honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, August 8, 2008

McCain calls for probe of firm he aided

Associated Press

WILMINGTON, Ohio — Republican John McCain called yesterday for a federal investigation into plans by the DHL shipping company that could cost 10,000 jobs here, as he and his campaign manager took criticism for helping DHL complete a key corporate merger in 2003.

With Democrats and labor groups blaming McCain and his campaign manager Rick Davis for their role in the threat to local jobs, McCain moved to demonstrate concern about possible job losses in this critical swing state.

The Republican presidential candidate called on the Justice Department to begin an antitrust investigation into DHL's plans to put its packages aboard the planes of a rival, United Parcel Service, before delivering them in DHL trucks. Because UPS flies out of Louisville, Ky., the plans call for shutting the DHL shipping hub here that uses the Wilmington airport and eliminating up to 10,000 jobs.

Since The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer broke the story, Democrats and labor groups have been pointing out that five years ago McCain and Davis aided German-owned DHL in its purchase of U.S.-owned competitor Airborne Express, which operated the Wilmington shipping hub.

In 2003, McCain, as chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee urged then-Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Ted Stevens to drop a proposed bill to prohibit foreign-owned carriers from flying U.S. military equipment or troops.

At the same time, when he was a lobbyist, Davis helped persuade Congress to accept the merger.

Davis left his lobbying practice to work for McCain. A campaign spokesman said Davis had not worked with DHL since 2005, long before DHL announced plans to move its work out of Wilmington.