McCain Pushed Land Swap That Benefits Backer
Matthew Mosk Wa****ngton Post Staff Writer
May 9, 2008
PRESCOTT, Ariz. -- Sen. John McCain championed legislation that will
let an Arizona rancher trade remote grassland and ponderosa pine
forest here for acres of valuable federally owned property that is
ready for development, a land swap that now stands to directly benefit
one of his top presidential campaign fundraisers].
Initially reluctant to sup****t the swap, the Arizona Republican became
a key figure in pu****ng the deal through Congress after the rancher
and his partners hired lobbyists that included McCain's 1992 Senate
campaign manager, two of his former Senate staff members (one of whom
has returned as his chief of staff), and an Arizona insider who was a
major McCain donor and is now bundling campaign checks.
When McCain's legislation passed in November 2005, the ranch owner
gave the job of building as many as 12,000 homes to SunCor
Development, a firm in Tempe, Ariz., run by Steven A. Betts, a
longtime McCain sup****ter who has raised more than $100,000 for the
presumptive Republican nominee. Betts said he and McCain never
discussed the deal.
The Audubon Society described the exchange as the largest in Arizona
history. The swap involved more than 55,000 acres of land in all,
including rare expanses of desert woodland and pronghorn antelope
habitat. The deal had sup****t from many local officials and the
Arizona Republic newspaper for its expansion of the Prescott National
Forest. But it brought an outcry from some Arizona environmentalists
when it was proposed in 2002, partly because it went through Congress
rather than a process that allowed more citizen input.
Although the bill called for the two parcels to be of equal value, a
federal forestry official told a congressional committee that he was
concerned that "the public would not receive fair value" for its land.
A formal appraisal has not yet begun. A town official opposed to the
swap said other Yavapai Ranch land sold nine years ago for about
$2,000 per acre, while some of the prime commercial land near a parcel
that the developers will get has brought as much as $120,000 per acre.
In an interview, Betts said there is "absolutely no" connection
between his contributions to McCain's presidential bids and the deal
involving rancher Fred Ruskin and the Yavapai Ranch Limited
Partner****p. While his company's possible involvement was discussed
casually before the bill's passage, Betts said SunCor did not sign on
to the project until afterward. "At no time during the consideration
of this legislation was there any involvement by officials of SunCor,"
McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said in a written response to questions
[read the campaign's full answers].
Betts is among a string of donors who have benefited from McCain-
engineered land swaps. In 1994, the senator helped a lobbyist for land
developer Del Webb Corp. pursue an exchange in the Las Vegas area,
according to the Center for Public Integrity. McCain sponsored two
bills, in 1991 and 1994, sought by donor Donald R. Diamond that
yielded the developer thousands of acres in trade for national
parkland.
In the late 1990s, McCain promoted a deal in Arizona's Tonto National
Forest involving property part-owned by Great American Life Insurance,
a company run by billionaire Carl H. Lindner Jr., a prolific
contributor to national political parties and presidential candidates.
With the federal government owning vast stretches of Arizona land, and
with pressure to meet increasing housing demands, McCain now views
land swaps as beneficial, Rogers said. "He certainly recognizes that
there have been well-do***ented abuses of legislative land exchanges,
but every land exchange bill introduced by Senator McCain has been
written with the highest regard for the public interest."
Mo=C2=BB
http://www.wa****ngtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/08/AR2008050803=
494_pf.html
On May 9, 11:29 am, Torpedoing The SS Nemo
<gregorymor...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> ChasNUMBO blabbles:
>
>
>
> > On May 9, 2:06=EF=BF=BDam, "Clave"
<ClaviusNoSpamDam...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> =
wrote:
>
> > > "lc" <lol7...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>
> >
>news:0d630aa1-389b-47ca-96fc-0e12097bdc38@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> > > > Cindy McCain's Business Relation****p With Charles Keating and Why
Sh=
e
> > > > Must Disclose Her Finances
> > >
>http://www.politicalbase.com/profile/Mark%20Nickolas/blog/&blogId=3D2=
084
> > > > May 8, 2008
>
> > > > On the Today Show this morning, Cindy McCain defended the McCain
> > > > campaign's decision to withhold her tax returns, saying they would
> > > > never make her tax returns public--not even if she becomes First
Lad=
y.
>
> > > > I think that's a serious problem and an untenable position for
John
> > > > McCain (R) to maintain. Considering that McCain fa****ons himself
as =
a
> > > > fighter for more public transparency, and the fact that both
Barack
> > > > Obama (D) and Hillary Clinton (D) have released their family's tax
> > > > returns, this will dog McCain for the entire general election.
Earli=
er
> > > > today, the Democratic National Committee called on McCain to do
what=
> > > > his opponents have already done and release his wife's returns.
>
> > > > First, as was well do***ented in a 20,000 word profile by the
Arizon=
a
> > > > Republic on John McCain back in 1999, it was Cindy's own money
that
> > > > was used to get McCain elected to Congress in the first place.
>
> > > Funny thing, but the conservative punditocracy has been rather quick
t=
o
> > > challenge this secrecy.
>
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD Trusts and income this large, even if only
partly =
controlled
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD by a potential future First Lady, matter. We've
al=
ready seen
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD how (she) effectively helped finance her
husband's=
campaign,
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD at least in its bleaker moments.
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD -- Andrew Stuttaford,
National=
Review
>
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD Making (her) tax returns public would confirm
that=
she's
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD (Senator McCain's) sugar daddy (sugar mommy?).
It =
would also
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD strike a blow against (her husband's) populist
rhe=
toric by
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD detailing the lavish lifestyle he and his wife
enj=
oy...
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD -- Matthew Continetti, The
Wee=
kly Standard
>
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD "(this is) politically critical, because no
previo=
us
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD presidential candidate relied so much on his
spous=
e's wealth"
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD and without his wife's money, "it is fair to say
(=
he) would
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD not be his party's presidential standard-bearer
an=
d probably
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD would not even be a U.S. senator today."
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD -- Robert Novak
>
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD "...with her husband seeking the presidency, her
f=
inancial
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD dealings, as well as his, ought to be as open as
p=
ossible.
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD Keeping her returns private would set a bad
preced=
ent.
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD Imagine a future presidential candidate whose
spou=
se has
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD complicated business dealings or federal
contracts=
, chooses
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD to file a separate tax return, and refuses to
make=
it public.
> > > =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD =EF=BF=BD -- The Wa****ngton
Po=
st
>
> > > BEG pardon -- those were all written about John Kerry's wife in
2004.
>
> > > She *did* release her tax returns.
>
> > > Jim
> > > --
> > >
viahttp://nitpicker.blogspot.com/2008/05/right-wing-magazines-attack-c=
in...quoted text -
>
> > > - Show quoted text -
>
> > WOW! THIS IS EMERGING AS A *HUGE* SCANDAL!!!
>
> Sure, ChuKKKles.....SURE..........
>
> Everybody BACK to SLEEP now..........
>
> zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...................
> .
>
> This "revelation" is about as "shocking" as the fact that you are
> congenitally unemployed.................
>
> --
> Best
> Greg
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