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SPOKANE, Wash. - In the tight Washington Senate race, Democratic incumbent Sen. Patty Murray has a former president, Bill Clinton, coming to campaign for her Monday and the current president, Barack Obama, rallying students Thursday at the University of Washington in Seattle.
But Murray’s opponent, Dino Rossi, has a potential future president, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, campaigning for him today in Spokane, Washington.
Thune, who won his Senate seat six years ago by defeating then-Majority Leader Tom Daschle, said he hadn’t yet decided on his 2012 plans.
“I’m focused right now on trying to get people like Dino elected to the Senate and get some reinforcements that hopefully will allow us to start changing the direction of the country,” Thune said Friday morning. “We’ll talk about 2012 after the midterms.”
Asked about the proposal by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Obama to send each Social Security recipient a special $250 check to make up for the lack of a Social Security cost-of-living increase in 2011, Thune said, “There’s a law in place and you follow the law. And if that’s something he doesn’t want to do, then they ought to figure out a way to pay for it. I don’t think you ought to be borrowing from our children and grandchildren to do this.”
Thune acknowledged that economic downturn was “tough on everybody, particularly the seniors. My parents are in their 90s and live on fixed income and they live in my hometown in South Dakota. So I understand what this means to lot of people. It is ironic the timing (of Obama’s support for the $250 check) would occur right before the election.”
But partly that timing is driven by the Social Security Administration, which makes the announcement about the cost-of-living increase (or lack of one) every year at about this time. Under a 1975 law, Social Security benefits increase automatically if, and only if, there’s an increase in the Consumer Price Index, measured from the third quarter of the prior year to the third quarter of the current year.
No inflation means no cost-of-living increase.
Reporters also asked Thune about another potential 2012 GOP presidential contender, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who said in Washington Thursday he was open to the idea of a value-added tax and a tax on imported oil.
“If the Democrats control the Congress, there are going to be new taxes,” Thune predicted. “A lot of people talk about a VAT tax as a replacement for the income tax. But unless we change the composition of the Congress, you’re going to see a lot of proposals to increase revenue because the Democrats have to fund their agenda. So right now I’m not for anything that’s going to add to the tax burden on the American people.”
Thune campaigned for GOP Senate candidate Ken Buck in Colorado Tuesday. He said that next week he'll be campaigning in Indiana, Wisconsin, New York, Florida and Illinois.
Leave a Comment:
The excitement that is John Thune!...lol
He has all the charisma of wonder bread...:)
You've got a point, dangerfield...
Hard to top Barack Obama in terms of excitement, or charisma...
In that respect, Obama is everything anyone could have hoped for...
Right?
Why can't we instead have someone who conveys the power and prestige of Powdered Toast Man?
Why not "Particle Man"?....
(Triangle wins)
I see what you did there. :p
Before I forget...
Patty Murray...?
Who isn't excited by Patty Murray?
Ted Stevens.
Because he's, yanno, dead.
Soooooooooooo, is the Rossi camp going to pay Obama to come to WA and "support" Murray?
Independent Thinker
The Rossi camp would probably pay whoever they needed to in an attempt to put Rossi on the payroll. The man is a long time political wanna be who thus far has not appealed to the majority of the population of Washington State. Maybe this time he can buy his way into office. By the way, there are some good republican candidates out there in other contests, just not this one. All best.
So Thune wants to change the direction of the country? That must mean he wants to stop us from coming out of a recession that would have been a depression without the ARRA. Which means we will be headed back into a recession (with the real possibility of a depression) where the rich get richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class slips into poverty.
Yeah, that's the direction we want to go in, right?
'Change' is as much a meaningless buzzword these days as the colloquial term 'mama grizzly.'
I beg to differ-CHANGE has been a meaningless buzzword a lot longer.
Sorry, Matt-
Hard to take anything seriously from the guy who described the new senior editor of the Huffington Post, Howard Fineman...as a right winger.
