South Dakota Politics

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.

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.

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.

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.

FLASHBACK: Daschle says Democrats were too easy on Bush

In this election year, Senator Daschle has run an ad here in South Dakota showing him embracing President Bush. However, when Daschle was not facing a tough reelection campaign, he bemoaned the fact that Democrats weren't contesting President Bush's policies forcefully enough, according to a November 17, 2003 CBS Marketwatch story headlined "Daschle says Democrats were too easy on Bush." Here's the complete text of the story:

Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota, said his fellow Democrats should've been more forceful in their dealings with the newly elected President George Bush after the 2000 election.

Daschle also said that he thinks that health care will turn out to be the Democrats' hot-button political issue in the next election. Privacy issues will also play a large role, he noted.

"Universal health care is Mount Everest," he said. "We can't quit until we conquer that mountain." Meanwhile, privacy "is a huge issue for the next generation."

Speaking at Newsweek's "Who's Next" event in New York, Daschle discussed the prospects for the upcoming campaign. He was joined on the panel by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Caro, author of biographies of Robert Moses and Lyndon Johnson, and Anne Marie Slaughter, dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Jonathan Alter, Newsweek's senior editor and columnist, served as the moderator.

Asked by Alter if the Democrats had been too nice or accommodating to Bush, Daschle said that "nice" was probably the wrong word. But he didn't necessarily disagree with that conclusion. Daschle said his colleagues didn't send their message forcefully enough to Bush to contest some of his policies, especially since Bush won a contested election and didn't emerge with a mandate from American voters.

"I don't think we sent it as strongly as I would have liked," said Daschle, referring to the Democrats' message. Daschle is also the author of a new book called "Like No Other Time."

Daschle said the Democrats' accommodating style in early 2001 was "a reflection of a division in our caucus."

New ideas

With such Democratic hopefuls as Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, the frontrunner at this point, and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry blasting Bush for his handling of the Iraqi occupation and the U.S. economy, it's not likely that the Democrats will be so accommodating going forward.

In fact, Daschle wouldn't concede a Republican landslide in the southern states. There is "going to be real competition in the South," Daschle said.

Caro said the Democrats could learn valuable lessons from following the example set long ago by Lyndon Johnson. Johnson was the Vice President when President John Kennedy was assassinated 40 years and he was re-elected in 1964, before deciding not to seek another term in 1968.

Caro said Johnson was a "PR genius" in his ability alternately to charm and bully potential foes in politics and the press.

Daschle said Al Gore, Vice President under President Bill Clinton who ran against Bush in 2000, could have done things differently in his bid to capture the White House.

Gore "could've won Arizona," Daschle said, and offered that Gore was "probably premature" in giving up on other states in the election.

Money talks

Daschle, who is up for re-election himself next year, conceded that money will continue to give Bush a leg up in the next election.

With Bush boasting a war chest of something like $200 million, he "can play wherever he wants," meaning he'll have no restrictions on being able to spend a lot of money.

Stephen Hess: Daschle's remarks on eve of war "verged on being offensive"

The March 18, 2003 edition of the White House Bulletin contained the following passage about Senator Daschle's divisive remarks on the eve of the Iraq war:

Asked about Daschle's comments, Larry Sabato, head of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics told the Bulletin that Daschle's remarks were "pretty tough, especially for one who's running for reelection - or presumably running for reelection -- in a state that voted 60 percent for Bush." Asked about historical examples of similar comments, Sabato said there was serious criticism of former President Bush in the last week prior to Operation Desert Storm in 1991, noting, "Sam Nunn was predicting complete and total disaster. That was the end of his presidential aspirations." Sabato added that while Daschle is not seeking the presidency this time around, he is similarly "rolling the dice" politically.

Stephen Hess, a senior fellow at Brookings who has made a career studying the presidency, told the Bulletin that Daschle's remarks were "stunning" and "verged on being offensive, and I'm used to a lot of rough political talk." Hess added Daschle's remarks "couldn't have been more grossly stated at the wrong time," though they could have been "great remarks" after the war. Hess concluded, "He could live to regret that deeply."

Michael Barone on Daschle's Iraq war comments

Michael Barone wrote a piece headlined "Diplomatic debacle? Not so; Countering the president's critics" analyzing Senator Daschle's divisive comments on the eve of the Iraq war. Excerpt:

It is clear that [Daschle] speaks in the accents of the Senate Democratic cloakroom, in which Bush is regarded as an illegitimate president, a usurper who is trying to impose crazed conservative policies, a stupid man incapable of understanding a sophisticated world, who must be opposed ferociously at every step and on any ground. No Democratic campaign consultant whom I know, and I know all the leading Democratic campaign consultants, would have advised Daschle to make the comment that he did. If the war goes badly, Bush and the Republicans will pay a political price, whatever the Democrats say now; if the war goes well, comments like Daschle's will work powerfully against the Democrats and for George W. Bush. Daschle's words can only be explained as the product of a kind of hatred, unbuttressed by any serious intellectual argument, likely to hurt the party of the speaker far more than the party of the president they were directed against.

