Sen. John Kerry is, rightfully, getting a lot of flak for the complaint his campaign filed with the FEC over the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth TV ads. Kerry's campaign alleges that the Bush campaign is illegally colluding with the Swift Boat veterans, basing its claim on the laughable New York Times piece that appeared yesterday.

The Times' investigation wouldn't be enough to convict someone of jaywalking, but it's the only basis for Kerry's claim.

Even without the Times piece, Kerry had to bring the complaint to remain consistent (don't laugh) and credible.

On Thursday, Kerry said:

They're a front for the Bush campaign, and the fact that the president won't denounce what they're up to tells you everything you need to know. He wants them to do his dirty work.

Once you've made that accusation, to not take it to the FEC in the form of a complaint is to ignore an illegal act. Had Kerry made the accusation and then done nothing, then his critics (and I'd be near the head of the line) would describe his denunciation as solely a political act. After all, if it were really true, he would've filed a complaint.

Yes, it's a meaningless exercise, the FEC is designed to be the most useless enforcement organization in the federal government, and it's certainly not going to do anything about 527s (Republican or Democrat) this time around.