Free Republic

WASHINGTON, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- If the Republican National Committee has its way, the already battered McCain-Feingold law will be stripped of one of its last remaining bastions, reducing the once powerful engine restraining the unbridled use of political contributions to a squeaky nub.

Republican presidential nominee John McCain cornered President George W. Bush into convening a White House summit on the financial crisis – one that top administration officials thought could hurt the administration’s response to the crisis, Mr. Bush says in a new memoir. Mr. Bush writes that Mr. McCain, trailing in the polls and seeking to appear on top of the crisis, asked him to convene a special meeting to discuss a rescue package for the financial markets. Mr. Bush says he told the Arizona senator that he would first check with Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson to make sure a meeting...

National Democrats have asked the Federal Election Commission to investigate whether Arizona Sen. John McCain violated campaign finance laws when his campaign paid to run ads for Republican House candidates in Arizona — charges the McCain campaign said are “baseless.” The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee filed a FEC complaint Tuesday against McCain and his campaign committee, Friends of John McCain, because of recent ads backing Ruth McClung, the GOP nominee in Arizona’s 7th District, and Jesse Kelly, who is running in the 8th District. The complaint also asks the FEC to investigate whether McClung, Kelly and their respective campaign committees...

PHOENIX -- The day that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is set to campaign with Sen. John McCain in Tucson, another figure from the 2008 presidential election will make an appearance on the lawn of Arizona's capitol building. Samuel Wurzelbacher, more commonly known as "Joe the Plumber," is scheduled to make an appearance at Friday's "Ax the Tax" rally against Proposition 100, which institutes a temporary sales tax increase across Arizona to fill the budget shortfall. Wurzelbacher rose to fame after he questioned then-presidential-candidate Barack Obama about tax increases at a campaign rally. Both Obama and McCain referred to Wurzelbacher...