DNC Seeks FEC Probe of McCain's Finances

Last Saturday, in my post on DNC Chair Howard Dean's laying the smack down on John "Double-Talk Lobbyist Boy" McCain, I referred to a line used by one of the Dudley Boyz, ECW's famous tag team, whenever they were about to put the hurt on somebody: "D-Von! Get-- the table!" Well, consider the table procured.

Hard on the heels of the FEC's telling John McCain that his attempt to weasel out of his campaign finance pledge stank to high heaven, the DNC has weighed in:

The national Democratic party wants campaign finance regulators to investigate whether Sen. John McCain would violate money-in-politics laws by withdrawing from the primary election's public finance system.

McCain, who had been entitled to $5.8 million in federal funds for the primary, has decided to bypass the system so he can avoid spending limits between now and the GOP's national convention in September.

Federal Election Commission Chairman David Mason notified McCain last week that he can only withdraw from public financing if he answers questions about a campaign loan and obtains approval from four members of the six-member commission. Such approval is doubtful in the short term because the commission has four vacancies and cannot convene a quorum.

"John McCain poses as a reformer but seems to think reforms apply to everyone but him," Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean said Sunday.

The DNC said it plans to formally seek an FEC investigation Monday.

One of the things the FEC is being urged to examine is a loan that McCain got for his campaign last year. The loan wasn't secured directly by McCain's potential access to public funds, but his agreement with the bank that lent the money required him to reapply for public funds if he lost early primary contests (which he had) and to use that money as collateral.