Liberal-Leaning Watchdog Files Ethics Complaint Against McCain

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - A liberal-leaning watchdog has filed a complaint asking the Senate Ethics Committee to investigate if Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) violated federal law by failing to report his gambling winnings since 2000.

In its complaint filed on Thursday, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) cites a September report from the New York Times and a July story by Time magazine detailing the casinos where McCain had gambled and played craps in the past years.

The group named several senators who have reported gambling winnings in their annual disclosure forms, including House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH).

McCain has not declared any winnings in his Senate financial disclosure forms since 2000, according to the group. The Republican presidential candidate has only released his tax returns for 2006 and 2007.

Federal law and Senate rules require that all gambling winnings be reported as income.

CREW wants the Justice Department to begin a criminal investigation if the Senate panel finds McCain guilty of violating federal law.

Brian Rogers, a spokesman for McCain, has told Politico, "He had no gambling winnings in 2006 or 2007... If he had, they would have been disclosed on his tax returns."