We’ve written fairly often about unbelievable situation over the Federal Election Commission. Always regarded as a toothless watchdog even in the best of days, since there’s been a partisan stalemate over new appointments, it’s been totally neutered. 

Now, Paul Kiel reports that the Bush Administration has offered a so-called compromise. The most controverisal nominee — Spakovsky —  remains a nominee, and an administration spokesperson told the The New York Times that they would accept a separate vote on him. In the meantime, the administration has submitted a new nominee to replace FEC Chair David Mason, one of the two setting commissioners.

But here’s the rub: Mason has opposed a move by Sen. John McCain to pull his presidential campaign out of the public finance system. McCain had earlier joined the system and accepted the $54 million spending limit. Mason’s position is that the FEC would have to approve his request to leave the system, and that he couldn’t just opt out. Meanwhile, the McCain campaign is spending away and has long surpassed the spending limit. Bush’s solution…Good bye Chairman Mason.