Thune

Thune doesn’t like to blow ‘Happy Smoke’ but he doesn’t have a problem with bullshit (H/T – Helga)

l3wis February 17, 2010 3Comments

Ironic Johnny, you sooo funny;

WASHINGTON—Lawmakers in both parties are contemplating for the first time the possibility that the Republicans might recapture the Senate this year, though it’s an uphill climb in which the GOP would have to win states that have recently been inhospitable to the party.

Republicans’ prospects are surging, driven by an electorate deeply dissatisfied with Washington, the economy and incumbents. And the surprise retirement announcement from Sen. Evan Bayh (D., Ind.) Monday on the heels of a host of other bad news for Democrats is prompting party leaders to take a fresh look at the Senate landscape.

Because Democrats hold a 59-41 voting majority in the Senate, Republicans would have to gain 10 new seats and retain all of their own to gain control.

In swing states such as Arkansas and Nevada, Democratic incumbents are facing fierce headwinds. Democratic retirements have handed the GOP unexpected opportunities in places like North Dakota and now Indiana. In Democratic strongholds such as Illinois and Delaware, Republicans are running strong campaigns.

The question is whether the GOP can add to that list. Emboldened by their recent victory in Massachusetts, Republicans have begun looking at states that tilt Democratic like California, Wisconsin, Washington and New York.

“It all comes down to the candidates,” said Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.). “If you have good candidates, states like California and Washington can be put in play.” Mr. Thune played down the chances of a Republican takeover—”we don’t want to blow too much happy smoke out there yet”—but voiced cautious optimism about the Republicans’ political fortunes.

Ironic Johnny trying to end something he originally voted for?

l3wis January 22, 2010 16Comments

Hey, look, I found another white redneck at the Republican National Convention

Gotta love John’s persistant hypocrisy;

Thune tried to attach his proposal to a bill that would increase by $1.9 trillion the amount of debt the government can float, to a record $14.3 trillion. Senators voted 53-45 in favor of the Thune plan, but it fell short of the 60 votes required to pass it.

The proposal would have applied about $320 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, toward the debt. Congress created the $700 billion program in 2008 at the behest of President Bush to stabilize financial institutions in the face of a deepening recession.

You mean the debt you and the Bushites created by entangling us into two worthless wars while giving tax cuts to the rich? Is that the DEBT you are referring to? Don’t you have better things to do with your time John? Like attending a Bible study at the ‘C’ Street house or something?

Thune for President? LMFAO! (H/T – Helga)

l3wis January 14, 2010 10Comments

Puhleeeze!

That race gave Thune a firsthand appreciation for the dangers of being perceived as straying too far from one’s heartland roots, so, as he faces reelection, he’s spending more time in his native Murdo, S.D., than in Manchester or Des Moines.

Murdo? More like the ‘C’ Street house and Sioux Falls.

Thune is generating buzz, but the early chatter also poses an important question: With few significant accomplishments, is the talk reflective of somebody seen as real presidential timber or a leading indicator of a party establishment casting about for a candidate in what could be a thin field?

What? He has said NO to everything Obama has proposed. Isn’t that significant?

“No one seems particularly excited about the current prospective field,” said GOP strategist Mark McKinnon. “And everyone loves Thune.”

Who is everyone? How about interviewing some South Dakotans. He is a freaking tool.

Thune supporters point to his leadership on promoting energy alternatives and trying to overturn the Troubled Asset Relief Program and say he’ll step up his critique of what he believes is excessive spending by Democrats — a line of attack that could help further elevate his profile.

Even though he voted for TARP under Bush.

“At a time when we’re burning taxpayer money like coal in a 19th-century steam engine, Thune’s message of focused fiscal restraint, coupled with aggressive small-business incentives to drive growth, will resonate extremely well with the GOP base and independents as well as Democrats,” said Jeff Kimbell, a Republican lobbyist and Thune enthusiast.

And if DM & E would have gotten their 2 Billion dollar loan from the government we could be shipping that black gold across South Dakota right now.

