Never-Before Released Video of McCain at Convicted Felon's Fundraiser

Senator John McCain is caught on tape at two Florida fundraisers hosted by a convicted felon - who will spend the rest of his life in prison for a Ponzi scheme that helped finance McCain's 2008 Presidential campaign - who raised more money for McCain than anyone else - and who McCain now says he "can't pick out of a lineup."

"One recently discovered and never-before released video shows the two men giving each other a 'man-hug', shaking hands, and slapping backs in a bar while felon Scott Rothstein puffs on a cigar. Another tape shows McCain at Rothstein's home with supporters," said Mark Sanders, spokesman for U.S. Senate Candidate J. D. Hayworth (R-AZ).

After Rothstein gives McCain a glowing introduction at one event, Rothstein is heard on the tape saying "I'm plugging for some kind of position with the White House" if McCain wins.

Rothstein raised $1.1 million for McCain's failed Presidential campaign in 2008 while running an elaborate Ponzi scheme that swindled investors out of billions of dollars. Much of the money Rothstein stole ended up in McCain's campaign accounts.

Last month Rothstein was sentenced to 50 years in prison.

When confronted with the connection between McCain and Rothstein, McCain's spokesman said "John McCain couldn't pick him (Rothstein) out of a line up."

"The tapes don't lie, McCain does," Sanders said. "These men were friends, good friends. In fact, in one segment of the tape, McCain thanks Rothstein for his 'friendship and tremendous support.'"

The Hayworth campaign has called on McCain to admit he knows Rothstein, to no avail; to donate the money he took from Rothstein to a fund to help the victims of the Ponzi scheme, to no avail; and to name and denounce the other Ponzi scheme con-artists who gave McCain money; to no avail.

"The Senator thinks he is above the law, but he will have to explain his ignorance of who his friends are and apologize to the people of Arizona in the upcoming debates for letting them down by consorting with criminals," Sanders said.

McCain's Biggest Flip-Flop Ever

Now Says He Never Supported Amnesty

Incredibly, Sen. John McCain told The New York Times this week that "I never supported amnesty," prompting U.S. Senate Candidate J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ) to challenge McCain's ability to tell the truth.

"This is utterly amazing," Hayworth said. "This man has spent the last seven years calling for and pushing for amnesty for illegal aliens and now two months before the election he just stands up and lies to the people."

In 2003, McCain said in a Tucson news conference: "I think we can set up a program where amnesty is extended to a certain number of people who are eligible . . . amnesty has to be an important part because there are people who have lived in this country for 20, 30, or 40 years . . ."

The next year, he said "It is in our national interest to bring the 8 to 12 million undocumented immigrants out of the shadows and allow them an opportunity to become citizens of this great nation."

McCain went on to co-sponsor with the late Sen. Ted Kennedy a comprehensive immigration reform bill that would have cost taxpayers $2.6 trillion in retirement benefits for illegal aliens who were given amnesty.

"Now he says he 'never supported amnesty,'" Hayworth said. "The once declared 'Straight Talk Express' has turned into the 'Double Talk Express;' and the once respected Senator from Arizona has revealed himself as just another politician who will say whatever it takes to be reelected, including lying about his long-standing position on one of the most important issues to Arizonans."

Hayworth Calls on McCain to Admit He Knows Convicted Fundraiser, Return Money, Promise to Take No More Dirty Money

J. D. Hayworth has the momentum in his race against the ethics plagued McCain

U.S. Senate Candidate J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ) today said he is dismayed by claims that Sen. John McCain does not know McCain's number one contributor who is now serving 50 years in prison.

Hayworth called on McCain to admit he knows Scott Rothstein, the convicted Ponzi scheme artist, return all the dirty money he received over the years from investment scams, and promise to return and reject contributions from shady characters.

"Sen. McCain likes to talk about how character matters, how political leaders must rise above even the appearance of impropriety," Hayworth said. "It's time his actions match his rhetoric. It's time for him to clean his own house and start acting like a U.S. Senator."

Over the last week, five known and alleged Ponzi scheme runners who contributed to Sen. John McCain have come to light. Two are in jail. Three have been charged by authorities with profiting from elaborate con operations and some of the money was used to fund McCain and other political campaigns.

Even though Rothstein funneled over $1.1 million to McCain through a bundling loophole, McCain purportedly "could not pick him out of a lineup," according to the Senator's spokesman.

