New SD poll: Thune 50% Daschle 47%

[WI_DEM]

I know this one will be close. What bothers me is that Thune has a much higher favorable rating than Daschle--65% compared to 52%.

Bush leads Kerry in SD 54-41 (if that is true then I think Kerry is running ahead of Gore in the state).

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/

[rockymountaindem]

1. Rassmussen isn't the best organization for polls

although I agree with you that it will be close.

[AmerDem]

2. you know, I do not want to lose Daschle's seat but

Daschle has been a white house roll over ever since 9/11. The guy is as weak as they come. I have been referring to him as Mickey Mouse for almost 3 years now! It doesn't surprise me his own constituents have lost faith in him. Sad so very sad!

[UCLA02]

4. But he's a blue seat...

I'm glad Zell's still in there, too. Of course I'd rather have a left-voting Democrat, but I'd rather Zell be a Democrat and vote the way he does than be a Republican and vote the exact same way.

[Julien Sorel]

13. Yeah a conservative Dem

like Cleland couldn't hold a seat in Georgia, but some of the geniuses here are sure a liberal would.

And they wonder why we lose.

[tritsofme]

36. But why make him our leader in the Senate?

We shouldn't have a leader who has a real fight for reelection every six years, and lives in a state that the Republican presidential candidate will carry everytime handily, our leader in the Senate should be in from a safe blue state.

I like Tom Daschle, but I don't think he should be our Senate leader.

[Julien Sorel]

39. You'll have to take that up with

the senate Democrats, who put Daschle in that role. The "problem" is that Daschle is, from what I've read, quite effective at it, contrary to what you see posted by the ignoramuses here. The person can't be too liberal, or they end up being a proxy target. For example, if Barbara Boxer were leader, the Republicans would run against her where it was convenient: "My opponent is a Barbara Boxer liberal Democrat." Even with his moderate voting record, Daschle has become a target like this, although I don't think too many people buy it.

LBJ he ain't, but then, Eisenhower wasn't the jackass Bush is.

[Name removed]

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[Mr Blond]

15. Senator Daschle is a loyal Dem and I'm proud of him.

He's a good man! He was personally responsible for putting the Senate under Dem control by getting Jeffers to switch. And he's been responsible for stoping many of Bush's court appointees.

He deserves more respect than he gets here. Not every Democrat can toe the DU line. Some actually have diverse constituancies to serve.

[dansolo]

26. But he accomplished nothing after that

Dachle did a good job in getting Jeffords to switch, though I would credit Jeffords more than Daschle. The problem was that when Daschle had the majority, he was completely ineffective.

[Cheswick2.0]

30. no Bush is single handedly responsible for the Jeffords switch

And he had a lot of help from Lott.

[Mr Blond]

33. Wrong.

[tjdee]

22. Ditto.

Daschle is so underappreciated it verges on ridiculous.

[Mr Blond]

27. If he's not screaming for Bush's impeachment...

...and/or Gore being sworn-in every day, he's nothing but a worthless, spineless, DNC whore.

There is just no pleasing some people.

[Cheswick2.0]

29. LOL

Come on Billy, there are very valid reasons why people criticize pink tutu democrats. Lots of us just aren't going to vote for them anymore. We are taking the party back from those who have made our party the minority party on every level.

[takumi]

3. Daschle

He only has himself to blame (wimp)!

[UCLA02]

5. I don't think so...

The reason we think he's a wimp is the exact reason he's doing as "well" as he is in the polls. Think if he did walk and talk like a Kucinich or a Boxer, he'd have had his ass handed to him 2 or 3 elections ago in SD.

edited to welcome takumi to DU!

[trotsky]

6. Most excellent point.

We need to keep in mind that Daschle represents a VERY conservative state. In retrospect, he was a poor choice for Senate Majority/Minority leader, but he had to represent his constituents or face ouster. People forget that Daschle is still on our team, and is much more often on our side than not.

[UCLA02]

9. THANKS!!

People seem to miss the very practical aspect of his being there.

[Julien Sorel]

12. Sigh.

No, No No.

You simply don't get it. What the good people of South Dakota hunger, no starve for, is a two-fisted liberal like Kucinich. Hell, give them Nadir and they'd vote for him. It isn't that they care about ideology -- they want someone strong, and they'll throw ideology right out the window. Yeah, sure, you say, the last time South Dakota was in the red column Lyndon Johnson was running and Nixon hadn't put together his "solid South" + midwest coalition, but hey, give 'em a two fisted liberal and they'll come around -- just you watch.

[Cheswick2.0]

31. not true, he doesn't have to be a DK or Boxer.... but a little populism

wouldn't hurt. Instead he is a big corporate suck up. I hope he wins and wises up.

[ItsMyParty]

7. SD's are stupid

I don't care which party you are for. When you have a Senator in your state that has the position he has in Congress, you cut your own nuts off if you throw him out of office. Get rid of Tom and SD is just another underpopulated pig farm with no pull in Congress. But, people seem determine to slit their own throats this election, so let them do it and then let them see how much flows to them from the fed government.

[UCLA02]

8. My best friend is in SD. Help me convince him...

that Daschle gives pull to SD in the Senate and keeps it from being just that unpopulated pig farm. Specific farm bills, enviro, anything?

