Sibby Online

Wadhams back in South Dakota

From the Rapid City Journal:

The man who masterminded Republican Sen. John Thune’s defeat of former Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle told a West River Republican crowd of more than 300 Thursday night that they deserved the credit for Thune’s "historic" win.

Dick Wadhams, who managed Thune’s campaign, reflected on that election day a year ago this month during the South Dakota Republican Party state dinner in Rapid City at the Ramkota on Thursday night.

"We could tell that the Democratic counties East River were coming in for Daschle but not with the margins he should have," Wadhams said. "All I could think about was the Black Hills. … It was like a slingshot because of you folks. It was like a big cannon blowing through that Daschle lead."

Introduced by Thune’s wife, Kimberley, Wadhams said the 2004 contest between Thune and Daschle "was a campaign that pitted South Dakota values against their (the Democrats’) argument of clout."

Wadhams said he was asked by a reporter why he was working for "a former congressman who lost, who has no money or no staff, running against the Senate minority leader who has $4 million in the bank and a field staff of 50."

"I said, ‘I call it a fair fight,’" Wadhams said. "It was a fair fight because we had John Thune and they didn’t."

Republican Party state dinners were held in Rapid City and Sioux Falls. Wadhams and Gov. Mike Rounds, who headlined both events, flew to Rapid City after appearing in Sioux Falls.

And as usual, David Kranz's version attempts to casue trouble for the conservatives:

Dick Wadhams returned to South Dakota for a hero's welcome Thursday, cheered by Republicans for steering Sen. John Thune's defeat of Sen. Tom Daschle.

The victory not only gave the Colorado political strategist a ranking of genius among his peers, he also inherited an expectation by the Washington, D.C., media as "the next Karl Rove."

Wadhams and Gov. Mike Rounds were featured speakers Friday at State Republican dinners in Sioux Falls and Rapid City.

Wadhams returned the compliment to her, saying that when he first met her in the Thune family kitchen, "I was thinking we had the wrong candidate."

With Thune elected, Wadhams now has other political business on his mind, mainly helping get his new boss, Sen. George Allen, R-Va., re-elected and repositioned for a 2008 run for the presidency.

Those Wadhams connections with Thune and Allen created a predictable buzz with several Republicans here Thursday: An Allen presidential nomination could result in an Allen-Thune ticket.

It's not far-fetched to think about that scenario, said Randy Frederick, state Republican Party chairman.

"I would not put it out of the realm of possibility, a relatively nice match with the east and west regions married together," he said.

Wadhams said Friday that he didn't want to publicly speculate about that possibility.

Out with the old, in with the new

From NewsMax:

Thune has assumed "ownership" of Daschle's longtime Rapid City office. In fact, he took down Daschle's sign and put up his own on New Year's Eve, ABC-TV affiliate KOTA is reporting.

Sharing office space – in a sense – is an irony because during a hard-fought political campaign, Thune and Daschle shared very little, especially in terms of politics.

Republicans drafted Thune, a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, to run against South Dakota's other liberal senator, Democrat Tim Johnson, in 2002. Thune lost in heartbreaking fashion – by just 500 votes.

He came back in 2004 to challenge the obstructionist Daschle for his seat.

So riveting was the match-up – conservatives were hoping beyond hope that the main obstacle to President Bush's agenda in the Senate would be ousted – that Roll Call, Capitol Hill's newspaper of record, ran an Oct. 4, 2004 story headlined "After Bush-Kerry, Thune-Daschle is the Main Event."

As Senate minority leader, Daschle became synonymous with spearheading Democrat-led filibusters of many nominees he believed were not liberal enough to sit on the federal bench.

Polls showed a tight race all the way up to Election Day, though a few weeks out Daschle was still holding a narrow lead. Thune won by only 4,500 votes.

One point of satisfaction for Thune: His mentor and personal hero, former Republican U.S. Sen. Jim Abdnor from South Dakota, who lost a re-election bid to Daschle in 1986, was in Thune's headquarters the evening of Nov. 2 to witness Daschle's demise.

As for the office space, the ABC-TV affiliate says a Thune staffer claims the site was chosen because it is conveniently located. But we think maybe Thune, like the majority of South Dakota voters in his district, just couldn't wait to see Daschle go.

Election heard around the world

From AIM:

I think Senator John Thune of South Dakota also has potential. He had his first election stolen from him and he graciously conceded. Later Thune unseated Minority Leader Tom Daschle. Had Thune defeated Senator Tim Johnson no one would have noticed because that was in 2002, when with the help of Jim Talent of Missouri, Norm Coleman of Minnesota and Saxbe Chambliss of Georgia, Republicans regained control of the United States Senate.