Credibility is everything...isn't it?
You have an elephant's memory MB...
Wasn't the ARRA passed by BUSH?
There you go again, dangerfield...
Lol.
Sorry. TARP was passed by Bush. ARRA is the name they use for stimulus, which is a dirty word with the electorate, since it stimulated nothing but the deficit. Unless, of course, you count the three million theoretical shovel ready jobs that do not exist.
John Thune, for those keeping score, was the one who defeated then majority leader Tom Daschle-you remember him. He forgot he got hundreds of thousands of dollars in income, so he could not be confirmed as head of HHS.
I don't really care about charisma. I have had a super sufficiency of it. I would really like a president whose qualifications for office were more than, say, he'd be a great GQ model.
To put it in E.D.'s terms: BRRRAAAAAIIIINNNS!!!
Wow-
Nice work, NJ...
Pretty soon they'll be calling you out on HuffPo and Firedoglake...
Although...some might actually like you at FDL.
They sure don't like Obama.
Mixed Bag wrote:
Sorry, Matt-
Hard to take anything seriously from the guy who described the new senior editor of the Huffington Post, Howard Fineman...as a right winger.
Credibility is everything...isn't it?
Yes, credibility is everything, too bad you have none, MB. I did not call him a right wing writer, I called him a conservative writer who is more to the right than the left. Try reading his writings over the years and you'll find that I am correct.
You keep saying I said things that I did not say MB. You keep twisting my words into saying things I did not say. So who has the credibility problem? Besides, why should I care what an idiot like you has to say? You're just a mixed bag full of hot air.
Dangerfield, he does not have an elephant's memory, he has a very flawed memory. Besides, you jumping in calling me out on my credibility is quite strange when your own doesn't stand up to scrutiny.
P.S. MB, only my friends get to call me Matt and you are not my friend.
I stand corrected on the issue of your name, Matt.
Sorry.
Try not to let it ruin your weaken, Mixed Bag.
Ol'Matt does not like me, either.
nj, I don't dislike you, I just have no respect for your uninformed opinions based on faulty logic and your personal attacks on someone when those mistakes are pointed out.
Thank you, MB for proving just how much of an a$$ you really are. You obviously couldn't disprove what I said so you went into a$$hole mode.
You really should let Arianna Huffington know that Howard Fineman is a conservative, Matt.
She needs your info more than anyone here.
He's out in the street the minute she finds out.
And once again, Hot Air Bag proves himself to be an a$$.
"I think Fineman is a very intelligent and moderate right winger who I admire and respect."
Does that sentence look familiar, Matt? It ought to...you wrote it.
So...I quoted you accurately. You did call Howard Fineman a "right winger".
And no, Matt...
Arianna Huffington isn't in the habit of hiring right wingers (intelligent, moderate, or otherwise) to senior management positions at the Huffington Post.
Honestly,I doubt that Arianna Huffington, along with the overwhelming majority of First Readers, believes that "intelligent and moderate right winger(s )" even exist.
Anyway...I quoted you accurately.
You are kind of an ass, MB.
I mean no disrespect, mind. Now, it is troubling to see three people who's posts I generally (though not always) value getting so damn personal with one another.
Sorry to disappoint, E.D.
I, too, am disappointed...with the name calling.
If I'm better than that...
Shouldn't you be...?
was Jeb Bush out there?
I sure hope not
I live in Spokane WA and Rossi is already a two-time loser in my state. He ran for governor twice and failed both times. He is a smug, cocky, pure-bred republican with no sense of loyalty to American workers. He would be Boner's b**ch if he got elected!
Seattle here.
I'm glad to see at least one person from Eastern WA get it right.
I have voted against Rossi at least three times. I'm kinda tired of hearing is name.
Hopefully after his conceited ass loses this time he will just go away...I doubt it though.
