Posted on 07/09/2002 12:17:32 PM PDT by LarryLied
Former Vice President Al Gore, who used to make fundraising calls from his White House office, says it is "disgraceful" that the Republican National Committee is trying to "capitalize" on the attack of September 11 by offering contributors a commercially available photograph of President Bush aboard Air Force One that day.
"We know it’s the Republican strategy to use the war for political gain," added Democratic National Chairman Terry McAuliffe, "but I would hope that even the most cynical partisan operative would have cowered at the notion of exploiting the September 11 tragedy in this way."
The Democrats are walking down the wrong dark alley here.
If the political debate this year targets those who exploited September 11, then Mrs. Tom Daschle is going to find a big fat bull’s eye painted on her big fat bank account.
In the wake of September 11, the Senate Majority Leader’s wife joined a lucrative lobbying blitz on Capitol Hill.
The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 mandates that lobbying firms file separate reports for each client on whose behalf they contact the federal government. The law also requires firms to name the individual lobbyists who do the contacting.
On October 12, one month and one day after September 11, the firm of Baker, Donelson, Bearman and Caldwell named Tom Daschle’s wife, Linda, as a lobbyist for Intelli-Check, Inc.
Intelli-Check makes a device called ID-Check. With a simple swipe, this device reads the information loaded onto the magnetic strips and barcodes often affixed to drivers’ licenses. Intelli-Check also markets a system called C-Link‚ that allows this information to be downloaded and stored on a computer. A bar in Boston, reports the New York Times, uses the system to track its clientele. "If he wanted to," says the Times, the bar owner "could find out how many blond women named Karen over 5 feet 2 inches came in over a weekend."
But Intelli-Check did not hire Tom Daschle’s wife to sell their product to saloons.
In a lobbying report filed March 2, Baker, Donelson, Bearman and Caldwell indicated that Intelli-Check paid the firm $20,000 through the end of last year. The firm listed as its activities on behalf of the company lobbying on ten different bills. These ranged from the "Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Recovery From and Response to Terrorist Attacks on the U.S." to the "Aviation and Transportation Security Act." Every one of the bills was related in some way to the government’s response to September 11.
On Intelli-Check’s behalf, the firm’s lobbyists contacted officials in the Department of Transportation, the Federal Aviation Administration, the House of Representatives and the Senate. A footnote on the report says Mrs. Daschle "[v]oluntarily does not lobby U.S. Senate."
Intelli-Check clearly saw the federal response to September 11 as a chance to increase sales. In a company profile posted on its website, under the heading "Market Opportunities," it states: "In the wake of the tragic events of September 11, efforts have been focused on the defense and security sectors caused by threats of terrorism. The ID-Check®‚ unit and enhanced C-Link®‚ database software meet the demands for increased security and access control. This market includes the U.S. military, airports, shipping ports, cruise lines, rail and bus terminals, stadiums, arenas and high profile buildings."
The company also believes its product could help convert drivers’ licenses into "de facto" national ID cards.
But even those of us who oppose national ID cards can easily see how Intelli-Check’s products could deter terrorism. It also is easy to see why they would hire a Washington lobbyist after September 11. It was far from the only firm to do so. "When September 11 came," says a source with the House Transportation Committee, "everybody with a gadget hired any lobbyist who was standing around and we probably heard from 8,000 companies with new things and whatnots."
But Linda Daschle was not "any lobbyist who was standing around."
She was the wife of America’s senior elected Democrat. She was the First Lady of the so-called Loyal Opposition. No law can be enacted in this country unless her husband first schedules it for a vote.
Why did she put herself up for hire by firms like Intelli-Check after September 11?
Would it have been appropriate for First Lady Laura Bush to do the same thing? What about for the Vice President’s wife, Lynne Cheney? I put those questions directly to Mrs. Daschle by voice mail and e-mail. In an e-mailed response, her counsel Bob Bauer did not mention Laura Bush, but did note that spouses like Lynne Cheney "have been recognized to have the right to pursue independent careers." Mrs. Daschle, he said, has "addressed any conflict of interest by adopting a policy, which exceeds the requirements of conflict-of-interest rules or requirements, of not representing clients in the United States Senate." (See Bauer’s complete statement on page 8.)
"As for Intellicheck," said Bauer, "Ms. Daschle was approached by the company and pleased to assist in their desire to demonstrate their identity verification technology to the aviation industry and the federal government."
Was it "exploiting the September 11 tragedy"—to use McAuliffe’s words—for Mrs. Daschle to join the post-attack lobbying blitz? I put that question to McAuliffe through DNC spokesman Bill Buck. McAuliffe did not respond.
Maybe someone should hire Mrs. Daschle to lobby him on the question. I’d almost be willing to bet $20,000 he would return her call.
$2K a pop; that's decent scratch.
What does she look like?
Linda Daschle
Mrs. Daschle, a former top Federal Aviation Administration official, has lobbied for Loral Space Technologies, which was awarded a nearly $1-billion FAA contract when she served as FAA Deputy Administrator.
Loral CEO Bernard Schwartz gave the DNC over $350,000 the first quarter of this year. His total must be over 4 million since Clinton was first elected.Loral stock traded at 66 cents today. Bernie has lost over $200 million this year. Yet the money keeps flowing, in larger than ever chunks, to the DNC. Could it be the briber is now being blackmailed?
I seethe every time I see this.
It's not like the Senate is its own stand-alone entity, is it? The Senate is only one chamber of the bicameral Congress.
It is splitting hairs to say that she doesn't lobby the Senate, so that makes it okay. It takes the whole Congress to pass laws, not just the Senate and not just the House. Who knows what influence she has on the Senate-side of things when bills go to committee?
-PJ
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