AL D'AMATO: NO FRIEND OF BUSINESS
Al D'Amato may be tenacious when it comes to bringing federal dollars to New York. Beyond that, it's hard to come up with anything good to say about his recent tenure as a U.S. senator. The latest example of Mr. D'Amato's damage is his gratuitous entry into the debate over rent regulations. The senator has flip-flopped several times on this issue over the years and now is scrambling to be portrayed as a defender of the system. He cares not at all that in doing so, he undercuts the lonely work of fellow Republicans seeking fundamental reform of the system. Gov. George Pataki is also mindful of the political fallout from the controversy, but he has the political courage to publicly make the case that rent regulations are harmful and must be changed.
If waffling on rent regulation were Mr. D'Amato's only sin, it might be forgiven. But consider his stewardship of the Senate Banking Committee. He became chairman in January 1991 amid high hopes that he could push through a much-needed reform of the banking and securities laws. Instead, he has done virtually nothing.
Why? As long as the issue is unresolved, he continues to collect millions of dollars in campaign contributions from both sides.
Then there is the senator's continued work on behalf of trial lawyers. He was instrumental in efforts to fight off tort reform at the federal level in the Senate in 1991. This year, he is seeking to rein in the activities of health maintenance organizations not by reasonable regulation but by expanding the ability of contingency lawyers to bring malpractice suits. He has also been a factor in pressuring state Republicans to pass legislation promoted by trial lawyers.
Is it a coincidence that the former head of the American Trial Lawyers Association is one of his big contributors?
The senator's problem is that he has no political philosophy and is driven only by his hunger for re-election. That has made him a master of pork barrel and campaign fund-raising, and little else.
At this early stage, it's hard to know whether the Democrats will be able to nominate in 1998 a middle-of-the-road candidate who can appeal to business. But for now, Sen. D'Amato has clearly forfeited his claim to business support.
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