“To a certain extent, he’s our version of Obama — the tall, lanky, good-looking, well-spoken senator” is how a former top party official put it.

Well spoken? You mean when he runs from bloggers when asked about his pro-rape vote? Or when he changes the subject about healthcare when a veteran asks him about his healthcare coverage?

“I think John has got unlimited potential,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a leading advocate for making the GOP more inclusive. “He presents well, he’s well-liked, he’s smart — I could see where he could be a national figure.”

Yeah, because if you can take anyone’s word, it’s Lindsey’s. Mr. Talk out of both sides of his ass.

“He’s a great new leader for our party,” said DeMint, calling the South Dakotan a “common-sense conservative.”

Conservative? Thune isn’t a conservative, he is a wingnut who will say anything to cover his ass, time and time again.

Though he doesn’t promote it, and it wasn’t listed on his 2004 campaign website, Thune is a graduate of a California Bible college. And on cultural issues such as gay marriage and abortion, he’s pure to the party base.

But protecting rape victims? Forget about it. That isn’t ‘biblical’ enough to be concerned about. If you get gang raped and pregnant, you better have that baby.

Those who witnessed him in both Senate races said the differences were striking and lauded his growth as a candidate.

They sure were. Thune and his goons, like Lauck, painted Daschle as a lobbyist lover because he was married to one, the thing they forgot to mention was Thune was a lobbyist before he ran against Daschle. I guess it is worse to be married to a lobbyist then to actually be one.

“The question for him would be his ability to handle the crucible of a national campaign,” said a Democrat who worked against him in the state, noting the contrast between the South Dakota and the national media.

Damn right there is a difference. The SD MSM acts like Thune walks on water. And there is yet to be a story about his rape vote in the SD Media.

It’s what Thune did before he took on Daschle, though, that could be used against him. After his 2002 defeat, Thune became a Washington lobbyist. While at Arent Fox, he represented a home-state railroad client that had an ambitious plan to rehabilitate and expand more than 1,000 miles of track. Then, after being elected to the Senate, he pushed for federal funding for the same rail project on which he had just worked for as a lobbyist.

“I don’t apologize, and never will, for working for South Dakota companies that are creating South Dakota jobs,” he said at the time.

Jobs. Yeah, whatever. How many jobs would have that 2 billion dollar loan created in SD? I think the estimate was like maybe a 1,000. Wow! What a bargain for taxpayers.

Thune backers suggest that portraying the senator as a slick former lobbyist won’t be easy, given his small-town profile and the brief period of time he spent on K Street.

And don’t forget about his cute picture in a black-eyed susan field with his family.

Thune, his aides noted, returns to the state nearly every weekend.

“He lives in a regular house in a regular neighborhood in Sioux Falls, S.D.,”

I live in a ‘regular’ neighborhood. Mr. Thune does not.

A former aide recalled that when the then-candidate greeted scores of fans by name at a 2002 South Dakota State football game, a national TV crew got angry, thinking the campaign had planted a group of supporters to come through the gate while Thune was working the crowd.

“I told them, ‘John is just amazing at remembering people’s names,’” said the former aide. “He proved it when he later remembered the entire four-person TV crew’s names two hours after he met them while walking in.”

BAHAHAHAHHAHHA! I have a Thune ‘Popularity’ story for you. Right after Thune lost to Johnson I was working at the Washington Pavilion as a lead usher. Thune was attending a concert and as he was leaving, several people walked up to John and shook his hand and thanked him for running. Well Thune got into ‘politician’ mode and just started shaking every hand that came up to him thinking everyone there wanted to. He reached out to one man, and the guy scowled, put his hands in his pockets and walked away. The look on Thune’s face was priceless. Sorry, Politico, Ironic Johnny isn’t as popular as you think he is in SD.

Hey, Thune, how does that ‘NO’ vote on rape protections feel now?

l3wis December 29, 2009 8Comments

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