Careful with that "hypocrite" word McCain

I was initially willing to cut McCain some slack on this federal funding issue. That slack has now run out. The initial story was McCain opted into the system and now is opting out. Between these 2 events he used the funds as collateral for a loan. OK, it seems somewhat debatable whether or not this should allow him to opt out. I think no, since he got a clear benefit from being in the system and did so when he needed it the most. However, I can easily see why he would disagree and am OK with him fighting it out. It is mildly amusing that he is bucking his own finance reform, but if he honestly believes this to be OK, sure, why not. It is especially amusing since the Republican chair of the FEC disagrees, but again, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

As I said, his slack has run out though. It is now being reported (and maybe was known to begin with but I didn't see it in any reports) that, as a member of the federal financing system, he got automatic FREE access to all ballots in the primaries. This potentially saved him millions. Now I think the case is far less simple. It seems a lot more like he is simply stuck, or certainly ought to be. Admittedly, I don't know the law that well and if it is ambiguous then maybe he is right. Even if its not, as a law student I am in position to call someone out on challenging a seemingly ironclad law. Except for one thing, HE WROTE THIS ONE. To try to finagle his way out of it is unseemly. To do so and then call Howard Dean a hypocrite is just plain obnoxious, and borderline lying.

Dean opted out and paid his own way on to the ballots. Dean did not get a loan with federal funds as collateral. Dean did get the FEC to vote to permit him to opt out. Guess which of the previous 3 statements you could accurately substitute in McCain's name for? If you said zero, you are right. McCain's campaign has no business calling Dean a hypocrite. Dean isn't blasting McCain for opting out of the financing system as Dean did. He is blasting him for doing so in a way that Dean believes (and at least as a facial matter seems to be) illegal. He derived benefits from the system and now is skiritng its requirements that he limit his spending. Furthermore, he is ignoring those limits on spending despite not receiving FEC permission to withdraw from the system and in the face of the FEC chairman telling him he doesn't think he can back out. McCain wants to get help from the system but without getting the limits that system places upon him. Restrictions he himself agreed to and sponsored in the legislation. Dean is being in no way hypocritical here, but McCain is at best REAL close and at worst defining the word. To sit there and call Dean a hypocrite is absurd.

Madison