"That flies in the face of all logic and is an insult to the intelligence of Arizona voters," Hayworth said. "Sen. McCain is trying to cover up his relationship with this convicted felon, but the ties are too deep. Rothstein was the number one contributor to the McCain Victory 2008 committee and the number one contributor to the McCain-Palin Victory 2008 committee.

"Sen. McCain is pictured with Rothstein several times, been to his house to raise money, and even instructed his staff to set up a separate accounting system to track Rothstein's $1.1 million in political contributions," Hayworth said.

Rothstein's chief operating officer, who pleaded guilty to involvement in the Ponzi scheme, gave McCain $30,000. McCain was given additional political contributions by at least three other alleged Ponzi scheme artists who are now facing criminal charges.

"The money needs to be returned," Hayworth said. "If his donors are criminals who swindled money out of innocent victims to McCain's benefit, McCain should return all the dirty money to help the victims - not just a portion of it.

"And he needs to rise to a higher standard and publically apologize for taking and spending money obtained through illegal activity," Hayworth said.

McCain Urged to Establish Fund for Ponzi Victims Whose Money Ended Up Financing His Campaign

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., right, talks to supporters as he was joined by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney at a town hall meeting Friday, June 4, 2010, in Mesa, Ariz. McCain is facing a primary challenge from former Republican Rep. J.D. Hayworth in August.
(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Sen. John McCain should immediately establish a fund for the victims of his largest contributor, Scott Rothstein, who this week was sentenced to 50 years in prison for running an elaborate $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme.

The McCain-Rothstein Victim's Fund would reimburse people who were swindled out of their money. A total of $1.1 million of the stolen money ended up in McCain's campaign.

"While McCain claims he gave a $9,200 of the money to charities, he used the rest and he needs to give it back to the rightful owners," said Mark Sanders, spokesman for U.S. Senate Candidate J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ).

"McCain has a huge war chest and he needs to pull a million out and give it back to the people who lost it through the criminal activity of his friend Rothstein."

Attorneys handling the bankruptcy case of Rothstein's law firm have sent letters to politicians demanding they return the tainted donations. They are working on behalf of Rothstein's victims."

These contributions were specifically directed by Scott Rothstein and the funds used to pay the contributions were illegally obtained from (the firm)," the letter says in part.

Meanwhile, according to a senior employee within Rothstein's firm, McCain's campaign kept a separate tracking system just for Rothstein's contributions.

Cheryl Seinfeld, Rothstein's director of governmental relations testified during a deposition that the convicted felon was such a pivotal contributor to McCain that his campaign kept a separate contribution tracking system for Rothstein.

"He was the number one contributor to McCain Victory 2008 and the McCain-Palin 2008 committees and had his own tracking system for contributions," Sanders said.

"Seinfeld said she organized fundraisers for McCain and others and most were held at Rothstein' waterfront home in Fort Lauderdale. McCain had to know what his biggest contributor was doing and he should have asked where all that money was coming from.

"But now the Senator has the opportunity to do the right thing and establish the McCain-Rothstein Victim's Fund," Sanders said. "McCain or any public servant should not run his campaign with stolen money."

Feds Investigating McCain Campaign Donors

Campaign lied to media about returning dirty money from crooked law firm

Senator John McCain must personally and publicly explain why he allowed his staff to lie to the media about returning all $1.1 million given to his presidential campaign by a convicted felon; if he accepted even more from the felon's law partners; and why he has not donated all the dirty money to charity as his campaign claimed.

Federal authorities have been investigating 30 lawyers who worked in the now-defunct firm of Scott Rothstein, who yesterday was sentenced to 50 years in prison for running an elaborate Ponzi scheme.

According to his lawyer and media reports, the convicted felon is giving up the names of people involved and has even gone "undercover" which will likely lead to the arrest of lawyers, business associates and perhaps even politicians.

Tomorrow, Rothstein's chief operating officer, who personally gave McCain's political committees at least $30,000, is scheduled to plead guilty to assorted criminal activity.

The lawyers, along with 15 other Rothstein employees, made about $2.2 million in state and federal campaign contributions while he was running the Ponzi scheme from 2005 to 2009.

"McCain is knee-deep in this scandal and he needs to come clean," said Mark Sanders, spokesman for U.S. Senate Candidate J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ). "He first lied to the media when his campaign said the entire $1.1 million Rothstein collected was given to charity and it was old news. Then he tried to cover it up by saying he gave back the few thousand dollars Rothstein and his wife gave directly."

