DHL deal haunts McCain in Ohio

[kevinmc]

Politico - LISA LERER

John McCain went on the offensive Thursday in a key battleground state, hoping to blunt criticism that he was indirectly responsible for the possible loss of more than 8,000 jobs in Wilmington, Ohio.

“I can’t assure you that this train wreck isn’t going to happen but I will do everything in my power to see that we avert it,” said McCain in a meeting with over two dozen Wilmington business owners, local officials, and community organizers.

Democrats are trying to pin the economic loss squarely on the McCain campaign, stressing ties between DHL, a global package delivery company, and his campaign manager, Rick Davis.

Five years ago, Davis lobbied Congress to accept a plan by German-owned DHL to buy Wilmington, Ohio-based Airborne Express.

Now, DHL wants to route its packages through Louisville, Ky., a move that would cost southwest Ohio thousands of much-needed jobs.

In Wilmington on Thursday, McCain promised to hold congressional hearings and send a letter to the CEO of DHL’s parent company, Deutsche Post AG, asking him to meet with the affected workers.

“I’m deeply troubled by the specter of job loss confronting the town of Wilmington and this entire area, nine counties,” said McCain. “My concerns are being reinforced in my meeting today with those facing the most personal consequences.”

Jobs are a critical issue in economically-struggling Ohio, a swing state that awarded George W. Bush the 2004 election. Wilmington, located in the southwest part of the state, is traditionally a Republican stronghold.

Although Davis ended his representation of DHL in 2005, Democrats see the connection as a prime opportunity to paint the presumptive Republican nominee as beholden to lobbyists and big corporations.

On Wednesday, Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown called on McCain and Davis to use their influence to encourage DHL to keep the jobs in Ohio.

"Rick Davis earned hundreds of thousands of dollars lobbying for DHL," Brown said on Wednesday. "Now it's time to see if he and John McCain will use their considerable clout to lobby for Ohio families."

Since the deal was announced in May, Ohio lawmakers have asked DHL, the White House, and other American and German government officials to help stop the move.

On Wednesday, a Cleveland Plain Dealer story reported that Davis and a partner earned nearly $600,000 lobbying the Senate to accept DHL’s proposal to buy Airborne Express for $1.05 billion................

[Gabi Hayes]

1. was the woman he LIED to at the earlier town meeting there?

did they discuss his earlier 'performance?'

there's a very good thread about his, under the aegis of Rachel Maddow's radio show, I think.

and another one which details how this could be a focal point of Dems as a campaign issue, sad as it would be to use these poor peoples' RAPE at the hands of McCain/Global disaster economics

[Gabi Hayes]

4. thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6597901

[Gabi Hayes]

2. Time doesn't know the facts, or is too lazy/wired into McCain to present them:

http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1821470,00.html

no mention of Rick Davis' lobbying efforts on behalf of DHL, or McCain's senate actions on their behalf

why?

here's the rest of the story, which quotes the link above, then does some real journalism:

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/16466.html


But while McCain was patting himself on the back for offering the community some “straight talk,” he left out a rather important detail.

The foreign acquisition that prompted the plant closing in Wilmington was championed by none other than John McCain and his lobbyist-turned-campaign manager, Rick Davis.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s blog reported today:

Little known to citizens, McCain and his campaign manager, Rick Davis, played roles in the fate of DHL Express and its Ohio air park as far back as 2003.


........


TPM goes them one better:

In 2003, for instance, DHL Holdings (USA) and Airborne hired Davis to lobby the Senate to facilitate a merger. Hotly opposed by shipping giants FedEx and United Parcel Service, the merger encountered opposition from Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) on the commerce committee. McCain took steps that helped Davis's clients. He thwarted Stevens's effort to insert language into legislation that would prohibit foreign-controlled companies such as DHL from holding certain military contracts.

Davis's firm earned $125,000 from Airborne in 2003 and $465,000 from DHL parent company Deutsche Post World Net (USA) from 2003 to 2005, records show.



http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/rick_davis_add_category/



let's get on the hump, boys. we got some FLYIN' to do!

[Gabi Hayes]

3. source for TPM article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/25/AR2008062502858.html?nav=rss_politics&sid=ST2008062502934&pos=

[AwakeAtLast]

5. Damn, isn't Karma a bitch?

Couldn't have happened at a better time. :D