John McCain on Thursday got some welcome ammunition in his defense against Democratic charges that he violated campaign finance law. But hes not out of the woods yet.
The Federal Election Commission released a draft opinion asserting that McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate, did not violate the provisions of the primary election public funding system.
McCains Democratic opponent Barack Obama had alleged that McCain broke the rules, an accusation Democrats have wielded often as part of an effort to question McCains commitment to campaign finance reform.
The Democratic National Committee in February filed a complaint with the commission asserting that McCain ran afoul of the system by qualifying for its funds, using the possibility of receiving them to secure a loan, but then withdrawing from the system and exceeding its spending limits.
The commissions lawyers, however, rejected that reasoning.
Their draft opinion concludes that the system allows candidates to withdraw unless they actually receive the funds or pledge them as collateral for a loan. McCain didnt do either, the lawyers wrote, and they recommended the six-member commission vote to allow McCain to withdraw.
The vote is scheduled for the commissions Aug. 21 meeting.
But the lawyers also concluded in a separate opinion that McCain needs an affirmative vote of four commissioners to withdraw from the program, which McCain had asserted was unnecessary.
That could set the stage for the first real partisan FEC battle since a new commission was confirmed this summer, since the commission is comprised by statute of three Republican members and three Democrats.
If Republicans got the sense they couldnt attract a single Democratic vote to approve the lawyers recommendation releasing McCain from the system, however, they could vote against the lawyers recommendation that McCain needs four votes to withdraw, killing that proposal and possibly allowing McCain to withdraw unilaterally.