Skepticseye.com

Today’s Roll Call (paid subscription required!) reports that Senator McCain, as he ramps up his Leadership PAC “Straight Talk Express,” is “leaving” the Reform Institute’s leadership:

Sen. John McCain . . . sever[ed] his official ties with a nonprofit reform group and restarting his political action committee. While his Straight Talk America PAC gives him a renewed political platform, McCain also has formally stepped down from the board of the Reform Institute, a group he formed with his top strategists to push his signature issue of campaign ethics.

McCain said Wednesday that the “negative publicity” that came earlier this spring from his association with the institute and the fact that its fundraising was conducted by his long-time adviser, Rick Davis, prompted him to step down from the 501(c)3 group. “I’m no longer associated with it. I’m no longer on the advisory board,” he said.

Query, friends, if not being on a board of a group you “founded” is the same as not being “associated.” More:

This follows stories in March in The Associated Press and The New York Times that outlined how Davis served as the top staffer for the Reform Institute while also lobbying on behalf of clients who had interests before the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee when McCain chaired the panel. In one case, Davis solicited a pair of $100,000 donations for the Reform Institute from Cablevision one week after the company’s chief executive testified before Commerce on a provision McCain was actively supporting. By cutting his own ties from the institute . . . McCain wants to inoculate himself from questions about whether he has held himself to the same standard as others. In addition, Davis said Wednesday he had dropped his title of Reform Institute president and now serves the group on a voluntary basis. He had been earning $110,000 a year.

Will Davis move over to Straight Talk? Take these groups on as clients of Davis Manafort? Can he make his mortgage? Ah, the suspense. More:

McCain’s re-election committee, Friends of John McCain, and Straight Talk America are housed in that same building, as is the Reform Institute.
While Davis’ official role with the PAC is still unclear, McCain’s leading fundraiser, Carla Eudy, is expected to continue in that role for Straight Talk. She is also the top money person for the Reform Institute.

(snip)

But Straight Talk will allow [McCain] to begin the political process of collecting chits by making donations to help candidates and underwriting travel to stump for them on the campaign trail.

I do not begrudge Senator McCain taking advantage of the laws as they are interpreted to do what he feels he must. I will always be puzzled by the regnant interpretation of the Act and regulations that permits leadership PACs to flourish. It is, in fact, a much easier argument to make that Leadership PACs are affiliated with the campaign committees of these federal officeholders (and thus not entitled to separate contribution limits) than it is, oh, to contend that 527s with some election-influencing “major purpose” are ipso facto political committees. Just to grab one issue.

So the selective application of legal rigor is annoying. But I’ll live.

I also think Leadership PACs are bad policy, a tool available to incumbents not challengers and of particular utility to members who occupy positions on certain congressional juice committees. Nevertheless, they are allowed, and McCain’s “straight talk” can move forward.