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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2009
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 ANALYSIS 
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In Daschle's DC, Money Doesn't Talk, It Swears

Under Obama, influence peddling may be on the way out

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(Newser) – It’s not your parents’ Washington anymore. DC used to be a cultural and social backwater, but no longer, writes Norman Ornstein for the New Republic. The “sheer amount of money sloshing around” the capital destroyed Tom Daschle's bid to head HHS nominee; he got "caught up in a system that is becoming more difficult to keep on the straight and narrow.”

Daschle followed a well-worn path from apparently selfless public service to influence-trading riches, notes the Washington Post. If Ornstein’s old, poor Washington was DC 1.0, and rich, corrupt Washington was version 2.0, then Daschle’s demise may signal the transition to honest 3.0. “In some ways, this is a warning signal to the city that the rules are changing,” says a good-government advocate.

In this April 22, 2008 file photo, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, left, followed by current Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., right, smiles on Capitol Hill in Washington.
In this April 22, 2008 file photo, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, left, followed by current Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., right, smiles on Capitol Hill in Washington.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File )
In this April 22, 2008 file photo, former Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott, right, walks with Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle on Capitol Hill in Washington. Lott is now a lobbyist.
In this April 22, 2008 file photo, former Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott, right, walks with Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle on Capitol Hill in Washington. Lott is now a lobbyist.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
U.S. Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) arrives at the U.S. District Court October 13, 2006 in Washington, DC. Ney is expected to enter guilty plea to taking bribes in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal.
U.S. Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) arrives at the U.S. District Court October 13, 2006 in Washington, DC. Ney is expected to enter guilty plea to taking bribes in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal.   (Getty Images)
Former Washington lobbyist, Jack Abramoff walks to another court building with his attorney, Abbe Lowell, after his sentencing at the Miami Federal Court House March 29, 2006 in Miami, Florida.
Former Washington lobbyist, Jack Abramoff walks to another court building with his attorney, Abbe Lowell, after his sentencing at the Miami Federal Court House March 29, 2006 in Miami, Florida.   (Getty Images)
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Most are very honorable people, but all—including Tom Daschle, a man of real integrity and strong basic values—are caught up in a system that is becoming more difficult to keep on the straight and narrow. - Norman Ornstein

I think it's possible this is some sort of bridge between an old Washington and the new Washington. - David Arkush, Congress Watch

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1 comment
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radnip
Feb 5, 09 2:39 AM CST
I very much doubt Washington is really going to be straight and narrow. Maybe straighter and narrower than it's been before, but never completely without some kind of influence peddling. I mean, does anyone actually know of a group of more than 3 people who are completely unbiased towards each other, where each likes the others equally? There is politics in EVERY office of humans. It's human nature. It'd be nice to stamp out but I doubt it's that easy to change human nature from one of biases and favorites and self-interest to one of pure reason and selflessness. Reply
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