Federal officials are examining Rothstein's use of money from his $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme to pay salaries and give huge bonuses to senior attorneys on the condition that they donate generously to his favorite politicians, including McCain.

"Rothstein and his wife Kimberly held fundraisers for McCain," Sanders said. "His partner Stuart Rosenfeldt and his wife Susanne gave to McCain and to others, including Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.

"McCain likes to say character matters, but he is displaying his lack of it by keeping the $1.1 million and returning to Rothstein two small individual contributions," Sanders said.

One employee close to Rothstein, chief operating officer Debra Villegas, donated about $46,000 to McCain, other politicians and political committees in Florida. They gave the dirty money back, while McCain kept his million.

"Everybody seems to get it but McCain," Sanders said. "He needs to fully account for the distribution of the money he collected from everyone at this corrupt firm and explain to Arizona voters why accepting and keeping money gained from a criminal activity makes him worthy to serve in any public office."

The racketeering charges against Rothstein allege that the firm's donations to politicians and campaign committees were largely illegal because they were funded with money from the now-disbarred lawyer's illegal Ponzi scheme.

"According to media reports, agents for the FBI and the IRS are investigating campaign records to determine how Rothstein used his investment scam to fund the political donations," Sanders said. "Their next stop needs to be in Phoenix to interview McCain. If he didn't know how his top contributor was making money he should have. Ignorance is not a defense when this contributor is the number one donor to the 'McCain Victory 2008' fund and the 'McCain-Palin Victory 2008' fund."

Sanders said McCain should not try to hide behind his spokesman when it comes to answering these questions.

"McCain's mouthpiece is the same guy who lied to the media in the first place and prior to joining the Senator's campaign was the research director for Al Gore while Gore was trying to convince everyone that planet Earth was about to turn into a fireball because of global warming," Sanders said. "It's time for Mr. McCain to step up and personally disavow his acceptance of more than a million dollars he took from a convicted felon."

Pro-Life Leaders Favor Hayworth Over McCain

Pro-life leaders with ties to Arizona have endorsed former Congressman J.D. Hayworth in the race for the U.S. Senate--a seat currently held by John S. McCain III, who is seeking a fifth term. Douglas R. Scott, Jr., president of Life Decisions International, was the first executive director for Arizona Right to Life (ARL). Jay A. Nenninger has served as president and executive director of Arizona Right to Life.

"I have had the great pleasure of working with J.D. Hayworth for more than a decade," said Scott. "No one in public office has been a more enthusiastic supporter and true believer when it comes to our efforts to protect preborn children." But Scott did not use such glowing words when speaking about McCain. "Convincing John McCain to support our initiatives has always been a major chore. He views the Pro-Life Movement as an unpleasant but unavoidable pain in the neck. McCain defends preborn human beings to the minimum degree necessary to keep from losing the votes of pro-life men and women." Scott said that, unlike McCain, the Pro-Life Movement has "been able to count on J.D. Hayworth every time."

"It is wonderful that J.D. Hayworth is running for the Senate," said Nenninger. "Mr. McCain has supported pro-life legislation only after being dragged kicking and screaming. J.D. Hayworth, on the other hand, has been with us without fail and without wanting to consider the 'political fallout' before committing." Nenninger noted McCain's support of embryonic stem cell experimentation, saying it is "anything but pro-life."

Oddly, the ARL Political Action Committee (PAC) has endorsed McCain. The decision has resulted in intense criticism and even some resignations. "I have served on the board of AZ Right to Life for over four years, and its associated PAC for almost that long. No longer," wrote Rachel Alexander upon her resignation from the PAC. It should be noted, however, that Hayworth has been endorsed by six former ARL officials, including executive directors, presidents and even PAC directors.

Some have suggested that a $5,000 donation to the group by McCain may have influenced the decision. (McCain is praised for the donation at least twice on the ARL website.) KGOV's Bob Enyart refers to himself as "a fan" of ARL and he hopes the group "gets its act together," but he wrote that the endorsement "is a black mark on the 30 plus year legacy of pro-life leadership. The pro-life citizens of Arizona might just be better served by a new organization, unadulterated by political ties and financial donations from the people it may endorse." A commentary in Lighthouse blog, which covers Arizona politics, suggested that ARL's problem is that it "continues to have less than adequate leadership at the top."

