South Dakota Politics

Herseth votes for Marriage Protection Amendment

DVT notes that Rep. Herseth voted in favor of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage yesterday. The roll call vote tally is HERE.

Herseth's vote places Senator Daschle, who opposes the constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, in an uncomfortable position. Daschle has a 100% rating from the nation's leading gay rights group, the Human Rights Campaign. Daschle's opposition to the amendment is contrary to the position of two-thirds of the voting population in South Dakota.

Daschle's "Liberal Quotient"

In light of an earlier story about Oklahoma's Democratic Senate candidate saying he will not be an "enabler" for Senator Daschle, and that he will be more like Democratic Senator John Breaux of Louisiana if elected, it's useful to compare Tom Daschle's rating by Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) with John Breaux's rating.

ADA is the country's oldest independent liberal lobbying organization. The ADA's "lifetime liberal quotient" for Senator Daschle is 83%. Compare that with Senator Breaux's "lifetime liberal quotient," which is 55%. Daschle's "lifetime liberal quotient" is even higher than Senator McGovern's, and Senator McGovern lost his bid for a fourth Senate term in 1980, largely because he was perceived as too liberal.

In 2003 alone, Daschle received an 80% rating from ADA, while Breaux received a 45% rating. Senator Kerry received an 85% rating. Daschle is almost as liberal as Kerry, according to the country's oldest liberal lobbying organization.

For more interest group ratings on Senator Daschle, click HERE.

New Zogby poll: Daschle leads 48%-46%

The Rapid City Journal reports the results of a poll they co-sponsored with the Mitchell Daily Republic and the Watertown Public Opinion in a story headlined "Senate race near dead heat." The poll was conducted this week by Zogby and shows Daschle leading 48%-46%.

Interestingly, the RCJ's blog points out that the poll mistakenly included Libertarian Bob Newland on the ballot. Newland dropped out of the race long ago, but he still managed to garner just under 1%.

You can glance at all of the polls conducted in South Dakota in 2004 by clicking on the "All South Dakota 2004 Polls" link to the right, courtesy of the indispensable RealClear Politics.

Don Hewitt: "I never would have done the story"

The AP has a report headlined "'60 Minutes' Creator Slams Guard Story" about Don Hewitt's remarks on the Dan Rather flap made here in Vermillion, SD last night.

Daschle pro-life in 1978, 1986, 2004; pro-choice in 2002

DVT notes the following statement written by Tom Daschle in this month's edition of Christianity Today:

"My record reflects the principles embodied by Catholic teachings and the church's legislative positions far more often than not. I am opposed to abortion. We can make meaningful progress in the effort to prevent abortion. That is my goal."

The "I am opposed to abortion" language is eerily reminiscent of the following quote in a letter written by Tom Daschle to voters in the last days of his 1978 campaign for Congress, (which was enclosed with a letter from eight nuns vouching for Daschle's pro-life credentials):

"I am opposed to abortion. I do not support it. I have never supported it. It is an abhorrent practice"

Then, in the last days of his successful 1986 run for the Senate, Daschle sent out a letter stating the following (which was enclosed with a letter from a pastor in Freeman, SD vouching for Daschle's pro-life credentials):

"The truth is that I am unalterably opposed to abortion on demand."

You can read all of these letters in their entirety by clicking HERE.

In the last days before the 2002 election, Daschle sent out a mass fundraising e-mail on behalf of NARAL, the largest abortion lobby in the country. Excerpt from Daschle's NARAL e-mail:

"As the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate, I've stood up for a woman's right to choose, and the pro-choice leadership of the Senate has made a difference by safeguarding women's rights from the anti-choice agenda of the Bush administration."