[markus]

10. If they think they can beat Daschle

I wonder why I'm not seeing ads up here in the Fargo market, which reaches into SD (and I've seen SD ads in the past).

The bad news--the DNC will soon be busing volunteers out of ND to boost Daschle in SD.

Which is probably OK, given our own prospects in the presidential and gubernatorial elections, and the relative safety of Dorgan and Pomeroy.

Hell, I'm thinking of decamping over the river to work for Kerry in Minnesota rather than spend too much time on ND candidates.

[John_H]

14. Daschle may provide still more proof that rolling over for the GOP is the

best way for a dem to loose a race.

[Julien Sorel]

16. "Still more proof?"

Perhaps you can cite others? Perhaps you can demonstrate how Daschle, in one of the reddest states in the union, could do better by being a Bush basher?

[Southern Patriot]

18. Cleland is one good example.

I hate to see the Dems lose a seat but if it means getting Daschle out of the leadership in the Senate then we've got to endure it.

[Julien Sorel]

19. Cleland is a bad example.

Cleland lost because he fought against the Homeland Security bill unless it included provisions to protect unions. Chambliss reamed him on it with ads, challenging him as soft on terror, and a race that Cleland had been winning turned against him. If he'd rolled over and let the bill through, no Chambliss ads = Cleland still a senator, in all probability.

Got another example? Because I've been making this challenge for several weeks and no one has come up with one single winner, but still the tiresome drone of "sissy Democrats" and so on goes on and on and on.

[Democat]

28. You want proof that rolling over for the GOP is a losing strategy?

How about looking at the 2000 and 2002 elections. What more proof do you want?

How about looking at which party controls every branch of government?

[Cheswick2.0]

32. to say nothing of 1994

[Julien Sorel]

38. So show me who in 2002 could have won

by not rolling over.

I'll show you two senators, Tim Johnson and Mary Landrieu, who held their seats by "rolling over," and two House members and one senator, Earl Hilliard, Cynthia McKinney, and Max Cleland respectively, who lost theirs by refusing to roll over. So show me their opposites. Who, in a competitive seat, won by not rolling over?

Because if what you say is true, there has to be someone out there who did it? So come on, let's see something besides inane, ignorant droning.

[Awsi Dooger]

17. What about the Indian vote this time?

That's what bailed it out for Tim Johnson in 2002, uncounted late Indian precincts in the wee hours.

Can we count on that overwhelming percentage again, or did the GOP make some phony promises to win a chunk of that vote? Have we registered more Indians, or was that taken care of virtually 100% last time? With such a small population in that state and razor margins, a 90% block among several thousand+ can be critically important again.

[Julien Sorel]

20. They were pretty maniacal in 2002.

This is one of those races where literally every vote counts -- Johnson won by 500 votes in '02 -- so I wouldn't be surprised if they went out and worked the reservation heavily again.

Bush isn't polling as well as he did in 2000, when he got 63% of the vote, as I recall, and maybe that will help Daschle. I don't think there's as much interest money pouring in to help Thune either this time, but Thune has good name recognition from 2002, and that poll is annoying.

[tjdee]

21. I say Daschle wins--why do Republicans like losers?

Ashcroft loses to dead man-- perfect for AG!

Thune lost in 2002... let's run him again!

Daschle knows how to get things done in SD. I'll never forget watching him go to people's houses for Johnson in 2002....he's going to win.

Uh....unless he loses. :(

[demokatgurrl]

25. I have mixed feelings about Daschle

I understand what you are saying- that he can't succeed in SD by being a Bush basher. However, he CAN have some backbone. The thing that I have not forgiven him for is telling the Dem senators not to sign to allow the representatives from FL to protest the 2000 election grab. Rather than have what- unrest? dissent? he rolled over. We need someone stronger as a leader. I'd like Hillary but I know she's too junior but surely there's someone else. Rockefeller? Schumer? Lautenberg?

On the other hand I hate to see us lose a seat. Ideally, he wins but is replaced as leader.
Maybe I just talked myself into making another donation to him.

[tjdee]

34. I heard that Gore requested the senators not hold things up....

I'm a bit brain dead and lazy at the moment, but I don't believe that Daschle was the figurehead who made those decisions....

I don't know that Daschle is the perfect leader, but he has done expertly at the Senate leader stuff we don't hear about--the technical manuevering, etc. Plus, the Dems keep electing him, they don't have to--apparently nobody else wants the job, LOL?

[CityDem]

23. This seat is important

We cannot retake the senate without a Daschle win. We have to do whatever it takes to win this election. Daschle may not be the most progressive senator in the world. But, he would never be elected in SD if he was as liberal as Boxer or Murray.

[quinnox]

24. Damn, way too close

If Daschle loses, it will be shameful for him. I can't believe he can't win his seat back! He better win.

[YellowDawgDemocrat]

35. Where do we get some of you guys?

Daschle has been at the front of the pack for us for 3 years fighting the chump and his minions. He has to mellow out a bit to win his seat in a heavy red state and you guys are ready to toss him to the Wolves.

Some of you idiots make me sick.

[Julien Sorel]

40. Ding Ding Ding!

And there's hope for this place yet.

[annabanana]

37. So no one here bothered to post donation link?

Help Tom Fight Back!
https://www.tomdaschle.com/contribute/contributejump4.php