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| U.S. Senator Tom Daschle. (official photo) |
My career took me to South Dakota during the summer of 1986. It was an election year and a young Democrat defeated the incumbent Republican in the race for the U. S. Senate.
Tom Daschle was one of the state's two Congressmen from 1979 to 1983 when the seat was eliminated and given to a larger state. (There are 435 seats in the House of Representatives. Each state has one congressperson, but after the first 50 seats the rest represent roughly 700,000 people. In 1980, South Dakota was home to fewer than 700,000.)
I don't recall when I met Mr. Daschle. It may have been during his campaign for the Senate seat, but while I was with KELO-TV as the bureau reporter in Pierre I interviewed him several times.
A native South Dakotan, he was personable and a good interview. Of course, politicians tended to be good on camera but the worst thing you can get is a series of short and monotone answers.
Daschle graduated from South Dakota State University before joining the U.S. Air Force. Then he served as an aide to James Abourezk, one of the state's U.S. Senators. Daschle later won a seat in the House of Representatives by 139 votes.
After joining the Senate in 1987 he rose up the ranks becoming Minority Leader in 1994 then remained the leader of Senate Democrats either as Majority or Minority Leader until 2004 when he lost while seeking his fourth term.
Out of public office, he served in a variety of capacities including consultant and lobbyist. When Barack Obama won the Presidency in 2008, Daschle was nominated Secretary of Health and Human Services. Issues surrounding income tax payments and a business relationship lead him to withdraw.
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| My business card at KELO. |
During my tenure I never had trouble getting an interview, but since our station had the most viewers politicians were gracious with their time.
The most memorable interview with Senator Daschle includes another brush with fame - I'll share both with you next Tuesday.
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