The commission recommended increased security that would have cost the airlines some money. So the airlines lobbied against those recommendations, which included that no checked bag could be loaded on to the plane unless the passenger actually boarded the flight. The airline said checking would result in delays.
In the face of the intense pressure, Mr. Gore wrote a letter to the top lobbyist, Carol Hallett, the president of the Air Transport Association of America, saying, quote, "I want to make it very clear that it is not the intent of this administration or of the commission to create a hardship for the air transportation industry."
Now, just days after Mr. Gore's letter went out, the following donations were made to the Democratic National Committee: $265,000 from American Airlines, $120,000 from Delta, $115,000 from United, $87,000 from Northwest. In all, the airlines gave the Clinton-Gore reelection effort close to $600,000 in the closing days of the '96 campaign, according to an analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics.
A Gore aide, Elaine Kamarck, has denied any connection between the vice president's letter and the donations that came shortly afterward. But very little came out of Gore's commission on airline safety and security, and that's a fact. "Talking Points" knows a quid pro quo when one slaps "Points" in the face, and it's not like the Clinton-Gore never sold consideration for money. They did it all the time.
But if Gore's commission -- and I say if -- backed away from aggressively pursuing better airport security because money was promised, that is -- well, you supply the adjective.