John Thune
United States Senator from South Dakota
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2005 Serving with Tim Johnson
Preceded by	Tom Daschle
28th Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference
Incumbent
Assumed office January 26, 2012
Leader	Mitch McConnell
Preceded by	Lamar Alexander
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Dakota's At-Large district
In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2003
Preceded by	Tim Johnson
Succeeded by	Bill Janklow
Personal details
Born	John Randolph Thune (1961-01-07) January 7, 1961 (age 51) Murdo, South Dakota
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Kimberley Thune (née Weems)
Children	Brittany and Larissa
Residence	Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Alma mater	Biola University University of South Dakota
Occupation	Political Assistant Association Executive Politician
Religion	Evangelical Christian
Website	www.thune.senate.gov

John Randolph Thune (born January 7, 1961) is the junior United States Senator from South Dakota and a member of the Republican Party. He previously served as a United States Representative for South Dakota's At-large congressional district.

Early life, education, and early political career[link]

Thune was born in the small town of Murdo, South Dakota, the son of Yvonne Patricia (née Bodine) and Harold Richard Thune.^[1][2] Thune's paternal grandfather was an immigrant from Norway who partnered with his brother to start Thune Hardware stores in Mitchell and Murdo, South Dakota. His maternal grandfather was from Ontario in Canada.^[3] Thune was a star athlete in high school,^[4] taking his basketball team near a state championship, and also played college basketball at Biola University.^[5]

Thune, who identifies as an evangelical Christian,^[6] graduated from Biola University, California in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business.^[7] Thune received the degree of Master of Public Administration from the University of South Dakota in 1984.^[8]

Thune worked as a legislative aide for U.S. Senator James Abdnor from 1985 to 1987. In 1980, Abdnor defeated U.S. Senator George McGovern, succeeding him. When Abdnor was defeated in 1986 by Tom Daschle, Thune followed Abdnor to the Small Business Administration under the Reagan Administration. In 1989, he returned to South Dakota, where he served as executive director of the Republican Party for two years.^[9]

Thune was appointed Railroad Director of South Dakota by Governor George S. Mickelson, serving from 1991 to 1993. From 1993 to 1996, he was executive director of the South Dakota Municipal League.^[9]

U.S. House of Representatives (1997-2003)[link]

Elections[link]

In 1996, incumbent Democrat U.S. Congressman Tim Johnson of South Dakota's At-large congressional district decided to retire to run for the U.S. Senate. Thune decided to run for the open seat, and defeated Carole Hillard, Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota, 59%-41% in the Republican primary.^[10] In the general election, he defeated Democrat Dick Weiland 58%-37%.^[11] He won re-election in 1998 (75%)^[12] and 2000 (73%).^[13]

Thune supported term limits and promised to serve no more than three terms in the House. Keeping his pledge, Thune instead ran for the United States Senate.

Tenure[link]

In a tight Senate race in 2002, Thune was instrumental in creating the $750,000,000 Livestock Compensation Program, $50,000,000 of which went to South Dakota.^{[14][clarification needed]}

As a House member, Thune voted for the invasion of Afghanistan and the Iraq War and consistently supported funding for both wars.

Committee assignments[link]

He served on the House Transportation Committee.^[15]

U.S. Senate (2005-Present)[link]

Elections[link]

2002

He ran against incumbent Democrat U.S. Senator Tim Johnson in 2002 and lost by only 524 votes (0.15%).^[16]

2004

Following his 2002 loss to Tim Johnson, Thune challenged Tom Daschle, the United States Senate Minority Leader and leader of the Senate Democrats, in the 2004 elections.

