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A campaign finance watchdog group funded mostly by Democratic backers has filed two Federal Election Commission (FEC) complaints against Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) presidential campaign. Campaign Money Watch also plans to air television advertisements in the Washington, D.C., area targeting the presumptive GOP nominee’s ties to lobbyists. The ads specifically criticize McCain staffers for lobbying in favor of Airbus, which recently beat out Boeing for an Air Force contract to build refueling tankers. McCain in 2003 helped lead an investigation that exposed Boeing executives and Pentagon officials who negotiated a corrupt lease deal for refueling tankers. Some Democrats have blamed McCain for the Air Force’s decision to award the tanker contract to Northrop Grumman and European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company, the parent company of Airbus. The Republican National Committee dismissed the complaints as “a joke” and released a statement questioning Campaign Money Watch’s credibility. The release said the group “is a partisan organization that routinely attacks Republicans,” and noted that wealthy Democratic donor George Soros contributed $100,000 to it in 2006. The group received over $500,000 from other Democratic sources that year. The McCain campaign did not respond to a request for comment. In its first complaint, the group charges that Susan Nelson, McCain’s national finance director, continues to receive payments from her former employer, arguing that this could be considered an illegal contribution to a political campaign. The second complaint charges McCain campaign manager Rick Davis, who serves as part-owner of technology consulting firm 3eDC, with a conflict of interest. Campaign Money Watch alleges McCain’s campaign owed 3eDC for services, and that after Davis was hired, 3eDC reduced the debt by $107,000.
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