If Thune had been added to the list he would have been just an additional vote. To defeat Daschle Thune had to be tougher. He became tougher and ran what friends told me was a near perfect campaign that pounded Daschle on social issues. Thune defeating the Minority Leader, the first time a leader of either party was defeated since 1952, was an election heard around the world. He has some stature now. Hopefully he will make use of it.

The pit bull Dick Wadhams

I found this piece about John Thune’s campaign manager, Dick Wadhams. Excerpt:

For the Thune campaign against Daschle last year, Wadhams’ message was that "Daschle had changed and his positions had morphed away from the values of South Dakota," said William D. Richardson, chairman of the political science department at the University of South Dakota.

Drawing on a campaign treasury inflated largely by Allen’s national fund raising, Wadhams flooded the airwaves and newspapers with ads highlighting Daschle’s support for abortion and homosexual rights and his purchase of a mansion in Washington’s tony Georgetown neighborhood.

"Daschle was reduced to being defensive. … You saw the ads everywhere," Richardson said.

"We recruited the best pit bull out there," a victorious Thune told the Rocky Mountain News just after the election.

Other longtime observers note that Wadhams works the "free media" – political journalists – with a zest rarely seen among conservative Republicans, who often regard reporters as closet Democrats, or worse.

Wadhams’ candidates rarely call news conferences, but journalists learn to expect a barrage of phone calls and e -mail messages pushing the campaign’s line of attack.

"He hits you with lots of information," Stratton said.

Wadhams can be engaging, wisecracking with reporters about the ebb and flow of the campaign, he and others said . But when their stories don’t sufficiently reflect his point of view, journalists are apt to find themselves his targets.

This helps explain this excerpt from last week’s column by the Argus Leader executive editor Randell Beck:

For one thing, it's been at least eight weeks since adherents of a political party that credits its recent electoral success to a strong stand on moral values ...

A) called me a vicious or coarse name,

B) called one or more of my co-workers a vicious or coarse name, and

C) called a certain deposed senator a vicious or coarse name.

More election analysis

I think SDP’s analysis of the 2004 South Dakota Senate race is right on the mark:

The Daschle camp attempted to condition voters to believe that any fact-based criticism of Daschle was a "negative attack" and whined about "John Thune's negative ads" even when Thune had not run a single ad that even mentioned Tom Daschle. Daschle knew he was in trouble if his record became a topic for discussion, so he tried to condition voters to ignore any scrutiny of his record. Obviously, that strategy failed. But it seems to me that strategy was the only option the Daschle camp had. If there was to be any discussion of taxes and cultural issues in an ultra-red state like South Dakota, Daschle was automatically losing. The best strategy was to take advantage of the Midwestern notion to believe the best about everyone by portraying any scrutiny, even non-existent scrutiny, as a mean, nasty, negative attack, and hope the voters would be adequately conditioned to simply ignore any scrutiny of his record. If voters ignored scrutiny of Daschle's record, he could get away with saying things like "I am adamantly opposed to abortion on demand" despite penning a fundraising letter for NARAL; saying "I am a strong proponent of the Second Amendment" despite getting an "F" from the NRA; saying "I'm not in favor of raising anybody's taxes" despite fighting tooth and nail against making the Bush tax cuts permanent. It was a good strategy, but it could only hold back the dam for so long. I think Ross is wrong about Daschle "allowing" Thune to define the debate. Daschle was trying to keep a debate from even happening, or, to continue the analogy, trying to make it impossible for Thune to fire away with all of the ammo at his disposal.

DVT found analysis from Thune’s campaign manager, Dick Wadhams:

Dick Wadhams, who ran Thune’s campaign, said, "I don’t think the Daschle camp ever fully adjusted to the new John Thune," who didn’t repeat some of the mistakes he made in his 2002 Senate race. Wadhams said Thune was helped by his performance in several debates, by the emergence of abortion as a major campaign issue and by efforts to portray Daschle as a Washington insider. The Thune campaign ran ads about Daschle’s wife, Linda, a Washington lobbyist, and another anti-Daschle ad included a clip of Daschle saying he was a resident of Washington.

"The basic fact that he had been in Congress for 26 years I think hurt him," Wadhams said.

