Recommended closure of Ellsworth base deals political blow to Thune

[suegeo]

http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050513/NEWS/505130351

Recommended closure of Ellsworth base deals political blow to Thune

WASHINGTON - Being a loyal Republican apparently didn't help Sen. John Thune of South Dakota as much as he'd hoped it would.

He unseated the state's long-serving Democrat - former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle - after suggesting last year that he was the candidate who could help save Ellsworth Air Force Base. But the South Dakota base turned up Friday on the list of military installations that the Pentagon proposes to close.

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Ooops!

Guess those Republican voting robots in South Dakota took one on the chin today. I heard So. Daks 2nd largest employer was Ellsworth. But at least you got a Jesus loving, anti-female anti-choice fascist in office. Way to go, South Dakota voters!

Your support of the toxic texan moved your jobs and money to Texas. How do you like him now?

Didn't man-whore turned "reporter" Jeff Gannon get involved with team Thune?

Unless this is a Rovian trick to put Thune (creepy) in the savior position in a couple of months.

[LiviaOlivia]

1. Bullshit. It's a GOP setup to make Thune look like Jesus.

Scare the shit out of people then at the last minute save a little, but not all, especially make 2006 GOP candidates look like they care for the little people.

If the oil people(Cheney)get their way the mega bases in Iraq will have contractor openings.

[ewagner]

2. Agreed....n/t

[CarbonDate]

11. I resepectfully disagree

I was stationed at Ellsworth AFB for a few years, and our Command Chief Master Sergeant at the time, Chief Johnson, once quipped that Ellsworth AFB should be re-named "Daschle AFB", since he was the only reason it was still around. It was common knowledge that Tom Daschle was the only reason Ellsworth AFB was still around. When they voted him out of office, the first thing I thought was, "well, say good-bye to Ellsworth". The Pentagon has been wanting to get rid of Ellsworth for a while. It's really obsolete, and there's no reason that the B1s could just as easily function exclusively out of Dyess AFB, TX. Ellsworth's relevance has been declining for some time, and it's placement on the B.R.A.C. closure list is a reflection of that.

That said, South Dakota voters who wanted to keep Ellsworth open should have known better than to think that a freshman Republican senator would be better suited to save it than the Senate minority leader. And anybody who thinks that this is a stunt to make Thune look good, I think, doesn't understand the real dynamics at work, here. Now that Daschle's out, Rove et al don't care about South Dakota, and they don't care about Thune. By the time Thune goes up for re-election, they'll be two years out of office. So even if he loses in 2010, he still serves their purposes as a stooge in the senate and a place-holder after unseating Daschle.

Ellsworth is toast. Freshman Senator John Thune is no longer worth Rove's time. Rumsfeld has consolidation to do, and Ellsworth doesn't fit in with his broader plans of a more centralized military.

[peacetalksforall]

3. Definitely a set-up. Propose it, but don't do it. Thune can say he

saved it.

T r a n s p a r e n t l y on target?

[CatholicEdHead]

4. Yes it is

Tim Russert plugged Thune in tonight's NBC Nightly News. Expect Thune to be put up as a "savior" in the next few months.

[strangemedicine]

5. Yes, Suegeo, the "republican voting robots in South Dakota"

did indeed take one on the chin today. As did we hard working Democrats in towns, reservations and cities all across our State. There are MANY of us who did NOT vote for Chimpy or the thief in Senator Daschle's seat. Additionally, Rapid City has a population of 60,000 people, 20,000 of which will be directly and devastatingly impacted by the base closure. In another thread today you mentioned how you think RC is "pretty" and maybe you can pick up some "cheap real estate" out our way. Given the amount of respect you have for us, I don't think I'd personally like to have you as a neighbor.

Thanks for all of your support.

[suegeo]

6. You're welcome for my support.

I lived in R.C. for awhile, and it is pretty there. The pine trees smell great, the hills are green, and the wildlife is something to see.

Would you rather I say it was a sewer?

LONG before the base closing announcement, I have thought about retiring there, but money for a place to live has been an obstacle as I don't have a lot of it.

Oh, and most of the people are Bush voting morons, so I'm not sure I want to surround myself with that level of ignorance. (For evidence of this see the republican (Fascist) vote totals for president, senate, and local/state offices. To quickly find this info, look at campaign underground at this site. While you are there, please note who researched your great state, and got the S.D. info into the database. Earlier, you thanked me for my support. Let me say again: you are welcome.)

You're correct, I have very little respect for stupid Bush-bot voters. In exchange for Jesus Jesus Jesus and taking away a woman's right to choose, they were stupid enough to kick out Daschle. As a reward, the toxic Texan gang steals their jobs and money and moves 'em to Texas.

Unless, like I suspect, they are setting up Thune to be a savior. And, using past performance as an indicator of future results, the voters of Dakota will fall for it.

And if not, and the base does close, our government has probably got it all set up to funnel the land and real estate to their own boys.

I heard old Dick Cheney has some land near a national forest, maybe HE can be your new neighbor. He's probably got a plot all picked out.

And as for my support, let me again say: you're welcome. I donated money to progressive candidates (including Daschle, and I don't even live in S.D.), volunteered etc.

[strangemedicine]

7. Lovely. Past performance as an indicator of future results ...

hmmm.... Tom Daschle, George McGovern ... seems like when we get it right, we seem to get it right in a big way out here ... but since you are so obviously superior to we South Dakotans, it must be a moot point for you.

My dear, having worked on the campaigns, I am well aware of who got what votes. Thank you for sending money to Tom. You want to contribute further? Keep your snarky comments out of the South Dakota forum.

There are Bush bot voters in your state as well. Why not shine some of your "support" and "wisdom" there?

[suegeo]

8. I'm not your dear

And I'd post a better rebuttal to you, but I'm too busy crying over your hurtful characterizations of me! (That McGovern reference was really over the line.)

BTW: I was going to post fond memories of my childhood in South Dakota, but to hell with it, I better get back to my bawling.

[Broke Dad]

9. You give Thune and Rove too much credit

When they started tearing out the missile silos, it was the beginning of the end. Clout only goes so far, even with the Pentagon. If the Russians are not coming, we do not need as many SAC bases in isolated areas away from population centers. Thune is almost irrelevant.

Rapid and Pennington County will bounce back. Other communities that have lost bases have bounced back, and they are not as resilient as South Dakotans. The city and county leaders need to start thinking of ways to use the hangers, runways and other infrastructure. Aircraft storage and repair come to mind. How about outdoing Oshkosh? Sturgis is the premier Harley event and those motorcycles are even made in Wisconsin. Aircraft are made in the south and west. Rapid would be perfect for experimental aircraft shows, testing, etc.

Things are always greener the spring after a bad prairie fire. Something better will grow back where the Air Force once housed the second largest nuclear arsenal in the world.

[northzax]

10. just for fun, here's the Freeper take

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1411750/posts

poor guys, can't decide who they like more, Thune or Chimpy...