Boehner is in the Congress not the Senate. The anger you feel is kind of like how I felt 7 years ago when I moved my family and business from Washington, because the liberal agenda was rolling over my livelihood. Taxes were stifeling and the state was running a deficit every year and asking for new taxes every year. When I first moved to the state in 1991 it was a very business friendly state and by the time I left, it had become an liberal experiment.
It is a beautiful part of the country and I hated to leave. After leaving, my business prospered, until two years ago (and no I don't blame Obama). The direction I see the country headed is just like it was when I left Washington. The capitalist country I love is fading quickly. Although, I didn't vote for Obama, I selfishly hoped that he was going to make the country better once he took office. It was a huge let down. The course needs to be corrected. I want to hire more employees. I want to support other businesses and other enterpreneurs. I think a change in congress and the senate is what is needed to accomplish this. So I hope Rossi wins, and if he doesn't I hope he tries again. Abraham Lincoln lost 8 elections before becoming President.
Sorry to hear this Troy. I've been in Washington for 20 years, and 7 years ago was the beginning of the housing boom here. I said that could not last and I was right. People were desperate to buy homes then because the prices kept going up and up and no one wanted to be left behind with no home. They were scared. Many lost those homes in foreclosure. I understand their panic back then but the real estate industry made a fortune. It was easy pickings. Republican candidates have no empathy for those who lost their homes or anyone down on their luck. My republican coworkers said they would be fine if all the lower class left the country and didn't come back. I won't be voting for Dino or any republican. The republican agenda after too many years of Rush Limbaugh and Fox is too extreme.
Doogal, I believe there is plenty of anger to go around. I followed the housing market in Seattle after I left, just as I did many other things that I had grown accustomed to while I lived there. I saw housing prices exceed 8X the average wage for Seattle, It was insane (I agree). I am truly sorry about your run-ins with other repubs. Not all of us feel that way.
I agree that there are fringe elements on both sides. I think a lot of the retoric from the right is as damaging, if not more so, as that from the left
Like I said I hoped things would improve. I gave the benefit of the doubt to Obama. I believe his approval rating was much higher (in term of percentage) than the margin he was elected by. I just think the policies have not made things better and uncertainty makes us all not want to hire new employees.
I feel that there are too many things I'm getting bombarded with at this time. The government is getting too involved with my business and therefore, my life. Maybe my frustation is misdirected, but healthcare reform, in the manner it's being forced upon small businesses right now, is the wrong way to go about it. I think a lot of confidence in the government was lost last spring as it felt like the healthcare was shoved down our throats. Most were against it and our "representatives" felt it was neccessary to put this additional burden on us right now.
I just want to run my business. I want to pay the best wages to the best people. I want to give them the merits they earn. I know if they feel good about working for me, they will give me their best and it will always come full circle.
Me too, me too! Hope Patty wins AGAIN, even though Rossi probably has tons more money than her.
Troy, funny how "the liberal agenda was rolling over my livelihood" forcing you to leave the state. I had lived in Seattle (Bellevue, actually), from 1999-2004, then had to relocate (job) to NJ, then Chicago - though all blue states, I now know WA is the best of them. So we moved back to Bellevue in 2008 - again, our jobs brought us here, and I just can't get enough of it - never been this happy in my life! Must be this liberal agenda that makes it the best place to live in IN THE WORLD - I can tell from experience: I lived and worked in three other countries before coming to the US 15 years ago, and then lived and worked in NJ, Chicago and Seattle - and Seattle beats all of them hands down.
If I wasn't starting a new job on Monday, I'd go volunteer for Patty - she needs help, WA folks, if you can donate a couple of hours, sign up here:
http://pol.moveon.org/2010/signup-multi.html?l_id=479&id=24253-17456545-cMIbaix&t=2
See y'all on Nov. 2d !!!
I'm sure Washington is the best. I loved living in Washington myself. There is, also, a difference between having a job and being an employer. And by you living in Bellevue, I would assume you make a decent living (I lived there once myself). By the way, I didn't relocate to NJ or Chicago.
