Over the weekend I noted the news that John MCCain was the willing recipient of an upcoming fundraiser to be held by Ralph Reed, who was once one of Jack Abramoff's closest friends and allies in politics. The establishment press has by and large given McCain a pass on the issue, but at least a few newspapers continue to keep track of the story. Here's The Hill's Susan Crabtree writing under the headline, "McCain ignoring calls to cancel controversial fundraiser":

Republican presidential candidate John McCain so far is ignoring calls from several watchdog groups to cancel an Atlanta fundraiser promoted by Ralph Reed, a longtime friend and business partner of imprisoned lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Public Citizen, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), and Campaign Money Watch are urging the Arizona senator to cancel plans for the Aug. 18 fundraiser at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta and remove Reed from McCain's Victory 2008 Team.

Reed lost his 2006 campaign for Georgia lieutenant governor in large part because of details about his relationship with Abramoff -- much of the information uncovered by McCain's Indian Affairs Committee investigation into the wide-ranging lobbying corruption scandal.

The Senate probe discovered $4 million in payments Reed accepted to run a bogus anti-casino campaign aimed at reducing gambling competition. An Indian tribe with a competing casino made payments to Reed, which according to the Senate investigation's final report, were "passed through" Abramoff's firm, Preston, Gates, Ellis & Rouvelas Meeds, and another organization, Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform.

The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC's First Read, and others are also watching this story, but all of them seem to miss the broader point. The frame in which most of the Beltway press is viewing this story is of the shock -- shock! -- that McCain would be willing to accept money from Reed after having gallantly led an investigation into Reed's relationship with Abramoff.

However, to anyone who has taken a serious look at McCain's career -- Keating 5 and all -- this story comes as no surprise. McCain has a long and rich history of demagoguing for the press on reform issues, only to play games on campaign finance himself. It's hard to think of another previous presidential campaign having been so infested with lobbyists, for instance. McCain's gamesmanship of the public financing program, opting in before unilaterally opting out, comes to mind as well. No, this is no aberration -- it's a clear pattern of behavior by McCain, playing the establishment media (who for some reason continue to enjoy being duped by McCain time and time again) to cynically convince the American people that he is a reformer when in fact he is one of the worst examples of special interest, lobbyist-driven Beltway politics around. You'd figure that at some point reporters would figure this game out, but perhaps that's too much to ask for.