Thune's campaign manager

Ther Aberdeen News has a report on Thune's campaign manager, Dick Wadhams. Excerpt:

In South Dakota, the idea was the same, with Wadhams attacking Daschle on conservative social issues such as gay marriage and abortion.

''This was a simple message,'' Wadhams said. ''Tom Daschle had steadily become more liberal over the 26 years that he represented South Dakota in Congress. Our campaign was to point out that Daschle would say one thing in Washington, but something else here in South Dakota.''

Thune reflects on campaign

Yesterday John Thune held a media conference call. I read the Argus Leader’s coverage this morning, but I found this Rapid City Journal report much more in depth. Excerpt:

Daschle campaign staffers had complained throughout the campaign that advertisements by Thune and by the National Republican Senatorial Committee were unfairly distorting the truth about Daschle's positions and votes. Thune said that although he didn't see all of the NRSC advertisements, what he saw of them also appeared factual.

"I think it's been a long time, frankly, since anybody had the resources to challenge him (Daschle) on the record," Thune said. "I think it was very much, again, about the record. Sometimes, people don't have their record scrutinized. I think that part of standing for re-election is to have your record analyzed."

Daschle campaign spokes-man Dan Pfeiffer declined Friday to respond directly to Thune's comments. But Pfeiffer said the style of the campaign would stay with Thune.

"The tone, tenor and truthfulness of campaigns often come to define candidates for their entire career," Pfeiffer said. "There will be time to look at how this campaign will define John Thune. That time is probably not today."

In regard to how campaigns can define one's career, the same can be said about campaign staffers. For losers Pfeiffer and Hildebrand, their furture should be of a concern to themselves. Here is what Thune said about his campagin manager:

Thune said he wasn't sure what the manager of his campaign, Dick Wadhams, would do next.

"He obviously is someone with great talents who I think could do anything he wants," Thune said.

UPDATE: Note the AP decided to use the Argus Leader report and not the Rapid City Journal. Bad choice.

DC Tom exposed

Robert Novak:

The electorate is simply too conservative for the Democrats, as shown by the defeat of Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle in South Dakota. The formula of taking the straight liberal line in Washington and talking conservative at home does not work when a Democrat's every move becomes visible as a member of the leadership.

The Giant Killer

Here is a transcript from CNN's 11/4 JUDY WOODRUFF'S INSIDE POLITICS:

WOODRUFF: John Thune's victory over Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle was probably the Republicans' second biggest win on Tuesday, behind only President Bush. Daschle was seeking a fourth term, and Republicans made him a top target in the nation's most expensive Senate race.

We're joined now by Republican senator-elect John Thune.

Congratulations.

JOHN THUNE (R), SENATOR-ELECT, SOUTH DAKOTA: Thank you very much, Judy.

WOODRUFF: So what's it feel like to be a giant killer?

THUNE: Well, I don't know about that, but it felt good. We had a tough election. It was -- we knew it was going to be close, and we were fortunate. It was one of those races that could go either way, but we had a good ground operation.

And I think a lot of elections that were close this year really came down to turning out the vote. And the vote turned out big in South Dakota this year. And I think that benefited us, and we were able to eke out a narrow win, but a win that's important not only for South Dakota but for the country and hopefully for the functioning of the United States Senate. WOODRUFF: You are -- have identify yourself -- aligned yourself closely with President Bush. What do you expect to see him push, and what do you expect to support him on early in his second term?

THUNE: Well, I think there -- you know, there were a lot things that were stalled out in the United States Senate prior to the last -- prior to this election, you know, whether a judicial nominations, I think, probably making the tax relief permanent, trying to get the energy policy jumpstarted again, a number of health care reforms, medical malpractice reform, welfare reform has stalled out in the Senate.

I think there are a number of initiatives that the president will likely want to get moving again and hopefully through the Senate.

And maybe look at some of the bigger issues, tackling tax reform, looking at some improvements in Social Security. I think there are a number of issues out there on the agenda.

But my guess is the immediate business will be taking up some of the issues that have been stalled out in the Senate up until now and trying to get that agenda moving again.

WOODRUFF: Let me quote to you what a couple of your colleagues to be have been saying.

Republican Lindsey Graham, South Carolina, he's saying, "My concern is that a lot of Republicans will not boldly embrace the president's plan for tax reform and Social Security." He said, "We have six months to give the president a legacy."

What do -- what do you think the big challenges are going to be?

THUNE: Well, you know, I think that there -- this is a very obviously, a diverse country. And as the elections have shown all across the country, many of these races were too close to call right until to the end.