Mort Kondracke on Daschle's Iraq war comments

Here's what Roll Call executive editor Mort Kondracke had to say about Senator Daschle's divisive comments on the eve of the Iraq war:

"You know, now Tom Daschle blamed only George Bush for the diplomatic disaster. Didn't have a thing to
say about Saddam Hussein." - (Fox News "Special Report," 3/18/2003).

Bill O'Reilly: "...the good people of South Dakota need to take a hard look at this guy"

Here's what Bill O'Reilly had to say about Daschle's comments on the eve of the Iraq war:

As you may know, Daschle has criticized the war against Iraq, saying, "This president failed so miserably in diplomacy that we are now forced to war."

But in 1998, when President Clinton bombed Iraq, Daschle said this, "We have exhausted virtually our diplomatic effort to get the Iraqis to comply with their own agreements and with international law. Given that... We have got to force them to comply, and we are doing so militarily."

So, what's up with the hypocrisy, Senator? You were all for using force five years ago. Now, after 9/11, the threat from Saddam's weapons even greater-- what say you?

The No Spin truth is Mr. Daschle is playing politics in a time of life and death and that should be unacceptable to all Americans, not just Republicans.

Senator Lott lost power because his credibility dissolved after he applauded a philosophy that hurt African-Americans. Now Senator Daschle is embracing a philosophy that's position is inconsistent with his past positions and it is not helpful in the war against Saddam.

Talking Points believes it is over for Tom Daschle, at least as far as national influence is concerned. I also believe the good people of South Dakota need to take a hard look at this guy.

Daschle's two-trick pony

A friend writes:

Daschle's campaign strategy is a two-trick pony. Either he's the most powerful man in the universe, or he's the victim. It seems to me that it would be hard to reconcile these two components.

Not if you're as adept at having it both ways as Tom Daschle is.

Argus Leader: Daschle's Iraq comments were "divisive rather than constructive"

DVT notes that even the Argus Leader, Senator Daschle's most influential cheerleader, castigated him for his comments on the eve of the Iraq war. Below is a picture of the March 19, 2003 Argus Leader editorial:

After the firestorm over Daschle's comments, Daschle said that he had "no idea when I said them what the timing of the military operation would be." That is patently false. Just look at what he said in the same speech:

“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.

Daschle's timing was impeccable. What he didn't foresee was that the entire country would be outraged by his impeccable timing.

The Rapid City Journal interviews Daschle's campaign manager

Last week, Denise Ross transcribed an interview with Thune campaign manager Dick Wadhams. This week, she has a transcript of an interview with Daschle campaign manager Steve Hildebrand headlined "Growing up poor led to politics." Excerpt:

Ross: How much can you talk about your strategy for the remaining two months? What's your No. 1 priority?

Hildebrand: Make sure the truth is told about Tom's record for this state. We go directly to the voters. We have an aggressive paid media campaign just like John does, but we are better at going and having conversations with people at the door or casual conversations with voters over the phone that are engaging conversations, not intimidating conversations. We believe if voters understand Tom's record and can sift through some of the crap that's going to be thrown at Tom from the other side, we will win this race.

Ross: Is there anything else you'd like to say?

Hildebrand: This race is a defining race for this state. If they choose Tom Daschle, they will choose based on what they believe is best for South Dakota. If they choose John Thune, they will make a choice based on wedge issues that distract from what is best for this state.

Rapid City Journal on debates

What is it about debates that makes South Dakota's Democratic candidates for federal office shrink from them like a vampire from a cross? First, the Rapid City Journal notes there will be "No House debate at State Fair" apparently because Herseth backed out citing scheduling concerns. Strangely, despite the fact that there is no House or Senate debate at the State Fair this year, all of the candidates are attending the fair today. The reason there are no debates at the State Fair cannot be blamed on the Republican candidates.

Elsewhere in the pages of the RCJ is a report headlined "Senate candidates spar over debates" that details the behind-the-scenes scrambling and contradictory statements of the Daschle campaign to avoid additional debates. Daschle makes the following comment in the piece:

"We have proposed that of the eight debates we have going, one take place on a reservation," Daschle said. "We've written to sponsors to ask them to consider the option."

