Freddie Mac Paid McCain Campaign Manager's Firm until last Month.

The New York Times are claiming that Rick Davis, McCain's campaign manager, was taking money from Freddie Mac - through a company he owns - until as recently as last month, despite McCain's claims that Davis has had nothing to do with the firm "for years". Nor did Davis appear to do any work for this money which was rather paid simply because Davis could provide access to a future McCain administration.

The McCain camp reacted badly to the New York Times story, and claimed that Davis's arrangement with Freddie Mac ended in 2005, but now Newsweek have chipped in and they are claiming that the arrangement was ongoing until the government took over Freddie Mac last month:

But neither the Times story -- nor the McCain campaign -- revealed that Davis's firm, the Washington, D.C. based lobbying firm Davis Manafort, continued to receive $15,000 a month from Freddie Mac until last month-long after the Homeownership Alliance had been terminated. The two sources, who requested anonymity discussing sensitive information, told Newsweek that Davis himself approached Freddie Mac in 2006 and asked for a new consulting arrangement that would allow his firm to continue to be paid. The arrangement was approved by Hollis McLoughlin, Freddie Mac's vice president for external relations, because "he [Davis] was John McCain's campaign manager and it was felt you couldn't say no," said one of the sources. [McLoughlin did not return phone calls].

This undermines the rather tenuous links which McCain has been trying to establish between Freddie Mac and the Obama campaign and has led to calls that Davis should resign.

In a sharply-worded statement released to the Huffington Post, David Donnelly, director of the watchdog group Campaign Money Watch, said: "John McCain's campaign manager and Freddie Mac essentially had a secret half a million dollar lay-a-way plan. For almost three years, they made secret, monthly payments of $15,000 to Rick Davis for apparently no other work than for him to provide special access to a future McCain White House in exchange. If McCain knew about this, his presidential campaign should be over. If he didn't know about it, he ought to fire Rick Davis immediately."

It is quite unbelievable that McCain can have been making the kind of public statements which he has on this subject if he knew the truth of Davis' arrangement and one has to assume that he did not.

But, if this turns out to be true, then Davis' position is simply untenable. He has led a campaign which has tried to tie Obama to this company, whilst knowing that he was the one actually taking money from this firm.

I know the McCain camp has shown little respect for the truth but this is a lie on an epic scale and it is a lie which could sink McCain's entire campaign if it turns out to be true.

It makes perfect sense now as to why Davis and Schmidt attacked the New York Times so vehemently the other day without actually issuing a denial.

UPDATE:

Here is Rachel Maddow on this:



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Tags: McCain, Rick Davis, Freddie Mac, Wall street collapse, US election 2008