 On February 20, 2008, "The New York Times" broke a story involving an alleged romantic affair eight years earlier between McCain and lobbyist Vicki Iseman, both of whom deny the allegations.The relationship allegedly existed during McCain's 2000 presidential campaign.In separate interviews with "The New York Times", two unnamed former associates of McCain said they "became convinced" that a romantic relationship existed and warned him that he was risking his campaign and his political career.