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A question of context

(The Spokesman-Review)
By Megan Cooley meganc@spokesman.com
(The Spokesman-Review)

“Sound Bites,” a 30-second TV commercial by the National Republican Congressional Committee, accuses Don Barbieri of putting “profits before jobs” when his dairy, Broadview Dairy, merged with another in 1997 to form Inland Northwest Dairies LLC. The ad says “When Don Barbieri’s company merged with Darigold Inc., they laid off nearly a quarter of their work force.”

Opponent’s reaction

“They got it wrong,” said Barbieri’s press secretary, Stephen Barbieri. “(Darigold) was a struggling company, and Don went in there and saved those jobs.” The Barbieri campaign is running two response ads: one says negative ads won’t create jobs and another features a longtime dairy employee who says Barbieri stepped in to help.

Response

“For somebody who breaks their arm patting themselves on the back for their job-creation record, (the dairy merger) speaks to a different track,” NRCC spokesman Bo Harmon said. When asked about Barbieri’s response that the merger saved the companies, Harmon focused on the fact that about 20 employees were put out of work in 1997. “It may have been a good business deal, but to those employees who lost their job it was a bad deal,” he said.
The bottom line In the end, Barbieri’s move actually saved jobs because it kept the dairy – in one form or another – alive. On their own, the dairies were struggling and running at half capacity. The consolidation allowed the single operation to run 20 hours a day, or almost at full capacity. When the companies merged, Broadview acquired 51 percent of Darigold’s assets, and 20 positions from Darigold’s staff of 85 were cut. The new business employed 150 people in 1997, so NRCC’s claim that 25 percent of the work force was cut either referred to the Darigold operation without clearly saying so or isn’t mathematically correct. The facts are backed by the dairy’s current manager, and they are clearly stated in a 1997 Spokesman-Review article, which, incidentally, is flashed on the screen during the NRCC ad. In 2001, the employees bought Inland Northwest Dairies and now share the profits. Barbieri no longer earns a profit from the dairy operation, but Inland Northwest Corp., of which Barbieri is a board member, is paid to provide management services. About 100 people work for Inland Northwest Dairies today.
Ad Watch is a regular feature truth-testing campaign advertising through Election Day. If you have questions or comments, contact reporter Megan Cooley at 927-2165 or meganc@spokesman.com.

For more information on the election and candidates. Visit Election Central, The Spokesman-Review’s online election guide, at:

www.spokesmanreview.com/elections