Abderdeen newspaper explores Mansiongate

The Aberdeen American News has a report in today's edition headlined "Daschle resident status explored." Excerpt:

Daschle campaign official Dan Pfeiffer said the senator is "first and foremost" a South Dakotan. He said Thune's repeated assertion that Daschle declared Washington, D.C., as his primary residence is "flatly false."

Don't listen to what he says, look at the record. Below is the legal document Daschle signed declaring DC to be his "principal place of residence":

But when a pesky reporter started investigating this document, the Daschle camp amended the legal document to reflect Linda Daschle's signature, rather than Tom's.

The Aberdeen American News article continues:

House in Aberdeen: Their Aberdeen house is taxed as owner-occupied property, meaning it gets a 30 percent break on property taxes. State regulations allow owner-occupied status to be given to a home in which the owner's parents live. Daschle's mother lives in the Aberdeen house and previously owned it.

The owner-occupied rate saved the Daschles more than $400 a year on taxes for the Aberdeen house.

Interestingly, South Dakota regulation 64:04:01:13.03 reads in part:

If the dwelling is occupied by a parent of the owner, the parent is considered the owner and occupant of the single-family dwelling.

It would seem that Tom Daschle is not considered the "owner" of the Aberdeen house for tax purposes, according to the regulation above.