Probing Tom Daschle's `wife problem'

Insight on the News, Feb 25, 2002 by John Elvin

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) may have presidential ambitions; if so, he had best be prepared for the flak that accompanies ventures of that sort. For instance, there's the aircraft-safety scandal featuring charges of cover-up and interference that, though covered in some press and TV reports, has not yet exploded into a national fixation.

In 1994, three federal-government doctors were killed in the crash of a chartered plane operated by a firm owned by a close friend of Daschle and his wife, Linda. As summed up in a recent story on Newsmax.com, Daschle directly interceded to get federal safety inspectors to back off of close scrutiny of his pal's fleet, which had been cited for numerous safety violations.

The inspectors were with the U.S. Forest Service, a client of the charter firm. Having leaned on their supervisors, Daschle then introduced legislation stripping the Forest Service of aircraft-inspection duties, handing that task to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). At the time, the FAA was headed by Daschle's wife, a former airline-association executive.

An FAA inspector claims she was told to destroy any documents that might link the Daschles to the matter. So far, Congress has not found itself compelled to look into the Daschles' apparent effort to aid a close friend and the possibly dire consequences with regard to airline safety. Since that time, other links between the Daschles and the airline industry have taken shape. To that extent, Washington Monthly describes Linda Daschle's lobbying relationships as the Senate majority leader's "Hillary problem." That's in part due to her work on behalf of American Airlines, a firm that has fought against increased government safety and security regulations in recent years. Sen. Daschle supported efforts to water down federal safety proposals despite American Airline's tainted record of violations and fatal crashes, and he was a prime player in obtaining $583 million in bailout funds for American Airlines that won't ever be repaid to taxpayers.

There are other suggestive links between legislation promoted by Sen. Daschle, Linda Daschle's clients and contributors to the senator's political-action committee (PAC). But, of course, the Daschles can plausibly deny those links. Linda Daschle never lobbies her husband, she maintains. Right. But, as Washington Monthly asked, how many congressional Democrats hang up when the wife of the Senate majority leader calls to bend their ear?

Another situation that would seem to require some explaining involves Linda Daschle's client L-3 International. That company received a huge government contract specified in the Transportation 2000 budget to provide airport baggage scanners. The scanners are of such substandard quality that airlines have refused to use them. But, in legislation Sen. Daschle shepherded through, the FAA must buy L-3's scanners.

Dave Kranz, a political columnist for the Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, S.D., says the issue has been touched on in the past in the Daschles' home state. "I am sure, though, that we will revisit it," he tells INSIGHT. Dallas Lawrence, national communications director for the GOPAC political organization based in Washington, says the flap hasn't really caught fire in Washington either. Why? Lawrence believes it's because President George W. Bush's approval rating is so high (86 percent) and Daschle's so low (35 percent). "With Daschle so vulnerable on the main issues, there's no need to go after him on sidelights," says Lawrence.

Conservative activists in Washington have launched a campaign to raise money for TV advertisements blasting Daschle in his home state. The site, www.DumpDaschle.org, was set up by Robert Moran of the Fabrizio and McLaughlin polling firm, and Becki Donatelli, head of an Internet fund-raising company. Previously, an antitax group, the Club for Growth, announced plans to spend $500,000 on ads aimed at defeating Daschle when he runs for re-election in 2004.