By John Mintz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, March 3, 2000; Page A19

A mysterious group going by the name Republicans for Clean Air is broadcasting more than $2 million worth of television commercials in presidential primary states attacking Sen. John McCain and defending Texas Gov. George W. Bush's environmental record.

McCain campaign manager Rick Davis said yesterday he believes the ads--which are running in New York, California, Ohio and possibly other states--are the work of someone closely involved in Bush's campaign. But Davis offered no proof, and the Bush campaign denied any involvement. GOP consultants said the television advertising is costing more than $2 million, including more than $1 million in New York state.

"We had nothing to do with these ads," said Bush campaign spokesman Ari Fleischer. "Senator McCain is once again mounting a divisive campaign vilifying and attacking anyone with whom he has a principled policy difference."

Asked directly if he was accusing the Bush campaign or its supporters of being behind the ads, McCain said, "I have no idea," but added that he believes his environmental record is superior to Bush's.

But Davis called the ads "a dirty trick," saying he could find no evidence that Republicans for Clean Air exists. "This is the worst tragedy we've seen in the use of soft money . . . I believe this sham group is doing nothing but trying to manipulate the election," he said.

The controversy over Republicans for Clean Air is a sign of the times: anonymous groups with bulging bank accounts are increasingly using the airwaves to launch harsh denunciations of political foes without revealing who they are or the source of their money.

While leading environmental groups say that neither McCain nor Bush has a particularly good record on the environment, they are far more critical of Bush. Yesterday the Sierra Club, which itself has aired television commercials in California attacking his clean air performance, said the new pro-Bush ad is "littered with half truths." Bush staunchly defends his commitment to the environment.

Precious little can be learned about Republicans for Clean Air, which has not been an active organization before this week, when TV ads bearing its name began appearing. The advertising company that purchased the ads, complying with federal election law, told the television stations the identity of one of the organization's staff members, Lydia Meuret of Herndon.

But Meuret said she knows next to nothing about Republicans for Clean Air, except the "consultant" who hired her and told her not to reveal his name. She added that the consultant said he would distribute a news release later yesterday disclosing who he is and ending the mystery of the group's connections and financial backers. Yet there was no announcement as of last evening.

Meuret serves as treasurer of the American Dream Political Action Committee, a GOP group that encourages Latinos and other minorities to run for elected office. The American Dream PAC and Republicans for Clean Air share a post office box in Herndon, and both have telephone lines that ring in Meuret's home.

American Dream PAC is heavily promoted by the Republican congressional leadership and financed by GOP-leaning business owners, particularly in Texas. A leading figure in the PAC is Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-Tex.), who who endorsed Bush for president. Bonilla said through a spokesman yesterday that he knows nothing about Republicans for Clean Air. Meuret said "there is no connection" between the various political groups that are her clients.

Meuret's predecessor at the American Dream PAC was Jeb Hensarling, a corporate media consultant who worked for years at the National Republican Senatorial Committee and for the unsuccessful presidential campaign of Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Tex.) in 1996. He also has been in the consulting business with James Francis, a close friend of Bush and his director of public safety.

Hensarling did not return repeated telephone calls yesterday.

The ads attack McCain's environmental record, focusing on a vote against alternative energy sources and touts Bush's performance, specifically Texas's effort to reduce emissions from aging power plants.

"Last year, John McCain voted against solar and renewable energy," begins the version of ad showing in New York City and five cities upstate. "That means more use of coal-burning plants that pollute our air. New York Republicans care about clean air. So does Governor Bush. He led one of the first states in America to clamp down on old coal-burning electric power plants. . . . Governor Bush: Leading so each day dawns brighter."

Staff writer Howard Kurtz contributed to this report.