

Obama got many contributions from Rezco that were never really looked into by the press.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 5:52:33 PM

Obama's health care plan would require working class families to insure thier children up to age 25 even if parents have no insurance. Working parents need insurance more because if they get sick the family may have no income. McCains plan gives families $5000.00 per year tax credit to purchase insurance.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 5:59:39 PM

Obama probably will not pull all the troops out of Iraq for years but he will not tell the people that.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 6:02:08 PM

What is this change Obama talks about?

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 6:05:54 PM

Obama cannot do anything about oil prices.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 6:10:19 PM

Taxing oil companys will only increase the price of oil for the consumer.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 6:14:21 PM

The news media would not talk about the differences in issues between Obama and Hillary during the campaign but now CNN is talking about the issues after electing Obama.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 6:21:17 PM

Haggee has not preached to John McCain for 20 years and was not a member of his church and he wasn't McCain's spiritual advisor.

Posted by: Anders Scooper | Jun 8, 2008 6:24:13 PM

Republicans are proven INCOMPETENT FAILURES...at EVERYTHING. America doesn't want INCOMPETENT FAILURES anymore. Obama will win. McCain will lose. Simple as that. End of story.

Posted by: wilder5121 | Jun 8, 2008 6:55:41 PM

It's confusing to read when Brian Rodgers' spin gets interjected. So McCain is supposedly being attacked with Airbus scrutiny through the Public Action Campaign Fund because of his previous exposure of a tanker deal. I have to say his spinmeisters aren't so great.


Posted by: katrina | Jun 8, 2008 7:10:46 PM

He's already defied his own campaign finance law and he's swarming with lobbyists, so how can we expect any different. John McCain will never have to live up to what he preaches because his friends in the media never will force him too. Nevertheless, he is going down in flames this fall, just like he did three times in Vietnam. Johnny always was a bad pilot.

Posted by: patriot | Jun 8, 2008 7:31:24 PM

Why did it take mc-more-war months to denounce hagee's endorsement? This will definately hurt him with the all important Catholic vote. Obama 2008!!!

Posted by: pt | Jun 8, 2008 7:37:21 PM

Post a comment