Then that statement is contradicted by Dan Pfeiffer, Daschle's deputy campaign manager, who says that while they hadn't yet written to sponsors they were "on the verge" of doing so:

By Friday, Daschle's plan had unraveled, and the Daschle campaign sent no letters to debate sponsors.

"We were on the verge of doing it," Daschle's deputy campaign manager, Dan Pfeiffer, said.

Then Pfeiffer blames KSFY-TV's Mitch Krebs as the culprit for why no letters had been sent to debate sponsors:

The letter was not sent, Pfeiffer said, because Mitch Krebs of KSFY-TV in Sioux Falls told the campaign that the five media outlets had agreed not to move the debates out of the TV studio.

Then Mitch Krebs disputes Pfeiffer's assertion:

Krebs said Steve Hildebrand, Daschle's campaign manager, told him the campaign would prefer to keep the debate in the KSFY studio.

"I never heard anything about moving it to a reservation or anything about a letter going out," Krebs said.

Finally, the RCJ story gets to the nub of the matter: the Daschle campaign thinks there are too many debates as it is:

Daschle and his senior campaign staffers said they are unwilling to add any new debates because they believe eight is enough and a record number in modern South Dakota history.

"We want to do more than just spend time doing debates," said Hildebrand. "We don't have any more room on our schedule to do debates and other things we want to get done. He does a lot of these community dinners and coffees, which provide him with an opportunity to talk directly with voters without the confrontational setting of a structured debate."

As DVT sardonically notes of the whole sordid affair, "if Daschle debated he wouldn't have time for more canned, scripted, managed, and controlled events reciting boilerplate and not taking public questions." Indeed.

Daschle cites "security concerns" for avoiding live audience

Did you know the Corn Palace in Mitchell is unsecure? That's the excuse Senator Daschle is using to avoid a debate before a live audience in Mitchell, according to an editorial in the Mitchell Daily Republic headlined "Daschle avoids Palace debate." Excerpt:

There won’t be a Daschle/Thune debate at the Corn Palace after all.

Instead, the Oct. 18 debate will stay at the KSFY studio in Sioux Falls as originally planned.

Although there was initial support for the idea, the Daschle camp resisted, saying it was concerned about security and crowd control. Those concerns were echoed by the television sponsors.

The Aug. 18 Dakotafest debate was before a live audience, and even though Daschle had what seemed like all of his 100 staffers there to cheer him on, there were far more Thune supporters who just wandered in without being contacted by the Thune campaign. It's likely that would have happened again in the Corn Palace, so it seems Daschle is afraid to face a live audience when his record is effectively being questioned.

"Republicans for Daschle" list contains at least one Thune supporter

Denise Ross, political reporter for the Rapid City Journal, has a report today headlined "Thune pans Daschle's GOP list" detailing the latest Daschle debacle:

A random check of 11 Republicans for Daschle by the Rapid City Journal found one who was not aware she was on the list, one Thune supporter and a Daschle supporter who asked to have his name removed.

Further into the story, Steve Hildebrand, Daschle's campaign manager makes the following unfortunate comment:

"We feel very confident about the list. You can go to our (campaign) office and call 100 of them and see how phony it is."

Looks like you only have to call eleven to see how phony it is.

It seems Thune campaign manager Dick Wadhams was correct when he commented "There may be quite a few folks quite surprised their names are on there."

BOMBSHELL: E-mail indicates Daschle state director illegally doing campaign work

The Daschle campaign, in its effort to dampen the impact of the new ad being broadcast by the US Chamber of Commerce, sent out an e-mail to a South Dakota businessperson, attempting to get that person's signature on a letter asking the US Chamber of Commerce to stop broadcasting its ad. The following is the text of that e-mail:

Here is the letter to the US Chamber regarding the ads being run against Tom. I am forwarding this to you at the request of Steve Erpenbach. It is important to Senator Daschle that people understand that the state and local Chambers in South Dakota are not sponsoring this ad, and have remained neutral in this race.

Your willingness to lend your name to the letter would be a great help to the Senator. We want to make sure that you are comfortable with content. Please reply to this email. If you have questions call Steve Erpenbach at 366-6565. Included is a copy of the script of the ad and talking points on Tom's record on this issue.

Thank you for your assistance,

Ryan Howlett

(Emphases added.) Steve Erpenbach is Senator Daschle's State Director, and a member of his Senate staff, NOT a member of his campaign staff. His salary is paid by taxpayer dollars, not campaign funds. The Senate Ethics Manual prohibits Senate staffers helping incumbents gain reelection. Below is the relevant text from the Senate Ethics Manual:

Senate employees are compensated from funds of the Treasury for regular performance of official duties. They are not paid to do campaign work. In the words of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia: "It is clear from the record that Congress has recognized basic principle that government funds should not be spent to help incumbents gain reelection."

