McCain Pushed Land Swap That Helps Backer

Washington Post: Senator Championed Bill That Lets Fundraiser Trade Remote Grassland For Valuable Federal Lands

(Washingtonpost.com)  This story was written by Matthew Mosk.

---

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 support the swap, the Arizona Republican became a key figure in pushing 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 supporter 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 support 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 Partnership. 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-documented 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."

As McCain positions himself as a champion of environmentl causes, observers of the Yavapai Ranch swap say it shows a paradox in the senator's positions. At times, he has fought to protect the delicate desert ecosystem. But when wildlife concerns have thwarted development, his loyalties have shifted.

"When the public trust intersects with private interests, basically, he has favored land development . . . in every case," said Rob Smith, director of the Sierra Club's Arizona affiliate.

McCain also has been critical of government's "revolving door," which allows former government officials to position themselves as influential lobbyists. Rogers said that McCain does not recall being lobbied by his former staff members on the land swap and that "no lobbyist influenced Senator McCain on this issue."

The Yavapai exchange idea surfaced a decade ago as area land values soared. Ruskin and his siblings for years have used the inherited property as a cattle operation.

Development was complicated, because the land was intertwined with federally owned forest, creating what land management officials call "the checkerboard." Ruskin's ranch and the federal property comprise alternating square-mile plots across swaths of northern Arizona.

For the U.S. Forest Service, the tangle of public and private property posed a management headache. For Ruskin and his family, it became an opportunity.

Ruskin said he spent months researching federal land exchanges, and decided the regular process used by the Forest Service would be too complicated to ever get done. The trade he wanted would involve three cities, three national forests, two counties and 15 land parcels. He persuaded then-Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-Ariz.) to draft a bill proposing the exchange of 35,000 acres of ranch property for 21,000 acres of federally owned Arizona land.

Ruskin set his sights on prime development property astride a major interstate, land adjacent to the Flagstaff airport and a contiguous stretch of the ranch that would allow housing development. He estimated that the ranch land, if subdivided and developed, would easily sell for more than $250 million -- and that had to be calculated into any swap.

[fuzzybear9]

Hello America

here again we have an example of Senators in power land swapping for their friends, a common practice in the West you know, Bill Richardson would swap all of your Federal Land to Mexico if given the chance,
yes swapping land, your land, away.
and so again America is only left with the choice,
of either a Land Thief and Mortgage Fraud Specialist
or a Socialist Hawvard Elietist
for electing to office.
any of the possible good candidates went by the wayside months ago.
well here we go again four more years of chaos and Shinnanigans.
nothing changed Who will be the losers in this falls election? you and me.

sincerely Fuzzy Bear

[aj4321-2009]

McCain is a wolf in sheep''s clothing. He has perfected the art of deceiving the voters. He pretends to be an "honest" senator - while he is the most corrupt of them all.

[brwillham]

Sounds a lot more legit than Harry Reid''s land dealings, or Obama''s, or the post presidential land swindle the Clitoon''s pulled over the American people. And that was a doozie. What a bunch of hypocrites. Probably the worst thing that could possbly happen i sif a Dem got elected to POTUS. Wouldn''t have anything to harp on but your own crappy party.

[gce65]

This is a Keating 5 type swindle all over again, except there''s only one involved on the govt side: McCain!
He hasn''t changed in 30 years, he''s just learned to sweet talk the media so they won''t ask tough questions.

[rufisgufis]

McCain ought to know this *** is unconstitutional. After all, he was there when the Constitution was written.

[rufisgufis]

Looks like that "STRAIGHT TALK EXPRESS" HAS GONE BACK INTO THE DITCH AGAIN!

[greatdrivew]

Nothing but straight talk, folks.

Straight from the colon of the GOP that is.

[downsteamjim]

It is amazing that the Washington Post and the New York Times decided to dig into McCain only after the Republican nominee was decided. McCain and Obama need to do infomercials on land swaps so nonelitists can join the fun.

[panhandlpete]

Isn''t is interesting how Congress (that representative body of elites) gets to vote on issues which should be handled with MORE input from the citizen taxpayers? As the old addage says..."Follow the money trail if you want information." People don''t make enormous contributions to political campaigns without expecting something in return......be it a job offer, a land deal, a first at inside information of future events, or just ego recognition......they usually get it, too, and the public does not always know. Remember the house deal with the newly elected Senator Obama and Rizo''s wife purchasing the lot next door so he could purchase his house. Hmmmmmmmmmmm?