Congrats on your new job.
Damn, I like you.
Amen to Angry Left and Wendy P.!!
So....you two Washington people would rather have someone who thinks Osama Bin Ladin is a pretty swell guy for everything he does for his people.
No wonder us in Oregon want to ban people from Washington into our state
"He's (Osama bin Laden) been out in these countries for decades, building schools, building roads, building infrastructure, building day-care facilities, building health-care facilities, and these people are extremely grateful. We haven't done that."
That's her quote. She isn't praising bin Laden, she's giving you facts which happen to not support the U.S. Army's job in South Asia. But the Army does everything perfectly, doesn't it?
Who the hell is John Thune?
One of the republican state house representatives north of my district held his third annual BBQ this week. Rick Santorum was the key note speaker; he hinted that he plans to run in 2012. If nothing else, the cast of candidates could prove entertaining. Unless someone no one knows about arrives on the GOP scene, there is not a keeper in the bunch.
All this coming from the man who promised South Dakota voters way back when that he was only going to run for one term in Congress. He still can't come to the realization that our major problem is that Obama has to come up with a way to pay for Bush's unfunded wars. Thune should go home, stay home, and get out of public office as he promised us here in South Dakota. He is becoming what he accused Daschle of: a Washington bureaucrat that has lost touch with his home state.
Rockininorregon;
I live in Oregon,20 mintues from longveiw, And i dont fell that way at all about our Washington friends nor does anyelse i know.
Palin has bigger crowds who are not bribed by SEIU.
Not bribed...just stupid.
Thune was maddest politician of all that the fed took the student loans back from these lenders that were ripping off our students with high rates,and they had no risk because the fed was backing them,the only one that could lose was the tax payers.Now the students get loans at a lower rate,the tax payer gets a little interest.Small town medical facilities who have loan forgiveness programs to get dr"s for five years pay less money.Why would any politician not Like this?Im not making this a party issue?why would Thune be as mad aS HELL ABOUT THIS?
Dont like either of them...one ia already part of the problem and the other will be part of the problem
Well, perhaps Nov 2 will bring some "change you can believe in", like ousting many of the super-majority Pelosi/Reid socialists from congress?
Remember January 3, 2007
…… I don‘t understand WHY the people running for office don’t say this in their ads!!!
The day the democrats took over was not January 22nd 2009 it was actually January 3, 2007 the day the Democrats took over the House of Representatives and the Senate, the start of the 110th Congress.
The Democratic Party controlled a majority in both chambers for the first time since the end of the 103rd Congress in 1995.
For those who are listening to the liberals propagating the fallacy that everything is “Bush’s Fault”, think about this:
January 3, 2007 was the day the Democrats took over the Senate and the Congress:
At the time:
The DOW Jones closed at 12,621.77
The GDP for the previous quarter was 3.5%
The Unemployment rate was 4.6%
George Bush’s Economic policies SET A RECORD of 52 STRAIGHT MONTHS of JOB CREATION!
Remember the day.
January 3, 2007 was the day that Barney Frank took over as Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and Chris Dodd took over as Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
The economic meltdown that happened 15 months later was in what part of the economy?
BANKING AND FINANCIAL SERVICES!
Thank Congress for taking us from 13,000 DOW, 3.5 GDP and 4.6% Unemployment to this CRISIS by dumping 5-6 TRILLION Dollars of toxic loans on the economy from YOUR Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac fiasco’s!
(BTW: Bush asked Congress 17 TIMES to stop Fannie & Freddie – starting in 2001, because it was financially risky for the U.S. economy, but no one was listening).
And who took the THIRD highest pay-off from Fannie Mae AND Freddie Mac? OBAMA.
And who fought against reform of Fannie and Freddie??? OBAMA and the Democratic Congress.
So when someone tries to blame Bush…
REMEMBER JANUARY 3, 2007…. THE DAY THE DEMOCRATS TOOK OVER!”