The race was the most expensive Senate race in 2004, with $30 million spent,^[17] and the most expensive in South Dakota history. It was widely followed in the national media. Thune – along with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, President of the United States George W. Bush, and Vice President Dick Cheney – painted Daschle as the "chief obstructionist" of Bush's agenda: "Thune was able to criticize "Daschle for serving incompatible masters" and portray him, as Frist did when he came to South Dakota to campaign for Thune, as a partisan obstructionist and political heir to liberal icon and former Senator George McGovern of South Dakota.^[18]

Daschle's critics charged the Democrat with using filibusters to block confirmation of several of Bush's nominees to the federal judiciary, and being out of step with the views of South Dakota voters on other political and social issues: "The GOP had targeted Daschle, the Senate minority leader, claiming he had been the chief obstruction to President Bush on such issues as tax cuts, judicial nominees and the war in Iraq."^[19] Thune emphasized social issues such as abortion and same sex marriage, and flag burning to highlight the differences between his views and Daschle's: "Two-thirds of the people in South Dakota are in favor of protecting marriage through a Federal Marriage Amendment. You know, two-thirds of the people in South Dakota, probably higher than that, are in favor of an amendment to protect the American flag. You know, the Second Amendment, gun owners' rights, abortion – those are not wedge issues in South Dakota."^[20]

In addition, Thune drove home his strong support for the war: in a nationally televised debate on NBC's Meet the Press, Thune accused Daschle of "emboldening the enemy" by stating President Bush had "failed miserably" to avoid the Iraq war.^[21]

When the race began in early 2004, Daschle led by 7% in January and February. By May, his lead fell to just 2% and into the summer polls showed an effective tie. Throughout September, Daschle led Thune by margins of 2–5%; from October until the November 2 election, most polls showed Thune and Daschle tied 49% to 49% among likely voters.

On November 2, 2004, Thune defeated Daschle by 4,508 votes, winning 51% of the vote and became a well-known Republican figure in the U.S. Senate. Daschle's loss was the first ousting of a incumbent Floor Leader since 1952, when Arizona Senator Ernest McFarland lost his seat to Barry Goldwater.

2010

Thune faced no Democratic or other opposition for his US Senate seat in 2010,^[22] and thus won re-election.^[23]

Tenure[link]

Soon after arriving in the Senate, Thune wrote language into a transportation bill expanding the pot of federal loan money for small railroads, enabling his former client to apply for $2.5 billion in government financing for its project.^[24]

As a U.S. Senator, Thune also took a leading role in formulating energy policy.^{[dubious – discuss]} He pushed for the final passage of a comprehensive energy bill, which finally overcame a series of Democratic filibusters and passed the Senate in 2005. Thune helped pass another energy bill in late 2007. Thune is a particular advocate of ethanol and wind energy, which are linked to South Dakota's high levels of corn production and its windy prairies. Thune's hometown of Murdo is considered one of the windiest towns in the nation.^{[citation needed]}

Thune, along with South Dakota's senior Senator Tim Johnson, was also faced with the challenge of keeping Ellsworth Air Force Base in Box Elder, South Dakota (near Rapid City) open after the Department of Defense announced plans to close the base as part of its 2005 round of base closures. The Pentagon announced that it planned to move all of Ellsworth's B-1 bombers to Dyess Air Force Base in Texas. Ellsworth Air Force Base is one of South Dakota's largest employers. Senator Thune, along with Senator Johnson, lobbied the Defense Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission, to keep Ellsworth open.

In their lobbying efforts, they argued that it made little sense to consolidate all of the nation's B-1s in a single location due to the risk of a single attack or tornado taking out the fleet. Also, it was discovered that the Pentagon may have overlooked a lawsuit that possibly prevented B-1 pilots at Dyess from engaging in adequate training. While the fate of Dyess was still in the air, Thune declared that he had strong doubts about issues such as John Bolton's nomination as United Nations ambassador, "I've said all along that I'm going to play whatever cards I have to get the best possible outcome I can for my base," he is reported as saying.^[25] Ultimately, the BRAC Commission voted 8–1 to reverse the Pentagon's recommendation to close Ellsworth.^[26]

Thune sponsored an amendment (No. 1618) to a troop support bill (S. 1390) in the Senate in July, 2009 that would have created a federal law allowing concealed carry weapons owners to enjoy interstate reciprocity of this right. The bill was defeated narrowly (58-39; 60 votes are needed to invoke cloture).

