Daschle Outsourced

Offshore outsourcing opponents lost a key ally Tuesday when Republican John Thune unseated Senate majority leader Tom Daschle in South Dakota.Earlier this year, Daschle sponsored the Jobs for America Act , which called for a number of measures designed to limit offshoring. Among other things, the bill requires companies that move jobs out of the country to give affected workers three months notice. It would also require the companies to notify the Department of Labor, state agencies and local governments. The bill currently sits in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Daschle's defeat, along with the passing of the election, could dampen some of the furor around offshoring, some analysts believe. "We expect some of the rhetoric to die down," says Stan Lepeak, an analyst with Meta Group. Introducing the act in February, Daschle blamed President Bush for jobs lost to outsourcing. "Exporting jobs isn't an accident, it's Administration policy," said Daschle. Daschle also said he favored tax deductions for corporations that keep jobs in the U.S., and wanted to end certain tax breaks for expenses related to outsourcing. Political experts believe Thune's appeal to conservative Christians in South Dakota helped him carry the state over Daschle, whom opponents accused of flip-flopping on ethical issues such as abortion.