McCain Finds a Thorny Path in Ethics Effort as McCain Aides Seek to Contain Lobbyist Controversy

From The New York Times:

Mr. McCain’s political identity has long been defined by his calls for reducing the influence of special interests in Washington. But as he heads toward the general election as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, he has increasingly confronted criticism that his campaign staff is stocked with people who have made their living as lobbyists or in similar jobs, leaving his credentials as a reformer open to attack.

The process of trying to purge the campaign of conflicts that in appearance or reality might violate Mr. McCain’s stated principles or cause him political trouble has so far focused only more attention on the backgrounds of his aides and advisers.
_______________

From The Wall Street Journal:

Questions on staffers' ties to lobbying continued to dog John McCain's campaign as aides to the Republican presidential candidate sought to contain political damage from the widening controversy.

"All of this was starting to make McCain look more and more like a Washington insider," said Jan Baran, a Republican ethics and elections lawyer in Washington.