The American Conservative Union gave Senator Thune a rating of 100 in 2006,^[27] and again in 2010; as of 2010, Thune's lifetime ACU rating was 88.97.^[28]

On December 6, 2006, Thune was chosen by Senate Republican Whip Trent Lott to be the GOP's Chief Deputy Whip. Senators Norm Coleman of Minnesota, John Sununu of New Hampshire, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Larry Craig of Idaho, James Inhofe of Oklahoma, Olympia Snowe of Maine, and David Vitter of Louisiana were also selected as Deputy Whips.^[29] After briefly serving as Republican Conference Vice-Chairman, Thune became chairman of the Republican Policy Committee in June 2009. He was then elected Republican Conference Chairman in 2011, taking office in January 2012.^[30]

Thune has described his religious faith as the most important aspect of his political career: "Having a Christian worldview shapes my decision-making with respect to all aspects of my life. I always respect people in public life who are principled, and those principles have to be connected to something. And my faith is what serves as the anchor and directs my actions."^[31]

In June 2006, Thune reaffirmed his strong support to amend the United States Constitution to ban same-sex marriage: "The Federal Marriage Amendment debate simply is an opportunity for us to affirm our support for marriage.... It is an important debate to have in this country."^[32]

Thune is pro-life and opposes federal funding for elective abortions in accordance with the Hyde Amendment.^[33]

Foreign policy

In a 2005 interview with Christianity Today, Thune (now a Senator) supported continuing Operation Iraqi Freedom, expressing a hope that this would result in greater religious freedom: "Liberating Iraq from decades of tyranny and dictatorship, bringing about political freedom, will create an atmosphere of where religious freedom will come to Iraq. And that opens the door, obviously, for the Christian faith there as well."^[31]

Health care

Thune opposed President Barack Obama's health reform legislation; he voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in December 2009,^[34] and he voted against the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.^[35]

On December 9, 2010, Thune voted against the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act,^[36] which would have "provide[d] free medical treatment and compensation to first responders of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack."^[37] Defending his vote against the Zadroga Bill to radio host Don Imus, Thune "explained that preserving the Bush tax cuts was more of a priority."^[38]

Budget

In 2005, Thune supported a bill to save $40 billion in the federal budget by cutting back student lending, child support, and welfare programs.^[39]

Calling himself a fiscal conservative, Thune spoke out against and voted against certain economic recovery and stimulus spending bills in 2008 and early 2009.^[40][41] However, he voted for the 2008 bank bailout.^[42] Furthermore, on Oct. 1, 2008, Thune voted in favor of the bill creating the Troubled Asset Relief Program,^[43] "Thune says he doesn’t regret his vote" for TARP.^[44] In 2010, Thune proposed legislation that would have halted all TARP spending.^[45]

As a member of the House of Representatives, Thune supported the Bush tax cuts in 2001;^[46] he voted for their continuation in 2010.^[32] In 2008, Thune opposed giving tax breaks to first-time home buyers and home builders.^[47]

According to the Weekly Standard, Thune "is a defender of earmarks,"^[44] and reportedly tried to "build opposition" to an earmark moratorium proposed by Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina.^[48] However, a later report from the Weekly Standard indicated that Thune had changed his mind and come out in support of a two-year earmark moratorium.^[49] He has been called "one of the worst GOP earmark offenders in the Senate."^[50] In 2008 he requested $252,490,000 in earmarks and received $240,081,050.^[51] At a 2010 speech at the Heritage Foundation, audience members "pressed Thune about the fact that he still seeks earmarks for South Dakota. Thune responded by explaining that he’d reduced his earmark requests by 57 percent since 2008 and offering a tentative defense of the practice—something that won him no fans in a gathering of movement conservatives."^[44]

Thune opposes federal spending on infrastructure, saying "I understand the goal, but right now this is going to be — anytime you talk about 'investment' it means new spending."^[52] This position has put him at odds with the United States Chamber of Commerce.^[53]

