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Big Sigh For McCain

The FEC lawyers sided with him.

The Federal Election Commission released a draft opinion asserting that McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate, did not violate the provisions of the primary election public funding system.

McCain?s Democratic opponent Barack Obama had alleged that McCain broke the rules, an accusation Democrats have wielded often as part of an effort to question McCain?s commitment to campaign finance reform.

The Democratic National Committee in February filed a complaint with the commission asserting that McCain ran afoul of the system by qualifying for its funds, using the possibility of receiving them to secure a loan, but then withdrawing from the system and exceeding its spending limits.

The commission?s lawyers, however, rejected that reasoning.

Except they also found that it requires an actual vote of the FEC to get out of the system. The problem? Democrats were blocking the appointment of Bush's FEC nominees. Only now is there a working quorum to vote on McCain's exit from the system.

That vote is yet to come.

Full post as published by Expressio Unius on August 15, 2008 (boomark / email).