Senator Daschle has also led the effort to filibuster pro-life appellate judicial nominees. They are listed as follows:

Janice Rogers Brown DC Cir. (nominated 7/25/03)
Richard Griffin 6th Cir. (nominated 6/26/02) (judicial emergency)
Carolyn Kuhl 9th Cir. (nominated 6/22/01) (judicial emergency)
David McKeague 6th Cir. (nominated 11/8/01) (judicial emergency)
William Myers 9th Cir. (nominated 5/15/03) (judicial emergency)
Priscilla Owen 5th Cir. (nominated 5/9/01) (judicial emergency)
Charles Pickering 5th Cir. (nominated 5/25/01)
William Pryor 11th Cir. (nominated 4/9/03)
Henry Saad 6th Cir. (nominated 11/8/01) (judicial emergency)

According to the Republican Policy Committee, in a policy paper entitled "The Assault on Judicial Nominations in the 108th Congress," only 69% of President Bush’s nominees to the appeals courts have received up-or-down votes. If the filibustered nominees are never confirmed, this is the lowest confirmation rate for appeals courts judges for the first four years of any modern Presidency.

On the issue of abortion, there can be no clearer example of Tom Daschle saying one thing in South Dakota, and doing its 180 degree opposite in Washington. When he's up for election or reelection, he sends out statements in the waning days before the election declaring his unalterable opposition to abortion (we're seeing it happen right now, as observed by his statement to Christianity Today). When he's not up for election or reelection, he writes fundraising letters for NARAL boasting about "standing up for a woman's right to choose" and using his leadership position to advance pro-choice interests.

Oklahoma Dem distances himself from Daschle

Quentin notes a piece from MSNBC headlined "Voters face fiscal clash in Oklahoma Senate battle" which reports that the Democratic Senate candidate in Oklahoma is declaring he will not be an "enabler" for Tom Daschle. Excerpt:

In his small town campaign tour, Carson tried to reassure his audiences that he is not a Hillary-Clinton-Tom Daschle Democrat....

Would Carson be an “enabler” for the likes of Clinton and Daschle?

“Is John Breaux an ‘enabler’ of Tom Daschle? I don’t think so,” replied Carson. “Far from being an enabler, what I hope to do is restrain the more wild-eyed impulses of some people in my own party, while also being a fair-minded broker.”

Power Line liveblogging tonight's debate

Be sure to visit Power Line during or after tonight's presidential debate. John Hinderaker will be liveblogging it.

Movie premiere

While Senator Daschle strenuously denied hugging Michael Moore at the premiere of "Fahrenheit 9/11" in Washington, DC, John Thune wholeheartedly embraced Stephen Bannon, the producer/director of "In the Face of Evil," at its premiere in Sioux Falls last night. As DVT states, you won't see Thune strenuously denying it, either.

Daschle “very concerned” about the repercussions of passing yet another tax cut

From The Hill: "Tax vote splits centrist group." Excerpt:

Minority Leader Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) said on the floor that he was “very concerned” about the repercussions of passing yet another tax cut that would add to the deficit, adding that the deficit amounted to a “birth tax” on every American newborn.

“We ought to be embarrassed by the irresponsibility of doing things that are not properly offset and paid for,” Daschle said. Daschle, who is engaged in a fierce battle for reelection, also voted for last week’s tax cuts.

Greg Belfrage to discuss SDP posts on today's show

Be sure to listen in on Straight Talk with Greg Belfrage today at 4:00. He'll be discussing some of the latest posts on this blog. The marriage made in heaven between radio and the blogosphere continues apace.

AP: Kerry Association Hurting Daschle

The AP has a story headlined "Kerry Association Hurting Some Democrats." Excerpt:

Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle hugged President Bush from one end of South Dakota to the other this summer. In his own campaign commercials.

The brief embrace might seem an odd claim on re-election for the man Republicans depict as obstructionist-in-chief for the president's congressional agenda. But Daschle is one of several candidates with a common political problem as Democrats nurse fragile hopes of gaining Senate control this fall.

From the South to South Dakota and Alaska, they are running in areas where Bush is popular - and Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry not so much....

