McCain’s DHL problem may cost him Ohio

[babylonsister]

McCain’s DHL problem may cost him Ohio
Posted August 9th, 2008 at 12:30 pm



One month ago today, John McCain hosted a town-hall event in Ohio, when Mary Houghtaling, who runs a hospice in Wilmington, choked up in describing the devastating job losses associated with DHL’s plans to close its domestic air hub in her town. McCain said he’d been “briefed” on the situation, which he described as “a terrible blow.”

Responding directly to Houghtaling, a McCain supporter, the presumptive Republican nominee added, “But I’ve gotta look you in the eye and give you straight talk. I don’t know if I can stop it or not, or if it will be stopped. So I have to tell you that. That’s some straight talk. In fact, some more straight talk? I doubt it.”

No one realized it at the time, but the exchange may have seriously undermined McCain’s chances of winning Ohio in November.

We learned this week that McCain helped push the DHL deal in the Senate, and it was McCain’s lobbyist-turned-campaign manager Rick Davis helped orchestrate the DHL deal in the first place. Workers in Ohio feared that the foreign merger would cost the community a lot of jobs, and that’s precisely what happened.

McCain made it happen, and now the Obama campaign is pouncing. This radio ad was unveiled yesterday.

“But there’s something John McCain’s not telling you,” the ad explains. “It was McCain who used his influence in the Senate to help foreign-owned DHL buy a U.S. company and gain control over the jobs that are now on the chopping block in Ohio,” the announcer says. “And that’s not all: McCain’s campaign manager was the top lobbyist for the DHL deal…helped push it through. His firm was paid $185,000 to lobby McCain and other Senators.”

Yes, this is largely an Ohio-centered issue, but as you may have noticed, Ohio’s pretty important in a presidential election.

More importantly, after a month of a McCain-attacks-Obama-responds dynamic, this is turning the tables.

more...

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/16501.html

Obama's fabulous radio ad here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6609590

*******************************

2008 Election Forecast: Ohio Is THE Battleground State
By Greg Giroux, CQ Staff

CQ Politics Presidential Race Rating: No Clear Favorite

Electoral Votes: 20


Ohio’s close presidential contest in 2004 made it the last among the states to be decided, and Bush’s win by slightly more than 2 percentage points over Kerry gave him the 20 electoral votes that clinched his re-election.

The fact that no Republican has ever won the presidency without winning that state, more than any other, speaks to the importance — and the uncertainty — of winning Ohio. The last Democrat to win the presidency while losing Ohio was John F. Kennedy in 1960. Ohio is one of just four states that has backed the presidential election winner in each of the past 11 elections dating to 1964, in a bloc that also includes Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee.

Ohio’s exalted place in presidential politics helps explain why prominent officeholders from that state routinely are mentioned as potential vice-presidential running mates. Rob Portman , who served as Bush’s trade envoy and then as his budget director is mentioned as a possible No. 2 for McCain in no small part because he is an Ohioan who formerly represented a Cincinnati-area House district. Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland was mentioned as a possible running mate choice for Obama until he removed his name from speculation.

Even with those developments, the longterm political track record suggests that the best Democrats can expect is for Ohio to maintain its traditional role as a bellwether state. That does not, of course, preclude an Obama win if he is running strongly in the national contest. But the outcome is likely to be close, whichever party ends up carrying the state.

more...

http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=news-000002933694

[Catch22Dem]

1. Good job Obama campaign

If any of you are reading this. :D

[navarth]

2. second that!!

and K & R for this thread

[writes3000]

3. I pray they hammer McCain with this. McCain = More lost jobs in Ohio. n/t

[babylonsister]

6. The Obama camp is on it: they know a good issue when they see

one.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=6612037

Obama Camp To Hit McCain Hard In Ohio On Job-Killing Deal
By Eric Kleefeld - August 8, 2008, 6:24PM

The Obama campaign signaled today that they'll be making a major issue of job losses in the big swing state of Ohio -- and aggressively tying John McCain and his campaign manager Rick Davis directly to the problems hurting voters there.

Earlier today the Obama campaign released a radio ad to run in the Cincinnati area, regarding the closure of a DHL facility in Wilmington. "It was McCain who used his influence in the Senate to help foreign-owned DHL buy a U.S. company and gain control over the jobs that are now on the chopping block in Ohio," the ad said.

On a conference call with reporters earlier today, Plouffe made it clear that he thinks this issue will be haunting McCain's efforts to win this state: "His appearances in Ohio were completely overshadowed by this. And by November 4 in the Cincinnati and Dayton markets this is something that is going to be known by every voter in this area."