Bush may have been in the car, but the Democrats were in charge of the gas pedal and steering wheel they were driving. Set the record straight on Bush!
So, as you listen to all the commercials and media from the Democrats who are now distancing themselves from their voting record and their party, remember how they didn‘t listen to you when you said you didn’t want all the bailouts, you didn’t want the health care bill, you didn’t want cap and trade, you didn‘t want them to continue spending money we don’t have.
I’m not forgetting their complicity in getting us into this mess, and I’ll be marking my vote accordingly!
Written by Ginger Capps
Let's see so many nattering nabobs here... where to start.
We have a poster named Jim who posts as Ginger Capps???? Hmmmmmm....
Facts are an interesting thing.
Unfortunately, Thune doesn't believe in them. Neither does the GOP. The GOP with brains and an abiding interest in seeing America succeed appears to be in a permanent vegetative state after being mugged by the Bircher, Birther, KKK wings of the party...
As to Jimmy/Ginger.... facts are a problem again.
When you need 60 to get even a vote in the senate, tell me how powerful the dems are at 51 or 57 or 58. That is why we have a GOP senate acting like petulant two-year olds who have a one-word vocabulary -- "NO!!!!!!" or when they really get mad "HELL, NO!!!!!"
As to the car analogy. Poor. Using that though, the Dems had the steering wheel (chairmanships) and that was it. The GOP had the brake and gas pedal. And Bush had the emergency brake (veto). And the GOP used them all.
And when did Bush actually veto some bills? Before 2007? Try again.....
They have stopped almost 500 pieces of legislation. They have denied votes to a majority of Obama's appointments...... These are the same political yahoos who were screaming about Bush's appointments deserving a vote.
The GOP became the Anti-American party many years ago, but now they have come out of the closet to show just how Anti-American they really are -- and are going to be.
As to tax hikes.... remember, the next time you hear the GOPmouths complaining about the "biggest tax hike in history" (the dissolution of the Bush tax cuts), please remember, the GOP voted for it, passed it using reconciliation (50+veep Cheney)... so the GOP voted for that tax hike 10 YEARS AGO!!!! By the way, that was before Obama was elected to the senate, so you can not blame him for that.
They knew the tax cut would end.....and that it would add about 1 Trillion to the debt....
Thune, the same guy who said nothing about KBR and Halliburton when they were killing and poisoning Americans for profit.....
Thune, the same guy who said nothing about Bush not paying for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan..... or outing a covert CIA agent by the Bushies (Rove, Libby, Cheney and Armitage)..... destroying a cover company/operation for political games... An interesting side effect - Plame's job was to work to keep nuclear weapons out of terrorist hands.....
So the Bushies actually aided and abetted Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations....... Really helps protect the US guys (chuckle)...... and they paid companies to kill and poison American soldiers.
Does that sound patriotic to you?
GOP doesn't let facts get in their way. Remember their talking point about the stimulus bill providing money for a high speed express rail from Disneyland to a Nevada brothel?
Anyone knowing the slightest about geography in the west was rolling on the floor laughing their blanks off..... The GOP took a plan to add funding for a Historical Railroad in Virginia City and spun their elaborate fantasy..... and pushed the fantasy for about a month. Sorry GOP, Virginia City is a historical landmark and a little bit of a tourist trap.
Geographically, a non-stop from Disneyland there would have a virtual impossibility.... Virginia City is just south of Reno and the train would have had to cross about six mountain passes at least....
Funny thing, the GOP in Orange County has been pushing for high speed rail to Las Vegas for more than 20 years.... and considering the congestion on the small four lane highway that connects them from Barstow east, it would be a good idea... That highway is often closed by accidents causing a miles-long parking lot....
So the GOP has been in fantasyland for awhile... and from the sound of their candidates this year, have jumped into the Twilight Zone as well.
Or maybe it is pure DeMint-ia.....