South Dakota holds the marquee Senate race of the campaign, and polls show a close race between Daschle and former GOP Rep. John Thune in a state that Bush carried by 22 percentage points in 2000.

The hug - two or three seconds in length - is a videotaped image of the embrace Daschle gave Bush when the president spoke to Congress shortly after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

Daschle's spokesman, Dan Pfeiffer, said the ad's message is that he "will work with the president when the president is right but oppose him when he is wrong." Daschle's latest commercial criticizes the administration for failing to provide adequate drought relief, while faulting Thune for not standing up to Bush on the issue.

The Republican Party demanded unsuccessfully that Daschle stop airing the ad, arguing it left a false impression.

Thune's campaign manager, Dick Wadhams, says Daschle "is running from the arms of Michael Moore to the arms of George Bush," referring to the liberal filmmaker whose name was heartily booed at the Republican National Convention.

No, Wadhams was referring to Daschle attending the premiere of Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11" and the subsequent furor over the report in Time magazine that Tom Daschle hugged Michael Moore there.

Here's a picture of Daschle eagerly rushing to get to the premiere of "Fahrenheit 9/11," ticket in hand.

The Reuters picture below was taken March 11, 2004, at the conclusion of a press conference in which John Kerry refused to apologize for calling President Bush and his advisers “the most crooked ... lying group I’ve ever seen.” Tom Daschle didn't take the opportunity to decry the "startling meanness" of Kerry's comment, and instead shook hands with Kerry and mugged for the cameras.

New scandal emerges; it's called "Pillowgate"

DVT has coined the term "Pillowgate" after The Hill, a Capital Hill publication, published a blurb today headlined "Sen. Daschle’s advice for short people: Use pillow, appear taller." Excerpt:

Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) likes some comparisons with his lanky Republican challenger, John Thune, and dislikes others. Their relative heights fall into the latter category.

During their “Meet the Press” debate a week ago, the minority leader came up with a solution — or rather, he came down on a solution.

A pillow, to be precise. Hill sources say an aide carries a blue pillow around for Daschle just in case the boss needs to avoid being looked down on. It is a favorite prop of the 5-foot-8-inch Senate minority leader. Daschle’s press office had no comment.

Just so you know, SDP broke this story long before The Hill did. Of course, Daschle doesn't just use a pillow to inflate his stature. He also has a nice booster stool to stand on when he's in front of television cameras.

Daschle on the timing of his Iraq war comments

I've been meaning to get to this all day, but please note what Daschle states at the end of the latest Argus Leader story about Senator Daschle's divisive comments on the eve of the Iraq war:

The inevitability of war was the nation's prevalent mood in March 2003, and Bush had said repeatedly that he intended to use force to remove Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. But Daschle said the precise moment of Bush committing troops to battle wasn't yet known.

"The truth is, I didn't know that when I said it, I would be getting a call that night from the president saying that we would be going to war," Daschle said. "Had I known then what I know now, I may have found a different time to say it."

The thing is, Daschle DID know that we would be going to war when he made those statements. The whole country knew. Daschle made his divisive comments immediately AFTER it was announced that President Bush would speak to the nation that evening, and AFTER he had been summoned to the White House for a briefing. Just look at what Daschle said immediately before he made his divisive comment:

“I’m going to the White House this afternoon and I have a pretty good understanding, a pretty good idea what was I’m going to hear. I’m saddened, saddened that this president failed so miserably at diplomacy that we’re now forced to war. Saddened that we have to give up one life because this president couldn’t create the kind of diplomatic effort that was so critical for our country. But we will work and we had do all that we can to get through this crisis like we’ve gotten through so many.

Why won't the Argus Leader call Tom Daschle on this? It's completely dishonest for Daschle to say he didn't know that we would be going to war when he made his divisive comments. One more thing. Why won't the press ask Daschle WHY he thinks his comment was poorly timed?