Plouffe also sees an opening to chip away at John McCain's clean image. "He was there a month ago in this community and was asked a question about this DHL issue and did not say one word about his role in this or the role of his campaign manager," Plouffe said. "That is the furthest thing from straight talk that we can imagine."

more

[Happyhippychick]

12. That would be SWEET!

[jenmito]

4. Game, set, and match. This WILL finish McCain. He NEEDS OH to win the GE. While McCain

is busy slamming Obama for being inspiring and popular, Obama is targeting the states needed to take McCain down. He knows exactly what he's doing, so nobody should worry about the polls.

[eleny]

5. It darned well should

[Doremus]

7. Houghtaling is slamming Obama for blaming McLame.

She said Obama's not helping by blaming it on McCain. No time now to find the link but maybe somebody else will post it.

[babylonsister]

9. Houghtaling must have as much internet/youtube experience as

McGrouchy. He's on tape saying what he said. Blaming it on Obama doesn't work, or shouldn't.

[Gabi Hayes]

26. anybody else think she's an obvious plant?

I'm FURIOUS, because when I heard about it, I posted that it seemed to me as if she'd been raped!

pretty embarrassed by that one now

we've been HAD, I think, and I hope they're exposed for the sleazy, lying thieves they are

this is beyond disgusting, because there are REAL people suffering out there. Mary Houghtaling 'runs a hospice.' does that mean she owns it? is she a rich campaign donor, or a selfless volunteer type? I wonder....sounds like the former, given her 'performances.'

[Gabi Hayes]

27. what I found: she co-founded the hospice...who else is involved? and her husband

flew jets out of the Wilmington hub, so it would seem he's got an interest in this. I'd like to see some research done on this woman, who seems to be a key actor in this little drama


http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2008/07/27/ohno_DHL_PD_0727.ART_ART_07-27-08_B5_EEARUG9.html?type=rss&cat=&sid=101

[Quixote1818]

8. Yep, this can do real damage to McCain in Ohio. Great issue for Obama. nt

[redstate_democrat]

10. McCain's troubles with lobbyists started long ago, but the M$M has refused to lift a finger about it

He and Rick Davis have been in business a long time.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0707/4900.html

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) built a name for himself fighting to reduce the influence lobbyists have over Washington. Now his 2008 presidential ambitions may rest with a handful of lobbyists.

After a disappointing first-quarter fundraising effort, McCain put two lobbyists -- Tom Loeffler and Wayne Berman -- in charge of raising cash for his campaign. This week, after burning through campaign cash in the second quarter, he moved another lobbyist -- Richard Davis -- into the role of campaign manager.

In effect, that means lobbyists now both raise and spend McCain's campaign cash, fundamentally tying the most recognizable name in campaign finance reform to Washington's money complex.

But the greatest irony of all is that success by his new team in righting the campaign's momentum could mean that, of all the 2008 hopefuls, McCain could be most indebted to the lobbying and special-interest-money community that he has long sought to diminish.

(snipped....)

Davis is a particularly easy target, having several money-related scandals in his background. A veteran of the Reagan administration, Davis ran McCain's presidential bid six years ago. He also founded a lobbying firm -- Davis, Manafort Inc. -- which has made at least $2.8 million lobbying Congress since 1998.

Over the past eight years, Davis' two roles often overlapped. In 1999, while he was McCain's campaign manager, his firm represented SBC Communications Inc. and Comsat Corp. At that time, both communications companies had controversial mergers pending at the Federal Communications Commission. The Senate Commerce Committee has legislative authority over the FCC, and McCain was chairman of that committee. Both mergers were eventually approved.

In 2003, Davis was president of the Reform Institute, a nonprofit focused on overhauling campaign finance laws. The group, based in the same building as Davis' lobbying firm, paid him $110,000 in consulting fees that year. McCain served on the institute's board; Davis was then the senator's chief political adviser.

Davis solicited tens of thousands in contributions for the institute from communications companies such as Cablevision and Echosphere. Several of these same companies had business before the Commerce Committee while McCain was chairman.

In between two $100,000 donations to the Reform Institute, Cablevision's CEO testified before the committee in favor of a la carte pricing, and McCain wrote a letter of support to the FCC and asked other cable companies to support the pricing scheme, according to a 2005 story by the Associated Press.

In May, Davis admitted he owned an Internet consulting company called 3eDC with lobbying partner Paul Manafort. McCain's campaign hired 3eDC to run its website, and by the end of the first quarter owed the company more than $175,000. At the time, Davis was drawing $20,000 per month as the campaign's CEO.

Read More at ---->http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0707/4900.html

McCain is probably the filthiest lobbyists/corporate whore in Washington D.C. I hope no one really bought that crock of shit about him being some kind of "reformer" or "Maverick". He was just trying to make it easier for corporate bloodsuckers to get anything they want.

