Did McCain Tamper with the Drug Enforcement Agency to Protect His Career?

[BenBurch]

http://www.openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=8147

A whistleblower is coming forth against John and Cindy McCain, and the picture he is painting is not a pretty one. You've probably heard about Cindy McCain stealing prescription drugs from her charity in the 1990s. Today, Tom Gosinski, her former employee and a close friend of the McCain's, came out on the record about the entire sordid episode. And it appears that McCain used his Senate staff and resources to cover up Cindy's drug use, and potentially to prevent the Drug Enforcement Agency from investigating his wife's theft of illegal prescription drugs. John McCain certainly used his political connections to begin a campaign of intimidation against Gosinski, because at the time - this was after the Keating 5 scandal - another major scandal would have derailed his career. Gosinski stayed quiet out of fear until today; a recent fight with cancer has strengthened his resolve. As he told me today, if he can beat cancer, he can go on the record regarding how the McCain's do business.


This appears to be the subject of the mysterious story they have been running up on DU and which the Washington Post is allegedly sitting on until 9/11 is off the headlines.

If this is true, then I think he needs to be prosecuted.

If this is true he needs to step down now and let Palin continue the race as the Presidential candidate.

We'll see if the WaPo story has any additional details on this matter, as I suspect they may, given their investigational resources.

EDIT: More at link including video.

[Drudgewire]

Unless I'm missing explosive new evidence in the report, this story is at least a year and a half old (http://www.azcentral.com/news/specials/mccain/articles/0301mccainbio-chapter8.html).

[BenBurch]

Does its age much matter to its impact? WaPo has something new, clearly, or they wouldn't be working up a story.

[Drudgewire]

Does its age much matter to its impact? WaPo has something new, clearly, or they wouldn't be working up a story.


Age matters a lot. I doubt the journalists reporting it back then said "well we have this whopper of a story, but let's sit on it in case he ever decides to run for president." And from the tone of the Republic article, it sounds like Gosinski was such an easy target because of a few credibility issues of his own... something I couldn't be less surprised a site called "openleft" would fail to mention.

These stories play right into McCain's shaky hands. The fact he's rising in the polls even after the convention was over tells me there's a lot of backlash over the attacks on Palin, and the more media-bashing (legitimate or otherwise) only strengthens the "us against the commie media" platform he's standing tall on.

WaPo better have something which clearly vindicates Gosinski and makes direct ties to a vicious campaign against him (because otherwise even those who believe every word of the story will think "he did it to protect his wife. How sweet") or the deepest impact this could have on McCain would be another percentage point in his favor on polls.

[bozothedeathmachine]

Unless I'm missing explosive new evidence in the report, this story is at least a year and a half old (http://www.azcentral.com/news/specials/mccain/articles/0301mccainbio-chapter8.html).

There's no statute of limitations on unflung political poop.

[Alferd_Packer]

If this is true he needs to step down now and let Palin continue the race as the Presidential candidate.


I don't think that is how it would happen.

I beleive that the republicans would have to reconvene and choose another presidential candidate.

An interesting "what if?"

[BenBurch]

I don't think that is how it would happen.

I beleive that the republicans would have to reconvene and choose another presidential candidate.

An interesting "what if?"

Never explored that issue.

If so, who, I wonder?

[Meadmaker]

Gosinski stayed quiet out of fear until today; a recent fight with cancer, and a chance for much greater publicity, has strengthened his resolve. emphasis and speculation added.


Here's another of the burning issues facing our world today. Did a politician use his office to protect his family? I am shocked.

Oh, well, it is another allegation, and I suppose if there's truth in it, that's worth reporting, but the article alleges that McCain "certainly" began a "campaign of intimidation" against this dude. Just exactly what sort of "campaign of intimidation" is alleged here? What did McCain do to cause this man to shake in his boots with fear, so that only a brush with death would steel his resolve to take on the mighty McCain?

When there's substance behind the allegations, they will be worth listening to.

[RPG Advocate]

I have to agree with Drudgewire on the age thing. The story says Cindy McCain stole drugs in the "1990s", between 9 and 18 years ago. Even if the allegations that John McCain used his influence to protect her from a DEA probe are 100% accurate, people's memories are going to have faded and there is a likelyhood that important documents will have gone "missing", either through malice or just the normal entropy of beaurrocracy. I think that in order for this story to have any legs, there's going to need to be some silver bullet. Circumstantial evidence won't be enough.

It would be great, though, if authoritarian McCain was brought down by a scandal related to the Drug War, one of the most authoritarian policies of the 20th and 21st centuries.

[BenBurch]

Let's see if WaPo has any more when they come up with their story on this.

But I don't think this will play well for McCain when Move On makes it into an attack ad...

[Drudgewire]

MoveOn are like cheerleaders. Those who already pull for their team might think they're hot, but they're not winning anyone else over to their side.

[dudalb]

MoveOn are like cheerleaders. Those who already pull for their team might think they're hot, but they're not winning anyone else over to their side.


I think that is true of a LOT of political organizations and political commentros. I think Rush Limbaugh has been preaching to the converted for years.
Move On does not have a clue on how to appeal to anybody who is not already a liberal.
Ben, you are coming off like a parody of a political attack dog. I knew you would be in the Tank for Obama, but I am dissapointed that you are stooping to such cheap tactics.
And they are not working. A number of Obama supporters here think some of you attack threads are, well, just silly. You are making yourslef look like a blind partisan, and that is a pity.

[BenBurch]

Nothing cheap about this story; If he abused his office, what will he do with President?

[Drudgewire]

Nothing cheap about this story; If he abused his office, what will he do with President?


Same thing Clinton did despite using Arkansas state troopers to secure chicks for him when he was governor: Realize he's in high office now and can't commit the same abuses since the whole world is watching and waiting for something to bring him down over.

And yes, I thought Clinton was an awesome president. :)

[BenBurch]

Same thing Clinton did despite using Arkansas state troopers to secure chicks for him when he was governor: Realize he's in high office now and can't commit the same abuses since the whole world is watching and waiting for something to bring him down over.

And yes, I thought Clinton was an awesome president. :)

Not a predictive history.

And not really the same level of abuse as manipulating a law enforcement agency to overlook a felony.

[Drudgewire]

Not a predictive history.

And not really the same level of abuse as manipulating a law enforcement agency to overlook a felony.


And something done to protect his wife 20 years ago (if, and that's a big IF, there's meat to the story) isn't necessarily an accurate predictor of what he'd do as President today.

But the point is this isn't going to be a blip on the radar unless there's a crapload more to it than what we know now.

[BenBurch]

I see it like taking somebody who embezzled the petty cash and making him head of the bank on the theory that all that responsibility would make an honest citizen of him; For a few people it might, but are you going to bet the bank on it?

[Drudgewire]

I see it like taking somebody who embezzled the petty cash and making him head of the bank on the theory that all that responsibility would make an honest citizen of him; For a few people it might, but are you going to bet the bank on it?


If we have 18 years of dedicated service and after exhaustive research find one instance of him fudging an expense account, I'm not immediately pulling my savings out of the bank out of fear he's going to run off to Mexico with it.