McCain "wouldn't have made" Daschle's comment on the eve of war

Here's John McCain's response to Daschle's divisive comments on the eve of the Iraq war, made in an exchange with CNN's Paula Zahn on the show "American Morning" dated March 20, 2003:

ZAHN: When you say the time to debate is over, I know you heard the same remark Senator Tom Daschle made the other day that most of us heard.

Do you have reason to believe that debate will be shelved until the end of these military operations?

MCCAIN: I do. I believe that all people in the Congress and throughout the country will rally behind the men and women, their mission and the president of the United States. And that's something that is important for us to do.

ZAHN: Do you think it was a mistake for Senator Tom Daschle to have made such pointed remarks on the eve of war?

MCCAIN: I wouldn't have made those comments. But I don't usually, having on occasion said a thing or two that perhaps I shouldn't have, I'm reluctant to discuss the remarks of others. But I think now we're all going to get behind the president and we're going to pass a resolution, I'm sure, today that will be a hundred to nothing supporting what's going on and we'll put that and other remarks behind us.

Senator Daschle and General McPeak

Last Friday, the Argus Leader reported that Senator Daschle "rebuffed" the startlingly mean comments by General McPeak about John Thune in an article headlined "Daschle rebuffs attack on Thune for lack of service." Relevant excerpt:

Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle said Thursday he didn't necessarily support the words of an Air Force general who defended him by criticizing Republican challenger John Thune for not serving in the military.

"I don't know that I do," Daschle said when asked if he agreed with the general. "I don't think anybody should be castigated for not serving."

His comment came a day after Gen. Merrill A. McPeak, in a telephone news conference arranged by Daschle's re-election campaign, said, "I can't stand the sunshine patriotism of a guy like Thune who's never seen the inside of a uniform."

Once again, one can readily observe the Daschle double talk, because at this very hour Daschle's own campaign website contains General McPeak's quotes in a laudatory post headlined "Baloney is baloney." Below is a screen capture of Daschle's website showing the "rebuffed" comments:

I would think that since the McPeak comments are on Daschle's campaign website at this very hour, the claim that Daschle has rebuffed them should be considered baloney. It also could be considered startlingly mean.

Argus Leader quotes John McCain; ignores Zell Miller

Well, today's edition of the Argus Leader contains more evidence that the editors at the AL can swing into action at a moment's notice when they want to. (In other words, when it helps the Daschle campaign.) The story at issue is headlined "McCain, Bush cited in Senate patriotism flap" and it's about what Senator John McCain said, or more accurately sort of said, on the Ed Schultz show yesterday. I hasten to add that Jon Walker, the reporter who wrote the story, is not the problem here. He's a principled, conscientiously objective reporter who is simply carrying out an assignment from his editor, Patrick Lalley. Patrick Lalley is the AL editor responsible for what political stories are covered (and more importantly what political stories are NOT covered). Patrick Lalley's guiding principle of political coverage rests on his notion (as Lalley himself has written) that Republicans are "evil."

Here's the relevant excerpt from the AL article:

McCain was a guest Monday on a talk radio show hosted by Ed Schultz of station KFGO of Fargo.

"We have differences of opinions with the Democrats," McCain said. "We are not enemies. The real enemy is out there - al Qaida and others that are trying to destroy us."

"But is debating war policy 'emboldening' the enemy?" Schultz asked.

"I think that debating a war policy is a legitimate exercise in democracy," McCain answered. "We are entitled to and must respect each other's views even if we disagree with them. Wars throughout our history have been disagreed with by certain elements in our society. That's what we fight for."

I'll wait for a later post to expound on the fact that even the Argus Leader editorial page said Daschle's comments at the 11th hour could not possibly be viewed as legitimate dissent.