"It would be impossible for any person with an intact conscience to turn a blind eye to Mr. McCain's voting record and lukewarm support when deciding whom they should support," Scott said. "One may offer up any excuse or justification he or she desires, but there is no way that anyone who truly cares about human life, born and preborn, could support the reelection of McCain when a candidate with a significantly more pro-life voting record is in the race." Scott said members of the ARL PAC who did what he called "clearly the wrong thing" should "be ashamed."

Scott urged pro-life voters to ask themselves a question. "If Barack Obama, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi had to choose between McCain and J.D. Hayworth, which candidate would they prefer?" Nenninger agreed with Scott's assessment. "Sending J.D. Hayworth to the Senate would be a great way to show Obama, Reid and Pelosi that Arizona backs true conservatives who value life."

Arizona’s Largest Newspaper Says McCain, Other Politicians Failed on Immigration

Arizona's largest newspaper criticized U.S. Sens. John McCain and Jon Kyl and a host of other elected officials in a rare front-page editorial Sunday, saying the politicians have failed to find solutions to illegal immigration.

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New Rasmussen Poll Shows McCain Collapsing

Today it is McCain 47, Hayworth 42

A new poll released today by Rasmussen Reports shows that Senator John McCain's lead over J.D. Hayworth in the Arizona Republican primary race has slipped to a mere 5 points.

"McCain has flooded the airways with paid advertisements and apparently Arizona voters don't like what he has to say," said Hayworth campaign manager David Payne. "Congressman Hayworth's grassroots campaign and conservative message is being embraced by the people."

The poll of likely Republican primary voters shows that "McCain has been losing ground since January when he picked up 53 percent of the potential GOP Primary vote and Hayworth had only 31 percent," according to the Rasmussen news release.

It also found just 2 percent prefer some other candidate, and 8 percent are undecided.

"Any incumbent who is earning less than 50 percent of the vote at this stage of the campaign in considered vulnerable," the Rasmussen release said.

Hayworth leads McCain in key categories.

Eighty-six percent of Primary voters think the recently-passed heath care bill should be repealed, with 50 percent strongly favoring repeal supporting Hayworth compared to only 41 percent favoring McCain.

Of voters who agree with the Tea Party movement, 49 percent back Hayworth compared to 42 percent for McCain.

And 85 percent of Republican Primary voters in the state say gaining control of the border is more important than legalizing the status if illegal aliens. Hayworth has made protecting the border a priority and has been critical of McCain's leading role in the failed "amnesty for illegals" effort in 2006 and 2007.

McCain Wins Award For Best Conservative Actor

Flip Flops Again on Key Legislation Hayworth Opposed; Now Opposes Vitamin Regulation HE Introduced with Democrat Just Weeks Ago

This was quick even by John McCain election year flip-flopping standards. Just weeks after introducing legislation with Democrat Senator Byron Dorgan to regulate vitamins and punish small businesses, 24-year incumbent John McCain has apparently withdrawn his support for his own legislation.

The Dietary Supplement Safety Act of 2010 (S. 3002) has faced withering opposition across the country and from his conservative primary challenger J.D. Hayworth since introduced. Hayworth held a Tucson press conference opposing the legislation on March 2nd.

“Does anyone know who John McCain is anymore? He doesn’t seem to stand for anything he did a decade ago. He certainly wins this year’s Oscar for most political politician. And in his latest transformation he now opposes his own legislation introduced only weeks ago. We thank John for his service but a six-year farewell tour* is no justification for re-election nor is his inconsistent Republican record in the face of our consistent conservatism,” Hayworth said.

“If elected, we will provide the consistent conservatism Arizona Republicans want and the United States needs to oppose the Obama agenda,” the conservative challenger said.

Vulnerable to the more conservative Hayworth on taxes, the Second Amendment, pro-life and pro-family issues and illegal immigration, McCain has engaged in transparent election year flip-flopping.

McCain also voted for the $850 billion bailout of the big banks which included $150 billion in pork, proposed a $300 billion bailout for mortgage lenders and, according to the Heritage Foundation, sponsored an amnesty bill that would have cost taxpayers $2.6 trillion over the long-term. And despite 28 years in Washington McCain now claims he was “misled” on the bank bailout vote despite expressing no such concerns at the time.

*McCain has said this will be his final term in the U.S. Senate, if re-elected.