By: Joe Strupp The Washington Post, which published its own story about Sen. John McCain's questionable ties to a Washington lobbyist just hours after The New York Times broke the story, was unable to finish its work on the story until the Times broke the news, according to Executive Editor Leonard Downie Jr.
"We had elements of the story in story form," Downie told E&P Thursday. "When the Times story appeared on their Web site last night, we were able to talk to sources who gave us further information that made it able to be published today. There were people who talked to us last night in ways that made us able to finish our story after the Times story went up."
Downie said the Post became aware in recent days that a Times story might be coming soon, citing the behavior of sources on the story. "We were aware of what the Times was doing because we were talking to the same sources," Downie stated. "Sources in our story became more cooperative in recent days than they had been before, which may have had something to do with the fact that the Times story was imminent," Downie said. "That included sources in the McCain camp."
The Post story by Jeffrey H. Birnbaum and Michael D Shear detailed concerns related to McCain's relationship with lobbyist Vicki Iseman during his 2000 presidential campaign. As with the Times story, which broke Wednesday night on that paper's Web site, the Post used both anonymous and named sources to report on the situation.
Downie would not reveal how long the Post story on Iseman had been in the works or which elements were confirmed just last night. But he said the Post "had been working in the same areas [Times reporters] were working in."
Downie added that the Post had been reporting on the relationship between the presidential candidates and lobbyists for months, including three previous stories on McCain's ties to lobbyists. None of the previous McCain stories, however, included Iseman.
"We had been scrutinizing for sometime the relationship between lobbyists and the candidates. They all have relationships with lobbyists," Downie said. He acknowledged that a December 2007 Drudge Report item revealing a Times investigation into McCain heightened the Post's curiosity: "That contributed to our interest in this particular story."
Downie declined to comment on the Times or the criticism that has followed its report, stating: "I am responsible for our story."
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