Apart from the debate over Daschle's Iraq war comments, it's important to explain who Ed Schultz is. Ed Schultz, of course, is the North Dakota radio personality touted as the liberal version of Rush Limbaugh, and this blog has kept an eye on him since he began his nationwide broadcast that nobody listens to. In fact, no South Dakota radio station carries Schultz's nationwide broadcast, which leads one to ask how many degrees of seperation had to occur for the Argus Leader to even know about John McCain being on the Ed Schultz show yesterday. Oh, Patrick Lalley just happened to be listening in on the Ed Schultz show yesterday? Of course not. Undoubtedly, Daschle campaign manager Steve Hildebrand or one of his minions got in touch with Lalley to alert him that John McCain was going to be on the show and was going to be asked about John Thune's "emboldens the enemy" comment. Ed Schultz is friends with Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, (it was Dorgan who was instrumental in getting Schultz's nationwide broadcast off the ground) who in turn is one of Senator Daschle's closest allies. There can be no doubt that this was a carefully orchestrated setup of John McCain by Daschle and his allies in order to get a favorable story in a friendly newspaper back in South Dakota. The Democrat-Argus Leader collaboration can be readily observed, a phenomenon explained by Daschle's media strategist in a 1997 article in Campaigns & Elections magazine. Relevant graf:

The press ate it up. Our campaign systematically doled out the information piece by piece to reporters in D.C. and South Dakota. The result was a series of damaging articles. ... We used the headlines generated as validators for our ads.

So, clearly the Democrat-Argus Leader collaboration effect can be readily observed here. Another indication of how badly the Argus Leader editors want Daschle to win is how quickly they report a fellow Republican who says something negative about John Thune, and how the Argus Leader totally ignores what a fellow Democrat says that's negative about Tom Daschle. Earlier this month, Zell Miller, a Democratic Senator from Georgia, had this to say about Tom Daschle:

"[Tom Daschle has] taken the party so far to the left that I can't even recognize it."

Of course, the Argus Leader didn't say peep about this comment critical of a fellow Democrat. Zell Miller has also implicitly criticized Senator Daschle and the fact that his wife is a lobbyist in his book entitled "A National Party No More." Relevant graf about the propriety of congressional spouses being lobbyists:

"Talk about 'gathering ye rosebuds while ye may.' It gives a new meaning to 'pillow talk.' I cast no aspersions on the ones who do this, nor do I doubt their honesty. But in a business where 'perception' is just about the same as 'reality,' it looks suspicious as hell. It looks like someone's riding the gravy train. It does not pass the smell test."

The Argus Leader, of course, didn't say peep about this either. The AL double standard is readily apparent. When a fellow Republican says something negative about John Thune, it's front-page news in the very next day's edition. When a fellow Democrat says something negative about Tom Daschle, it's ignored.

Now watch Argus Leader executive editor Randell Beck, who seems to be living in an alternate universe lately, say that the AL has reported Zell Miller's comments "at least twice."

CQ on the SD Senate race

From Congressional Quarterly:

Though Daschle's position as the top Senate Democrat helps him remain popular in Republican-leaning South Dakota, GOP strategists are seeking to transform his leadership clout in the minds of the voters into evidence that he is a handmaiden of Democratic liberalism. Hoping to deny Daschle a fourth term is John Thune, the state's one House member between 1997 and 2003, who narrowly lost his bid two years ago against the state's other senator, Democrat Tim Johnson.

Henry Carlson: Daschle too concerned with DC politics

Henry Carlson, a prominent Sioux Falls small business owner, has this to say about the Senate race in South Dakota:

"As a native South Dakotan, and as someone who employs over 140 of our neighbors, I'm not some outsider, pushing some special interest agenda. I simply believe that Senator Daschle is just too concerned with Washington, DC politics. I hope you will join me in voting for John Thune. John Thune hasn't forgotten his South Dakota values."

This quote is from a mailer I received today from the Associated Builders and Contractors PAC. The mailer includes excerpts from the August 8, 2004 New York Times article reporting on Daschle's escapade in the Hamptons, as well as the picture of Daschle hobnobbing with its wealthy inhabitants.