In the summer of 2010, Thune unveiled a deficit-reduction plan. According to the Weekly Standard, "Thune’s proposal does not address the entitlement reforms that are what will ultimately stave off bankruptcy."^[44]

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
  • Subcommittee on Rural Revitalization, Conservation, Forestry and Credit
  • Subcommittee on Energy, Science and Technology (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Production, Income Protection and Price Support
• Committee on Finance
  • United States Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness (Ranking Member)
• Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
  • Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet
  • Subcommittee on Competitiveness, Innovation, and Export Promotion
  • Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance
  • Subcommittee on Science and Space
  • Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
• Committee on Budget

Source: John Thune

Speculation for president or vice president[link]

Prior to the selection of Sarah Palin, Thune was mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick for Republican Presumptive Nominee John McCain in the 2008 presidential election. Thune publicly played down the speculation.^[54] According to one source, McCain was looking for a "game changer" and did not believe that Thune would have a "game-changing" effect on the campaign.^[55]

Significant speculation arose regarding a potential 2012 presidential bid by Thune.^{[56][57][58][59][60]} Thune was encouraged to run by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell,^[61] and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, who called him "a consensus builder."^[42] One Wall Street Journal article stated that Thune possesses "name ID in the parts of the first caucus state of Iowa that get neighboring South Dakota media, a $6.9 million bank account he could use for a presidential run, and a national fundraising list of 100,000 names from his race against [former Senator Tom] Daschle."^[62] DNC Executive Director Jennifer O'Malley Dillon publicly stated that "among a field of generally flawed (in one way or another) Republican presidential candidates, there is one who genuinely scares her. 'This is personal[,] but John Thune is somebody that I have nightmares about,' she said. 'I've worked for Tim Johnson and Tom Daschle and he is just a guy you can't ever count out.'"^[63] According to multiple commentators, a Thune candidacy could be helped by his personal appearance (he "looks like a president").^{[64][65][66][67]} However, Jonah Goldberg of the National Review wrote that "Thune will probably discover early that his Senate colleagues’ telling him to run isn’t necessarily a compliment. In many respects, Thune is the GOP version of John Kerry: a candidate with very presidential hair who seems 'electable' despite not having done much of anything."^[68]

Assessing his potential candidacy, statistician Nate Silver wrote the following: "There is nothing especially distinct about Mr. Thune, whose chances I consider to be somewhat overrated. . . . The Washington establishment, of course, has not been popular of late — and Mr. Thune has cast some votes that he will have to answer for, like the ones on the federal bailouts."^[69] Assessing his potential candidacy, the Weekly Standard stated that if Thune were to become the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, it would be "because he is an exceptionally skilled retail politician who can communicate a kind of midwestern, common sense conservatism that is ascendant in reaction to liberal profligacy... It also helps that he’s cultivated the nationwide donor base that gave him $14.5 million to defeat Tom Daschle in 2004. And that South Dakota borders Iowa. And that he’s good on television. And that he’s a devout Christian who can quote Scripture without seeming to proselytize."^[44] However, the Weekly Standard also observed that "there are many obstacles. He has virtually no national profile. He worked briefly as a lobbyist. He voted for TARP. He is a defender of earmarks. He would be running against Washington from Washington."^[44] Similarly, Michael Crowley of Time Magazine noted:

Thune is not without his problems as a national candidate. He cast some hard-to-explain Senate votes, like one in support of the 2008 bank bailout — a potential deal breaker for Tea Party foot soldiers. Thune also struggled to defend the roughly $100 million in earmarks he tucked into a spending bill late last year, another irritant for party activists. (He argued awkwardly that he backed the projects but opposed the bill.) In Washington, some Republicans are skeptical that Thune has the fire in the belly for the brutal campaign process and note that he has yet to make a mark on policy issues.^[70]

In February 2011, Politico noted that "Thune isn’t raising money like he’s running for president," and that "[w]hile Thune has been considering a presidential bid, he hasn’t set foot in any of the early states and hasn’t aggressively courted consultants or tried to build infrastructure."^[71]

