McCain's Reed Fundraiser Takes Him Full Circle

By Al Kamen - Washington Post, The Trail
Wednesday, August 13, 2008 - Web Link
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August 12, 2008

The McCain campaign has long been concerned about whether conservative Christian voters would fall in line this fall. But last week Ralph Reed, the first executive editor of the Christian Coalition and an unsuccessful 2006 candidate for Georgia lieutenant governor, invited well-heeled folks to a "very special event" -- that means a fundraiser -- for McCain in downtown Atlanta on August 18.

Reed, whose campaign was torpedoed by his affiliation with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, noted he's also agreed to serve as a member of the McCain Victory 2008 Team, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

"John McCain believes in a strong national defense," Reed wrote, and that "tax cuts work best when tied to spending restraint. He has a 26-year pro-life voting record and has pledged to appoint conservative judges" to the bench.

The oddity here is that much of the information about the Abramoff-Reed relationship was uncovered in an investigation by the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, chaired by John McCain.