O'Reilly: Daschle is going to lose

On the September 23 broadcast of The Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly, O'Reilly had this to say about the Daschle v. Thune Senate race:

CALLER: Yesterday, you made a comment about Daschle of South Dakota?

O'REILLY: Yeah.

CALLER: And judging by the past history, we [in South Dakota] have voted Republican, but it's, unfortunately, seems like Daschle always gets voted in there.

O'REILLY: He's going to lose.

CALLER: They think that he -- you know, it means he has the seniority, that's --

O'REILLY: Yeah. It doesn't matter what he does. He's going to lose. The South Dakota -- the polls are so heavily weighted in the favor of President Bush. And Thune destroyed him on [MSNBC's] Meet the Press. And Daschle? Do we have Daschle music so we can go out to the bump? Do we have it? Roll it!

[MUSIC CLIP FROM THE SONG "NA NA HEY HEY KISS HIM GOODBYE" BY STEAM]: Na-na-na-na. Na-na-na-na. Hey, hey-ey. Goodbye.

O'REILLY: [chuckles]

[MUSIC CLIP]: Na-na-na-na. Na-na-na-na. Hey, hey-ey. Goodbye.

What's this about "getting at Bush's neck"?

The Yankton Press & Dakotan has a story today headlined "McGovern To Dems: Take On Bush." Excerpt:

"When Bill Clinton was president, they had to protect him from people who were getting at his tie and cuff links (for souvenirs). Now, we have to protect this president from people who want to get at his neck," Daschle said.

DVT says he doesn't know what this comment means, but I think we can agree that it seems awfully mean. Maybe even startlingly mean.

Daschle was against middle-class tax relief before he was for it

Hugh Hewitt notes a recent article from the Washington Times headlined "Congress extends Bush tax cuts for middle class" and remarks that "Tom Daschle was against the tax relief before he was for it." Relevant excerpt from the Washington Times article:

With the election just around the corner, the pressure was on members of both chambers to support the tax relief.

Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, a South Dakota Democrat in a close re-election race, criticized the bill because its $146 billion value is not offset in any way, but in the end, he supported it.

Hugh Hewitt also makes the following observation about the Argus Leader:

The Argus Leader is to the Daschle-Thune race what CBS was to Bush-Kerry until the forged docs were exposed.

Well said.

Quote of the Day

"People inside the Beltway often have an inflated sense of the impact of what happens in Washington. There's a great disconnect between what's talked about in the salons of Washington and [over] the kitchen tables of South Dakota." - Daschle deputy campaign manager Dan Pfeiffer, in a lame attempt at portraying Thune as a Beltway insider and Daschle as a Beltway outsider. Ironically, no other campaign has been more effective than Daschle's at exploiting the "disconnect" between what Daschle says in the salon of his $1.9 million home in Washington, DC, and what he says in South Dakota. Hugh Hewitt provides the most recent example.

Herseth opposes Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act

Democratic Representative Stephanie Herseth opposed the Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act. According to the National Law Journal, the bill "would reinstate mandatory sanctions for lawyers who file frivolous lawsuits under Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and would eliminate the current 'safe harbor' that gives lawyers 21 days to withdraw a suit after a motion for sanctions has been filed."

Herseth supports Pledge Protection Act

Last week, the House passed the Pledge Protection Act, a bill providing that "No court created by Act of Congress shall have any jurisdiction, and the Supreme Court shall have no appellate jurisdiction, to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of, or the validity under the Constitution of, the Pledge of Allegiance[.]"

Democratic Representative Stephanie Herseth voted to support the bill. Should the bill come up for a vote in the Senate in the next few weeks, Herseth's support for it will place Senator Daschle in a box, much as Senator Johnson's support of the flag amendment has placed Daschle in a box on that particular issue.

