The McCain presidential campaign was given preferential treatment by the mayor, without the knowledge of the other City Council members, in renting a hall for a campaign function last Monday. McCain's camp paid only $250 to use the hall, whereas the normal fee would have been $1200. The Jefferson County Democratic Party (of Alabama) has used those same facilities in the past, and were never offered any discount.
But there's more.
In addition to the wholesale deal, McCain's campaign was also given free labor from inmates of the Homewood City Jail. That got them out of another $100 in set up fees.
Homewood Mayor Barry McCulley says the discount was simply because Mondays are slow days for business at the hall. The City Council says they always vote on whether to give discounts on the facility, but McCulley didn't even mention it in this case. The City Council president did say the mayor asked her whether a discount for the hall could be given on Monday nights, and the president said that could be considered, as long as it didn't cost the city money. She didn't know this particular discount was for McCain; nor did she know McCulley was planning to toss in the labor from the inmates.
McCain's Washington campaign office says they paid what they were asked to pay - not knowing it was heavily discounted and highly unusual.
The Homewood City Council President and Mayor McCulley are both asking the Republican Party to pay back the discounted fees. She's worried about the legal ramifications of using municipal funds to make an in-kind donation to a presidential campaign, and quite rightly so. He's probably just trying to save his skin.
If you ask me, the McCain campaign and the Republican Party have a responsibility to pay that money back. Furthermore, Mayor McCulley ought to be at least removed from office, and ideally slapped with some formal charges.
Regardless of the candidate you support in this election, I hope this doesn't become a missile in any mud-slinging campaign, or a reason for McCain supporters to lose faith. Yes, the deal was underhanded. But until the McCain campaign decides whether or not to give the money back, the jury is still out on the extent to which this ought to reflect on the Arizona Senator. My aim certainly is not to pass judgement on the man. I just want to shine some light into the shadows where these kind of deals are made.
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