Broadcaster Rebuts McCain Lobbying Denial

Left-wing bloggers climb on anti- Times bandwagon

(NEWSER) - One day after the New York Times reported on John McCain's "close bond" with Vicki Iseman, reaction is still developing, and not necessarily along ideological lines. Observers of the observers offer their impressions.

• Popular liberal bloggers, "breaking with partisan patterns, are expressing discomfort," Ben Smith of Politico writes, adding, ""The defense of McCain from the left reflects well on the blogs' objectivity.”

Ethics crusader is still no stranger to lobbying culture

(NEWSER) - With John McCain the presumptive Republican nominee, Democrats are rushing to expose chinks in the Arizona senator's saintly armor, Michael Scherer reports in Time. Though McCain talks tough about special interests, he has often appeared to have done their bidding. He once, for example, wrote a letter on behalf of a donor after a fundraiser on said donor’s yacht. More»

They cite rebuke from FCC chief over letter in 1999 telecom case

(NEWSER) - John McCain's camp insists he did not act inappropriately on behalf of lobbyist Vicki Iseman's clients, but Talking Points Memo bloggers beg to differ. They point to newspaper articles from 2000 that said McCain—then chair of the Senate Commerce Committee—wrote a letter to the FCC on behalf of Paxson Communications, and that the FCC chief rebuked him for it, saying he was "concerned" about its effect on the decision-making process. More»

Candidate slams article, 'smear campaign'

(NEWSER) - John McCain’s camp came out swinging at the New York Times last night, calling a “hit and run smear campaign” a report alleging that the senator had been involved in an improper and possibly romantic relationship with lobbyist Vicki Iseman eight years ago. “The New York Times is playing the National Enquirer,” one adviser told ABC News, calling the story “gossip.” More»

Candidate denies Times allegations of romance, impropriety

(NEWSER) - In his last run for the presidency, John McCain developed a close relationship with a female lobbyist that worried his advisers so much they intervened with both McCain and the woman to keep them apart, the New York Times reports. The paper cites the incident in a lengthy look at McCain's track record on his signature issue of ethics and finds that the candidate is sometimes prone to embarrassing conflicts of interest. More»