[greatdrivew]

R.I.P. G.O.P.

[kansas1946]

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 Partnership.
*********************************

Yeah, whatever. I really thought McCain was above this sort of BS, but I guess the "trickle-down" really does work, at least concerning corruption in the Republican party.

[samthetvcat]

---"MCVet;

YOUR IGNORANCE OVERSHADOWS YOU BRILLIANT COMMENT."--
Posted by crater7

Well it was me who said it - interesting that you chose to blame it on mcVet. And the only other poster to use your tag line is ''grammawhamma'', and I DID have in mind that she was a blue-dog Democratic Hillary supporter when I said it. So I think you''re the one making the assumption that it was a mistake and not an implication . . .

[mcvet]

You like the Dixie Chicks? Doncha think that lady''''s neck is too short?


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by lookinup2 at 04:42 PM : May 09, 2008
+ report abuse

With all that lady has to offer a Male EYE YOU noticed the NECK??? I think that say''s more about you than I ever could!

[mcvet]

MCVet;

YOUR IGNORANCE OVERSHADOWS YOU BRILLIANT COMMENT.

YOUR ASSUMPTION THAT I AM A McCAIN SUPPORTER OR THE BLUNDERING IDIOT IN CHARGE NOW, SHOWS MORE OF YOUR IGNORANCE. I BET YOU VOTED FOR BUSH TWICE? I HAVE NEVER SUPPORTED OR VOTED FOR BUSH.

GOD "BLESS" AMERICA. NOT "G D" AMERICA.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by crater7 at 04:42 PM : May 09, 2008
+ report abuse

I don''t give a rat''s behind who you voted for or who you support... what you did was LIE PERIOD!! DO you hear me... I live in Chicago and I should know YOU LIED! You lied to aid a canidate who has done what he said the other pols should NOT do... he LIED as well... SO if you are not fascist... you are a liar! Sieg Heil Bush

[oscarez]

John, John, John up to the same old Republican tricks. I would vote for mudrose for president before I would vote for John McCain. mudrose is a sweetheart.

[crater7]

MCVet;

YOUR IGNORANCE OVERSHADOWS YOU BRILLIANT COMMENT.

YOUR ASSUMPTION THAT I AM A McCAIN SUPPORTER OR THE BLUNDERING IDIOT IN CHARGE NOW, SHOWS MORE OF YOUR IGNORANCE. I BET YOU VOTED FOR BUSH TWICE? I HAVE NEVER SUPPORTED OR VOTED FOR BUSH.

GOD "BLESS" AMERICA. NOT "G D" AMERICA.

[samthetvcat]

---"GOD "BLESS" AMERICA. NOT "G D" AMERICA"---
Posted by crater7

Oh, and after 8 LONNNGGGGG years seeing ''patriotism'' used as a cover for everything from crusading and colonialism in the Middle East, to war profiteering, seeing troops without proper equipment harmed or worse, use of torture, denial of habeus corpus, outing of Valerie Plame and ruining the Dixie Chicks, I am SOOOOO ready to knock the GOPigs off their claims to the ''patriotism'' mantle so that it can instead stand for great values like inclusion, progress, and prosperity.

''Bring it on'' GOPigs!

[mcvet]

Wow! Swap Swamp Land for Choice FEDERAL Land... Now thats what I call a sweatheart deal... Wonder how much MORE that deal cost WE the PEOPLE??

[mcvet]

OBAMA''''S LAND DEAL WITH REZKO''''S WIFE, THAT EXPANDED THE NEWLY PURCHASED $1.6 MILLION OBAMA HOMESTEAD THAT OBAMA OTHERWISE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO AFFORD.

HMMMMMMMMMM

GOD "BLESS" AMERICA. NOT "G D" AMERICA.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by crater7 at 04:25 PM : May 09, 2008
+ report abuse

Do you FASCIST think lie''s will save your bacon?? Those days are over Sparky! Obama had NOTHING to do with any Land Deal in his neighborhood, let alone do what McSame did! Now ready?? Let the fuhrer know you are out here licking those boots! SIEG HEIL BUSH

[crater7]

OBAMA''S LAND DEAL WITH REZKO''S WIFE, THAT EXPANDED THE NEWLY PURCHASED $1.6 MILLION OBAMA HOMESTEAD THAT OBAMA OTHERWISE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO AFFORD.

HMMMMMMMMMM

GOD "BLESS" AMERICA. NOT "G D" AMERICA.