60 Minutes' Don Hewitt to take questions from SD public

Don Hewitt, the creator of "60 Minutes," will be at The University of South Dakota on Thursday to receive the Neuharth Award. Hewitt will be taking questions from the public after his speech, which is scheduled for 7:00p.m. at Slagle Hall. It's a perfect opportunity to grill him about Ra^thergate. Be there.

WaPo: Daschle picking his way around political quicksand

Today's edition of the Washington Post has a piece headlined "Tight Race in S.D. Constrains Daschle." Excerpt:

In South Dakota, Republican John Thune, a former House member who narrowly lost the Senate race in 2002, has targeted Daschle on Iraq, energy policy and, more recently, the senator's opposition to a proposed constitutional amendment authorizing Congress to ban physical desecration of the U.S. flag.

Daschle "has got a lot of minefields to walk through in the waning days of the session," Thune's Senate campaign manager, Dick Wadhams, said.

Latest poll: Daschle leads 50%-45%

The latest poll numbers are out for the U.S. Senate race, showing Daschle leading 50%-45%. The Argus Leader's Jon Walker reports the details in a piece headlined "Daschle holds narrow lead."

Kranz Watch

David Kranz, the dean of South Dakota political reporters, who has been Tom Daschle's most rabid partisan supporter in his columns since their college days together in 1968, delivers another such column today. Perhaps it's about time to release another "Bombshell Memo" that indisputably documents Kranz to have actively worked behind the scenes to promote Democratic political figures in this state. Today, Kranz offers a few items for us to digest that are patronizing toward John Thune. First there's this:

Thune was perceived as timid and uncomfortable in his race against Sen. Tim Johnson in 2002, often short of the emotion needed to make a convincing point.

In his race against Sen. Tom Daschle, he has adopted a bulldog style that commands attention - evident at their DakotaFest and "Meet the Press" debates.

Some say he probably went to school to sharpen his tone.

As DVT notes, the "some" Kranz refers to are Kranz's sources in the Daschle campaign.

The next item in Kranz's column is a snippet from the National Journal's Chuck Todd about Daschle "scoring more points" than Thune at last Sunday's Meet the Press debate:

Chuck Todd assessed the Daschle-Thune Senate race last week for the National Journal.

He writes: "We never really understood why Daschle agreed to the 'Meet the Press' debate since it seems he had everything to lose and nothing to gain. Then again we saw what times the show airs in South Dakota - 8 a.m. in the two big markets - and realized very few folks would see it.

"That said, from our perspective, we thought Daschle scored more points than Thune. As noted above, Thune got off a good line about Daschle and his use of Bush. But on some other topics, particularly on the issue of the gas tax, we thought Daschle came out in better shape and fairly unscathed."

Interestingly, earlier this week the Daschle campaign's website was making a big deal out of this item from Chuck Todd. (See the Daschle Digest item dated Wednesday, September 22.)

Unfortunately, CNN still takes Kranz seriously, despite him obviously being in the tank for Daschle. Kranz appeared on CNN's "Capital Gang" last night to discuss the Daschle v. Thune race. Relevant excerpt from the transcript:

SHIELDS: Welcome back.

In South Dakota, Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle faces a serious challenge from former Republican Congressman John Thune.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TOM DASCHLE (D-SD), MINORITY LEADER: Tonight, the president has called us again to greatness. And tonight, we answer that call.

ANNOUNCER: Senator Daschle helped forge a consensus to rebuild our military.

JOHN THUNE (R), SOUTH DAKOTA SENATORIAL CANDIDATE: For years, Tom Daschle has been telling us one thing here in South Dakota and then doing the opposite in Washington. He says he's fought for lower energy prices, but he hasn't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHIELDS: The candidates met in debate for the first time on NBC's "Meet the Press" this last Sunday. And the Republican attacked the Democratic leader's criticism of the Iraq war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THUNE: What it does is emboldens our enemies and undermines the morale of our troops.

