Dean says McCain skirts election law with campaign loan (CNN)

[eppur_se_muova]

From Alex Mooney
CNN

(CNN) -- Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean accused Republican presidential front-runner John McCain of trying to skirt campaign finance laws Sunday by trying to opt out of public financing for his primary campaign.

Dean told reporters McCain has already used the prospect of nearly $6 million in federal matching funds -- which he now says he won't claim -- as collateral for a January campaign loan and to obtain automatic ballot access in every state.

Dean said he was filing a complaint with the Federal Election Commission to block McCain from quitting the public financing system, which imposes a spending cap on candidates.

"The law is very, very clear," Dean said. "He cannot be let out of the matching fund program if he has already used the promise of matching funds for loan collateral, and it's already clear from his FEC report that he has used that promise."

FEC Chairman David Mason raised similar questions about the loan agreement in a letter to the McCain campaign last week. But the Arizona senator's campaign has said its existing request with the FEC was never part of the terms of the loan, merely the possibility of future payouts.
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more: http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/02/24/mccain.finance/index.html

Financial chicanery just comes so naturally to Repugs ... especially Repugs in power ...

[Warpy]

1. The FEC is inoperative at present

because Stupid has refused to fill the vacant positions in it.

I have a feeling Dean might be laying a trap for Stupid over that fact as well as going after McShame.

Have I mentioned lately how lucky we are to have Dr. Dean as head of the party?

[lligrd]

2. Go Dean - Keep Them Honest nt

[eppur_se_muova]

3. link to Andrew Sullivan's story on this ...

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/02/the-other-mccai.html

[Warren Stupidity]

4. And that is not all he skirts.

Interesting choice of words. I like the framing. McCain is skirting lots of things. It seems he is a chronic skirter.