(Emphasis added.) The case quoted is Common Cause v. Bolger, 574 F. Supp. 672 (D.D.C. 1982). It would appear, given the information now available, that Erpenbach's activity is a blatant violation of a bright line rule in the Senate Code of Ethics. According to the e-mail quoted above, Erpenbach is deeply involved in the Daschle campaign's effort to squelch the effect of the US Chamber of Commerce ads. According to the facts as I know them, Erpenbach is being paid with taxpayer dollars to do campaign work.

Interestingly, Erpenbach at one time was the assistant city editor for the Argus Leader, working under city editor David Kranz. Jeff Gannon reported this factoid last summer in a piece headlined "Another Daschle Link to Beleaguered Newspaper Revealed." Excerpt:

Steve Erpenbach, currently State Director for Daschle, was Assistant City Editor for the Argus Leader from 1986 until 1989. David Kranz, the reporter at the center of the controversy, was City Editor at the time. Erpenbach became Press Secretary for Ted Muenster in his 1990 bid to unseat Sen. Larry Pressler (R-SD). It was during this campaign that the New York Times and Roll Call criticized the Argus Leader for its biased coverage.

Steve Hildebrand's unclean hands

Steve Hildebrand, Tom Daschle's campaign manager, presumed to tell us this past weekend in a press release about "how we do things in South Dakota." Excerpt from the Hildebrand press release:

"Berating young staffers and referring to public officials with obscenities is not how we do things in South Dakota."

So what's Hildebrand's version of how we do things in South Dakota? One can easily discover the answer to this question by reading a piece in the Washington Post dated May 31, 2003. Excerpt:

Hildebrand said the campaign has assembled embarrassing information on several conservatives who are considering more attack ads against Daschle. The information includes videotape of a conservative activist discussing how he paid for his girlfriend's abortion.

It doesn't get much sleazier than that, especially when one considers that the so-called "videotape of a conservative activist discussing how he paid for his girlfriend's abortion" is in actuality videotaped testimony of Christian redemption in a public appearance by Rushmore Policy Council head Rob Regier.

Local radio talk show host Greg Belfrage has also been the target of Steve Hildebrand's attempts to stifle dissent.

Jeff Gannon, resident DC expert on South Dakota politics, reported last year on Daschle's "Mafia tactics and intimidation" to silence his opponents in South Dakota in a piece headlined "Critics: Daschle's Soft Image Masks Political Machine."

Chicken droppings?

Dick Wadhams, John Thune's campaign manager, is making the headlines locally and nationally for aiming a certain epithet at Senator Daschle for avoiding debates and sending a staffer "to slink around in the shadows and tape John Thune when Thune is the one who shows up for these events."

Is Senator Daschle out of touch with SD?

"Seventy-five thousand South Dakotans lack health insurance." - Tom Daschle, in the latest post to his blog.

"Number of uninsured in state not known."- headline to an article by Bob Mercer in the Aberdeen American News, dated July 22, 2004.

Elsewhere in the category of Senator Daschle playing fast and loose with the facts, note that 50 state legislators are taking issue with Daschle taking all of the credit for distance learning. Apart from taking all the credit on distance learning, note too that Daschle voted against the bill with the distance learning provision.

No wonder he doesn't want to have debates.

(Via DVT.)

Belfrage reports on Daschle phone calls

Be sure to read Greg Belfrage's report of a mass pro-Daschle phone call campaign yesterday where a female caller read a script urging the recipient to call John Thune's office and tell him to "stop his friends from polluting our airwaves."

A friend of mine also received this message on his voicemail and allowed me to listen to it (transcript of call follows, the caller evidently began speaking before the recording started):

"...negative television ads, and a news story where John Thune says it's OK for outside groups to run these ads.

In fact Thune's campaign manager, Dick Wadhams, said there's nothing wrong with negative ads. I don't know about you, but the negative campaigns of 2002 were enough for me.

I'm a Republican, but this year I won't support any candidate who runs a negative campaign.

It's time to send a message that we won't stand for it anymore. If you agree, call John Thune's office at 1-605-221-1010, and ask him to stop his friends from polluting our airwaves. Again, that's 1-605-221-1010. Thank you."

Greg promises to investigate who financed these calls and report back to us. Stay tuned.

Word on the street

It's panic mode at Daschle headquarters after their atrocious showing in the latest poll and the news that Tim Giago is running as an independent. The latest word on the street is that Tom Daschle is flying in from DC today for campaign events tonight in Sioux Falls and tomorrow in Madison. The Daschle campaign also purchased 20 new computers yesterday, indicating they're bringing in more East Coast talent in order to redouble their efforts.