DASCHLE: I take this personally. It's not only an attack on me, it's an attack on where I'm from.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHIELDS: A new poll by the "Argus Leader" and KELO TV shows a five-point Daschle lead, compared with a two-point lead in May. Joining us from Chicago is David Kranz, political columnist of the Sioux Falls "Argus Leader."

David, how do you explain this apparent improvement in Senator Daschle's poll numbers?

DAVID KRANZ, SIOUX FALLS "ARGUS LEADER": Well, there's a couple of things you can look at. Really, the race is really starting to intensify in the middle of August, and one of the things that happened was a more aggressive, more pointed campaign by former Congressman Thune. And one of the things I can tell you about our poll that showed up -- I'm not at the liberty of telling you the exact numbers, but Mr. Thune's negatives went up quite substantially compared to last time. And so it may be somewhat of a backlash in that particular situation. You also had the "Meet the Press" debate that may or may not moved some of the numbers some.

SHIELDS: Bob Novak.

NOVAK: Tell us about that, David. Do you think that the position taken by -- by Mr. Thune on the "Meet the Press" debate hurt him? A lot of people thought that the -- the weepy performance by Senator Daschle was a little ridiculous, but do you think it went over in South Dakota?

KRANZ: You know, the reaction to that was kind of like we are in the country today, or in the Senate, when you vote in South Dakota. It was kind of a 50-50 response.

You heard a lot of people saying that that was over the top as far as Mr. Thune was concerned. And other people said, well, Daschle needs to be accountable.

I do know some people who are not in the Thune campaign who wished he wouldn't have said it, though, because it's something for them to deal with that they weren't anticipating.

SHIELDS: Kate O'Beirne.

O'BEIRNE: David, in 1998, Tom Daschle won reelection with 62 percent of the vote. I was intrigued that during that "Meet the Press" appearance, the clip we showed, he seems to think it's necessary to make any criticism of him look like a criticism of South Dakota. Is he so unsure of his own popularity six years after that big win that it's now an attack on South Dakota if you're opposed to Tom Daschle.

KRANZ: That does seem to be one of his messages. And, of course, Mr. Thune is using sort of as a theme that he's a leader and Senator Daschle portrays himself as a victim.

So that's going to be part of that campaign as it intensifies when we're near the finish line. But I think Daschle knows he's in the race of his life right here now. And right now I think when he speaks out he tries to protect South Dakota a lot. And I think that's what he really is intending to do by that approach.

SHIELDS: Al Hunt.

HUNT: David, John Thune a couple of weeks ago, gay marriage was going to be his big issues. And then he turned to terrorism. And now it's the question of Daschle emboldening our enemies.

Is he just desperately searching around for something? Because right now, with -- with, what, only five weeks to go, most people seem to have made up their minds. KRANZ: I think that's true. You really see a lot of rock-solid support on both sides. There's not a lot of undecideds left in this race.

And Mr. Thune's approach, I think he's more taking a nationalized approach to his campaign, discussing national issues that he thinks will resonate with South Dakota voters, while Senator Daschle is localizing his campaign, talking more about "what I did for you," you know, in Brule County, or "what I did for you" elsewhere in Sioux Falls. And he's trying to keep it local, saying this is where I've exercised by clout.

SHIELDS: David, looking at the race, the last time Tom Daschle ran in the presidential cycle it was 1992. And I'm trying to figure out who are the Bush-Daschle voters? Have you figured that out in this campaign?

KRANZ: The Bush-Daschle voters are people who basically look at the big picture nationally, because we generally always vote for the Republican for president. Like three times in our history we voted for a Democrat. But the bottom line is they like, you know, the conservative leadership of the president. But the people who look at Daschle say, "Gee whiz, you know, he can get things done for us. He can deliver for us."

And I think that's a big issue right now that gives him an advantage. And it's surprising with almost 20 percent of the Republican voters consistently are supporting Daschle.

SHIELDS: OK. Hey, David Kranz, thank you so much for being with us.