On February 22, 2011 Thune announced he would not run in the presidential election in 2012.^[72]

Electoral history[link]

Personal life[link]

Thune married the former Kimberley Weems of Doland, South Dakota in 1984; both are committed Evangelical Christians. They have two daughters, Brittany and Larissa.^[74]

Thune is a fan of the bands Styx, Journey, Boston, and the Doobie Brothers.^[75]

He is a member of The Family, a secretive controversial tax-exempt, quasi-religious and international political influence group, also known as The Fellowship.^[76]

He is a fan of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League.^[77]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Lauck, Jon K. Daschle Vs. Thune: Anatomy of a High Plains Senate Race University of Oklahoma Press (September 30, 2007). ISBN 0-8061-3850-5. ISBN 978-0-8061-3850-3

External links[link]

• United States Senator John Thune official U.S. Senate site
• Friends of John Thune official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Works by or about John Thune in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Profile from SourceWatch
• John Thune at the Internet Movie Database
• Representative-Elect John Thune (R-SD) profile from CNN, 1996

v t e United States Senators from South Dakota Class 2 Pettigrew Gamble Sterling McMaster Bulow H. Bushfield V. Bushfield Mundt Abourezk Pressler T. Johnson Class 3 Moody Kyle Kittredge Crawford E. Johnson Norbeck Hitchcock Pyle Gurney Case Bottum McGovern Abdnor Daschle Thune

v t e Current elected statewide political officials of South Dakota U.S. Senators Tim Johnson (D) John Thune (R) U.S. Representatives Kristi Noem (R), Representative At-Large State government Dennis Daugaard (R), Governor Matt Michels (R), Lieutenant Governor Jason Gant (R), Secretary of State Marty Jackley (R), Attorney General Rich Sattgast (R), State Auditor Vernon Larson (R), State Treasurer Senate Bob Gray (R), President pro tempore Russell Olson (R), Majority Leader Jason Frerichs (D), Minority Leader House Val Rausch (R), Speaker Brian Gosch (R), Speaker pro tempore David Lust (R), Majority Leader Bernie Hunhoff (D), Minority Leader Supreme Court (appointed) David Gilbertson, Chief Justice Richard W. Sabers John K. Konenkamp Steven L. Zinter Judith Meierhenry AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY

Barack Obama
44th President of the United States
Incumbent
Assumed office January 20, 2009
Vice President	Joe Biden
Preceded by	George W. Bush
Personal details
Born	Barack Hussein Obama II[1] (1961-08-04) August 4, 1961 (age 50) Honolulu, Hawaii, United States[1]
Nationality	American
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Michelle Robinson (m. 1992)
Children	Malia (b.1998) Sasha (b.2001)
Residence	The White House
Alma mater	Occidental College Columbia University (B.A.) Harvard Law School (J.D.)
Profession	Community organizer Attorney Author Constitutional law professor United States Senator President of the United States
Religion	Christian,[2] former member of United Church of Christ[3][4]
Signature
Website	WhiteHouse.gov

	This article is part of a series on Barack Obama
Background Illinois Senate US Senate Political positions Public image Family 2008 primaries Obama–Biden campaign Transition Inauguration Electoral history Presidency Timeline '09 '10 '11 '12 First 100 days Nobel Peace Prize Re-election campaign

Barack Obama being sworn in as President of the United States.

The Presidency of Barack Obama began at noon EST on January 20, 2009, when he became the 44th President of the United States. Obama was a United States Senator from Illinois at the time of his victory over Arizona Senator John McCain in the 2008 presidential election. Barack Obama is the first African-American president of the United States, as well as the first born in Hawaii.

His policy decisions have addressed a global financial crisis and have included changes in tax policies, legislation to reform the United States health care industry, foreign policy initiatives and the phasing out of detention of prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba. He attended the G-20 London summit and later visited U.S. troops in Iraq. On the tour of various European countries following the G-20 summit, he announced in Prague that he intended to negotiate substantial reduction in the world's nuclear arsenals, en route to their eventual extinction. In October 2009, Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."