He's against PORK BARREL spending because that money, requested by Congress people, usually go to state projects that have a direct impact on creating jobs, programs, after school programs, computers for schools, etc. Stuff for the little people.

[Gabi Hayes]

24. Washington Post story on Davis, from JUNE, linked from TPM:

this key element, I think, is whatthey need to be discussing:

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....

>>>>even the uber corrupt STEVENS was against this!!!!!<<<<<<

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/

there's all kinds of disgusting stuff in this article, including how Davis was working on McCain's campaign while acting as the president of some phony Reform Institute, and raking in hundreds of thousands of bucks

here's the original Post article, which got no coverage, of course. credit to them for putting it out there, but it's another case of the M$M ingoring egregious hypocrisy on his part.

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

[gateley]

11. K&R !! nt

[yardwork]

13. It should lose McCain Ohio. It should lost McCain the nation.

[unfaithful_servant]

14. Sen. Sherrod Brown started this one

but I'm sure he's glad that Obama is picking up interest....

http://blog.cleveland.com/openers/2008/08/sherrod_brown_to_mccain_send_y.html

Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown already has a foreign mission in mind for Republican presidential candidate John McCain, and says it's one that can start right now, regardless of who wins in November.

Brown called on McCain today to send his campaign manager, Rick Davis, to Germany in order to lobby Deutsche Post World Net to keep operating its DHL Express air hub in Wilmington, Ohio.

Now that it's known that McCain and campaign manager Rick Davis already have connections with the German company, the least they can do is use them to fight for more than 8,000 jobs that are on the line in Wilmington because of the company's planned actions, Brown said during a telephone news conference.

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

15. K&R

[Hope And Change]

16. K & R!Thanks for posting!

[Vinca]

17. I hope the Ohio newspapers have picked up on this. nt

[Phx_Dem]

18. Ohio is a "absolute must-win" for McCain

which is why Obama is attacking so hard on this, and why Plouffe said yesterday that it was a "turning point."

Chuck Todd - July 31, 2008
"The good news for McCain is that he’s gaining ground in these crucial states. The bad news for him is that both Florida and Ohio are absolute must-wins for him. That’s not the case for Obama."

Plouffe: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/08/plouffe-mccains-dhl-deal_n_117790.html

[DCBob]

30. Election scenarios

Indeed, McCain needs both FL and OH among others. Obama has changed the map. There are numerous scenarios where Obama can win without FL and OH. Here is a great Election Scenario calculator (I built in Flash) that shows various possibilities.

http://zbob.net/yeswecan/USAVote.html

There are also a number of plausible ties. You can also use it to create your own scenarios and save them. By the way this is my first post but I am a long time voyeur. You guys and gals are a great resource. Thanks!

[FrenchieCat]

19. Kicking this!

[CitizenPatriot]

20. k & R

let's digg, rate up on youtube, and write in blogs about this. been visiting a few freeper places today;-)

[Major Hogwash]

21. McCain's own campaign staff helped to broker the deal.

I remember when McCain went to Detroit last year and said "these jobs are gone, and they aren't coming back."

What I didn't realize then was, that was because his campaign staff was from companies that were sending our jobs overseas to begin with!!

McCain has lobbyists on his campaign staff, so how can he claim he is going to "clean up" Washington?
He can't.
McCain is part of the problem, not part of the solution.

[Major Hogwash]

22. If McCain was a true conservative, he wouldn't have lobbyists on his campaign staff.

And yet the MSM doesn't even go near that fact!!

What if McCain hired ex-felons for his campaign staff?
Would the MSM look away from that?
It's ridiculous.

[Lady President]

23. Not in the Papers Yet

I 100% agree that anything that effects Ohio jobs will effect Ohio voters. That being said, I haven't seen or heard about this story in the local media. Unless the general populate is aware of this story, I disagree that "the exchange may have seriously undermined McCain’s chances of winning Ohio in November". We still have a long road ahead of us to secure Ohio.

[mtnester]

29. I was in the Columbus Dispatch, front page above the fold, Friday.

So it is in the papers.



edit: egregious spelling error

[Colobo]

25. The Obama camp needs to be all over this.

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

28. Morning Kick.

[polichick]

31. They have an Ohio ad about it, don't they?

[DainBramaged]

32. I fucking hope so, Reich-wingers put a little bit of cash over the welfare

of their citizen. Burn them at the stake!

[DCBob]

33. Rick Davis on Fox and Friends

Rick Davis was just on F&F and clearly the McCain campaign is freaked by this DHL issue. His defense was desperate and pathetic -- something about McCain not having all the information available back then. Plus he attacked Obama for the radio ad saying it was misleading. They are madly scrambling - if they lose Ohio they know they are toast.

BTW, newbie here but longtime DU lurker.