Word on the street

DVT relates a rumor that Tom Daschle made a phone call to Tim Giago yesterday in a last-ditch effort to stop Giago's third-party candidacy for the U.S. Senate.

Disunity among South Dakota Dems starts to emerge

Jeff Gannon, resident DC expert on South Dakota politics, has a piece today headlined "Daschle, Herseth Split on Gay Marriage Amendment." Excerpt:

A month ago, the Associated Press quoted Herseth as saying, "I agree with the president on this issue. Marriage should be between a man and a woman."

Her statement produced a strongly negative reaction from some Democrats, especially from inside the Daschle campaign. The Rapid City Journal reported that Steve Hildebrand, campaign manager for the Senate minority leader asked for a refund of his contribution to the Herseth campaign.

It's interesting that this rift between the two campaigns has emerged, particularly in light of the fact that Linda Daschle encouraged Herseth to run for congress in 2002, according to a story in the American Prospect at the time, headlined "Civil Offensive." Excerpt:

When she was encouraged to run by Linda Daschle -- Tom Daschle's wife -- Herseth had no idea whom she would be up against.

Daschle alienates small business

Roll Call reports today that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has begun a $40 million effort to defeat candidates who oppose their agenda, starting with Tom Daschle. The Daschle v. Thune blog has excerpts.

Interestingly, the Chamber is one of the biggest supporters of the bankruptcy reform bill, a bill that is beginning to pose an election year dilemma for Tom Daschle, as Peter Roff of UPI reports. The Hill also has some interesting information on this effort.

Steve Hildebrand, Tom Daschle's campaign manager, is busily motivating the troops, as seen by an e-mail sent to supporters today. The text of the e-mail follows, and my comments are bracketed and italicized:

To: Friends and Supports of Senator Tom Daschle

Fr: Steve Hildebrand, Campaign Manager

Re: Former Congressman John Thune to Run Against Senator Daschle

Last Monday night, at a Republican fundraising dinner in Lincoln County, former Congressman John Thune, now a lobbyist in Sioux Falls, announced his intentions to challenge Senator Tom Daschle. [Note the word "lobbyist" is used to describe Thune. In the interests of full disclosure, one should note that Tom Daschle's wife is one of the most powerful corporate lobbyists in Washington. A Washington Monthly piece has described her as a "high-powered lobbyist" while The Hill named her a "star rainmaker."]

The news wasn't a big surprise to us as we've been preparing for the Thune challenge for nearly a year. [In other words, having big fundraisers around the country and running campaign commercials two years before an election]

One fundamental question should guide this election - what is best for the people of South Dakota? Tom's leadership position in the Senate gives South Dakota an unprecedented opportunity to put our priorities on the national agenda and deliver for this great state as he did securing the funding for the Lewis and Clark and Perkins County water projects this year and saving Ellsworth Air Force Base from the base closure list in the mid-1990's. [Didn't Tom Daschle tell us when he was the majority leader that his leadership position was "an unprecedented opportunity" for South Dakota? Note there's no mention of ethanol, which failed because Daschle did not use his clout to get it passed. In fact he was out signing copies of his book when he could have been rounding up support for ethanol. The Congressional Quarterly reported just yesterday that Daschle "did not aggressively seek more Democratic support and the vote failed."]

"I look forward to this campaign as an opportunity to discuss my record of accomplishment for South Dakota and to put forward my ideas on how we can make health care more affordable and available, how we can create more jobs and economic opportunities, and how we can expand South Dakota's agricultural economy," said Senator Daschle last night. [How can Daschle expand South Dakota's agricultural economy when he can't-or won't-deliver on ethanol?]

Now we must begin to maximize our efforts to ensure that Senator Daschle is able to continue delivering for South Dakota. Election Day is just 10 short months from now. Your support has put Tom in a position of strength. But we must turn up the heat, assemble the biggest volunteer effort South Dakota has ever seen, register more supporters and send a message to Karl Rove and the special interests that Senate races aren't decided in Washington. [Of course we'll ignore the stuff about Tom Daschle's Hollywood contributors (to whom he discussed the problem of runaway film production, an issue of pressing concern to South Dakotans) and the incredible amount of money he's raising from trial lawyers].

This is South Dakota's choice! [South Dakota's choice is a senator who votes right on the issues and brings home the bacon. That description does not fit Tom Daschle, who has a liberal voting record and didn't deliver on ethanol, and is currently holding up the omnibus spending bill which gives $46 million in federal money to South Dakota priorities.]