But I do think the president comes in with a fairly strong mandate. I think he's got good majorities now in now both the House and Senate. And I think, you know, the immediate business is going to be to deal with some of things I just mentioned.

But I do believe that some of these bigger issues that have been looming out there for a long time, this is an opportunity -- we have a window here to address some of those things.

And I think there are a lot of people around the country who want to see, you know, something done with the tax code to make it simpler and more fair, something done to prolong the longevity of Social Security. And so it will be interesting, I think, to see.

I suspect that the Democrats in the Senate will dig in on some of these issues, but I think after the elections this year, they're not going to be in the same position they were prior to it. I think that there was a clear message sent about the need for constructive forward-looking leadership and a willingness to work on moving the agenda forward, rather than blocking and stopping and obstructing it.

WOODRUFF: Well, another one of your colleagues to be, Senator Olympia Snowe, who's seen as a moderate Republican from the state of Maine, she said regrettably, she said, "We've seen an erosion in the state Senate of centrists on both sides of the aisle."

Is that -- is that going to be a problem?

THUNE: Well, you know, I think that we're going to have to find that obviously, in order -- in a legislative body, you have to find that middle ground, Judy. And I think we will do that.

But I do think this is a center right coalition. This is a governing coalition with the president and the House and the Senate that is going to be right of center. I know there are going to be a lot of, you know, liberals in the House and the Senate who aren't going to like that or around the country, but that's what this election was about.

And I think it's created an opportunity to build coalitions, and there are a number of people who, I think, will find that ground in the middle and try and -- and try and move toward solutions and instead, you know, of the legislative gridlock I think that's characterized the Senate of late.

But bearing in mind that this is a -- you know, these are going to be center right-type solutions. And I think that's the kind of coalition that exists today in the Congress. That's the kind of agenda the president is going to push.

And I would hope that we'll have success in luring, you know, Democrats and Republicans from all sides of the political spectrum to work together to try and accomplish it.

WOODRUFF: Senator-elect John Thune from the state of South Dakota, again congratulations.

THUNE: Thank you very much, Judy.

WOODRUFF: And we appreciate it. And we hope to see you here in Washington. Thank you.

THUNE: We're looking forward to it. Thank you.

The Dakota Blog Alliance

SDP has provided insight on how the Dakota Blog Alliance came about and included the origin of Sibby Online:

I began this blog in January of 2003 for one big reason: to challenge the Argus Leader to scrutinize Democratic political figures in this state as closely as they did Republican figures. I envisioned a network of like-minded bloggers around the state of South Dakota who could add their thoughts and reinforce this message. This vision has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations. Steve Sibson of "Sibby Online" began to blog in May of 2003, and we spent the remainder of 2003 struggling to spread the word about the Argus Leader's unwillingness to scrutinize Senator Daschle the way the Argus Leader had scrutinized Senator Pressler.

DVT found this analysis on the North Dakota Senate race verses the South Dakota race:

Pray for conservative Web logs to arise. This little-noticed development deserves a lot more attention.

The Daschle-Thune race differed from previous South Dakota Senate races in this way: Conservative Web logs gave South Dakota voters access to news like never before.

Take a look and you'll see what we mean: Web sites such as Daschle vs. Thune (daschlevthune.typepad.com/daschle_v_thune/) and a few others chipped away at Daschle's image day after day.

They also charged South Dakota's major newspapers were in Daschle's pocket. They backed the charge by showcasing, for example, the fact that Sioux Falls (S.D.) Argus Leader's political reporter had been active in the Democratic Party as a South Dakota State University student in the 1960s - as had his then-friend and fellow student, Tom Daschle.

These Web logs served as a South Dakota version of Rush Limbaugh's talk show, legitimizing criticism of the incumbent and using the media as a whipping boy. The reports galvanized Daschle's opposition and gave them lots of material to rally around.
Balanced?

No. Fair? Probably not. Effective? Yes.

I really like the “South Dakota version of Rush Limbaugh's talk show” part.

I was also mentioned on the ranchers.net web site:

Sibby, i just want to really thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you did for the Thune campaign. you and the other SD bloggers helped to win this for John Thune as much or maybe more than anybody. i don't know what i would have done for REAL news in the Daschle v Thune race without all of you. but your blog was my mainstay. i am just really grateful for your hard work and dedication.

All of these kind words are nice to hear, but the Thune victory was a team effort. The Dakota Blog Alliance certainly was a factor, but the real impact was from our readers. Without you, we are simply yelling in a vacuum. Thanks to you all.