McCain Denies Allegations He Did Lobbyist Favors
If there is one thing that separates Sen. John McCain from the rest of the pack of candidates in the eyes of many primary and caucus voters, it's his integrity and willingness to stick to his principles regardless of the heat he takes for doing so. In fact, when the Des Moines Register gave him its endorsement for the Republican nomination for president earlier this month, it specifically mentioned those qualities as being some of the main reasons it was doing so.
So he hasn't wasted anytime dealing with allegations that he did favors for a Washington lobbyist or her clients. The allegations apparently are based on an investigation being carried out by The New York Times. (Word of the investigation originally appeared on the Drudge Report website.) McCain has hired prominent Washington lawyer Robert Bennett to handle the situation. Bennett also defended McCain in 1989 during the Senate ethics committee investigation into five senators and their dealings with convicted savings-and-loan executive Charles Keating.
McCain says he finds the timing of the investigation "very interesting" and that he is not going to allow a repeat of the 2000 South Carolina primary where false personal rumors about his illegitimately fathering a black child may have cost him the election.
11:03 AM ET | 12-21-2007 | permalink
