NewsMax.com
Saturday, March 10, 2001

"This is an area where I'm confident we can work together," Bush said, smiling and nodding at Daschle, who nodded in reply. Neither Daschle nor Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., said anything during their joint appearance at a community health care facility.

Daschle is one of the harshest opponents of Bush's 10-year, $1.6 trillion tax reduction, a big part of which cleared the House of Representatives on Thursday. He is airing commercials throughout South Dakota critical of Bush's plan and was meeting with residents to air his complaints.

Johnson, narrowly elected in 1996, is up for re-election next year and could bow to public pressure to support the tax cut.

"On all matters, we are going to work together," Bush said. "Sometimes we'll agree, sometimes we won't agree, but one thing Senator Daschle and I have agreed on is to respect each other. ... It's amazing what happens when you get outside Washington, D.C. People want civility, and we're going to give them civility."

A rippling of boos erupted at the mention of Daschle's name, CNSNews.com reported.

Asked whether bipartisanship lived, the president said, "It doesn't look like it's dead to me; it looks like it's alive and well here in South Dakota."

Bush, who handily won South Dakota without even campaigning there last year, later appeared with a family he said would be among the 6 million taken off the tax rolls under his plan. Then he flew to Lafayatte, La., for a tax-cut pitch with another family.

The four states Bush is visiting on this trip – North Dakota, South Dakota, Louisiana and Florida – have two Democratic senators each but voted for Bush in the presidential election. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., won by less than one-half of 1 percentage point and, like Johnson, is up for re-election next year, Fox News reported.

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