Quindel’s findings put the UPS confrontation–and Carey’s role in it–in a new light. She decided to void the election, it turns out, almost immediately after the Teamsters went on strike, but delayed her announcement for fear of affecting the on- going negotiations. David Helfert, a spokesman for the Federal Mediation Service, believes the news would have been a ““bombshell’’ if it had gone public, possibly putting the union in a much weaker position. Even if the cloud over Carey hadn’t changed the final settlement, did it perhaps cause the confrontation in the first place? James Hoffa, the son of legendary–and legendarily corrupt–Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa and Carey’s unsuccessful challenger in the 1996 union election, certainly thinks so. His spokesman, Ron Leebove, says Carey called the walkout because he anticipated the nullification and needed a big win before he ran again. ““He risked their jobs for his political gain,’’ claims Leebove–a charge reminiscent of the worst days under Hoffa senior.
The irony is that Ron Carey made his reputation in the Teamsters as a squeaky-clean reformer. Running in 1991 on a pledge to rid the union of shady influences, he was catapulted from the rank and file into the Teamsters presidency. Once in office, he sold off the jet planes and other perks of the old guard, slashed salaries at headquarters and placed some 70 union locals with a record of ties to the mob under trusteeship. When Hoffa ran against Carey last year, the incumbent portrayed the election as a battle for the soul of the new Teamsters–with himself in a big white hat.
Quindel’s report, however, is a damning indictment of the top echelon of Carey’s campaign. The charges concern $221,000 in contributions to a pro-Carey group called Teamsters for a Corruption Free Union, funds that were used for last-minute mailings to members. A large chunk of that money, Quindel concluded, improperly came from the Teamsters treasury itself–and was laundered by Carey’s closest aides through an outside telemarketing firm. Already, Martin Davis, Carey’s principal campaign consultant, has been charged with mail fraud (he has pleaded not guilty), and Jere Nash, his campaign manager, has been accused by Quindel of ““fraudulent and deceptive conduct.’’ Although Quindel said she ““did not uncover any misconduct by Carey,’’ she added that ““important questions remain unanswered.’’ And not just about Carey: federal prosecutors are investigating allegations that Davis–who also did extensive work for the Democratic National Committee–sought to arrange Teamsters contributions to President Clinton’s re-election effort in exchange for party officials’ help in raising money for Carey.
Spokesman John Bell says Carey’s only sin is ignorance: ““He turned over his campaign to people who have profoundly disappointed him.’’ But at a press conference Friday, Hoffa said Carey should be disqualified from running in the new election and called Quindel’s decision to let him participate ““outrageous.’’ Spokesman Leebove is even more pointed: ““Why didn’t [Quindel] come forward earlier? We think this is a government cover-up to protect Carey because he is such a good friend of the administration.''
What will the Teamster membership think of Carey’s recall? Both camps confidently predict victory in the election that will be held in four months. But it looks as if Quindel’s report has just set the stage for a replay of last year’s bitter battle. John Murphy, president of Teamster Local 122 in Boston and a Hoffa supporter, says the idea that Carey was unaware of the improper contributions ““strains credulity to the point of disbelief.’’ George Cashman, president of Teamster Local 25 in Boston and a Carey loyalist, counters that the president is being targeted by the same shadowy forces he’s tried to expel: ““He’s just a sacrificial lamb.’’ After a brief moment of collective glory, the Teamsters are again showing why solidarity seldom lasts forever.
