Burns May Be Bouncing Back
Polls Suggest Montana Senator Is Shedding Ties to the Abramoff Scandal
By Blaine Harden, Washington Post Staff Writer

BILLINGS, Mont. — The Republican primary debate was over, and three challengers had barely laid a glove on Sen. Conrad Burns.

No one mentioned the $150,000 he accepted from lobbyist Jack Abramoff and later returned. No one brought up the $3 million federal grant secured by a wealthy Indian tribe — and Abramoff client — after Burns pressured the Interior Department. No one quoted Abramoff telling Vanity Fair that he and his clients had received “every appropriation we wanted” from a subcommittee chaired by Burns.

Only one question during Friday’s debate even mentioned Abramoff, whose web of illegal lobbying has spawned the largest congressional scandal in years. And Burns pugnaciously dismissed it, saying, “If you want to know something about the Abramoff deal, you got to ask the Democrats.”

Polls here suggest that Burns, 71, a three-term incumbent who has been targeted by the Democrats as one of the most beatable Republicans in the Senate, may be bouncing back from the pounding he took late last year after the publication of several articles detailing his ties to Abramoff.

For a while after the stories broke, Burns essentially hunkered down, offering little response to the allegations while his political fortunes flagged. Republican strategists in Washington believe Burns stayed silent for too long. In the past three months, however, his campaign has spent heavily on radio and television ads that attack Democrats for attacking him. In a current ad, Burns tells Montana voters that “the daily partisan assault is an assault on you and what you stand for.”

After the debate, Burns was asked about the new poll numbers, which show him tied with or narrowly trailing his two most likely Democratic opponents. He is expected to win handily in the Republican primary.

“Never lose faith in the people,” he said with a tight smile.

Would he answer any questions about Abramoff?

“No!” Burns said, with a tight smile.

For all his bravado, Burns remains in trouble, especially in a state that generally tilts to the Republicans. But his experience also suggests the challenge that Democrats around the country will have in turning this year’s scandals into tangible gains at the polls.