"Target Daschle"
"Senator Daschle is successful in South Dakota not because his views are in sync with South Dakotans, but he is a likable person who has built personal relationships," said State Republican Party Chairman Joel Rosenthal. "Polling shows people vote for him because they like him, even though he doesn't represent them."
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"It is water hitting rock. It isn't hardly going to touch him. They (national Republicans) are trying to slip in things about a guy with 85 percent popularity," he said.
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When Sen. Ted Kennedy,
D-Mass., dispatched an aide to seek a patients bill of rights compromise with the White House, Daschle relayed concern that any agreement - likely to involve limits on lawsuits - would prove difficult to move through the Democratic ranks. The bill, a top Democratic priority, was deferred until an election year.
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"He has a very soft glove, and he has a very nice demeanor," said Sen. Rick Santorum, a Republican from Pennsylvania. "He feels he won't take any heat for being an obstructionist."
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"He's wrapping his arms tight around a popular president on the war and foreign policy, but on the domestic front he's conducting his own guerrilla war against Mr. Bush, blocking the president's agenda at every turn. And so far he's getting away with it."
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Scotland farmer and Democratic state Rep. Frank Kloucek takes issue with the criticism of Daschle even though the senator hasn't been able to deliver everything he thinks South Dakota farmers need.
"Daschle, you bet he is doing a good job, especially with farm legislation. I was disappointed that he wasn't able to get high (farm) payment limitations. Otherwise he did an excellent job especially with packer ownership and conservation," Kloucek said.
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Former South Dakota Sen. George McGovern said Republican criticism of Daschle is "groundless."
He said Daschle's approach is an "intelligent, well-thought-out decision" that the American people will thank him for a year from now.
"What Tom is doing is trying to stop a payoff to the wealthiest people, the people who least need the stimulus right now. They would have pocketed it," McGovern said.
----------and finally-
A story in the Chicago-Sun Times last week reported that Republicans are taking their "Target Daschle" strategy from the playbook used by President Clinton to make Gingrich "the bad guy."
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the story-http://www.argusleader.com/news/Sundayarticle2.shtml |
