Michael J. Totten on South Dakota:
I don’t remember South Dakota. We blew through it on autopilot and cruise-control. Granted, it was dark for much of the way, but still. South Dakota, like Nebraska, is an enormous chore state. It seems to go on forever and ever and ever and there is almost no visual evidence of progress. How could Sean and I be so mentally zonked that we could forget that experience? We made that trip today. I still shudder at the memory of driving on I-80 across Nebraska ten years ago.
Now, who let him through the Walls of South Dakota?
(Sadly, though, he’s right. Driving through parts of South Dakota consists of driving through miles and miles of empty prarie. I actually tend to get a little agoraphobic driving through some parts of the state. The people that manage to live in rural South Dakota are far hardier than I…)
I actually enjoy driving through South Dakota’s wide open prairies….particularly when I clock in more than 500 miles of South Dakota territory without seeing a single “John Thune for Senate” sign. Is he even in the game there? The last I heard, he was yet to respond to millions of dollars of Tom Daschle ads on TV and radio. Perhaps it’s a sign he doesn’t really want it that badly. If he doesn’t start doing some heavy lifting soon, he’s gonna be at a serious disadvantage.
On the other hand, I saw nearly 20 Larry Diedrich signs. Either the guy has a smooth organization or more support than I would have expected following his June defeat.
Thune’s been running radio and TV ads across the state, all of them positive ones so far. I think he’s running fewer signs because he already has high name recognition (I haven’t seen a single Daschle sign around Sioux Falls, which is odd.)
Diedrich, on the other hand, was an unknown before running for the House, so he needs the help in name ID.
Your state also has the unique distinction of being the last state to get division 1 college sports. And that is now just coming with South Dakota State’s jump towards D-1 next year. Being in such a wilderness that lacks the name recognition sports can bring must make the SoDakers a hardy lot indeed.
You also have the smallest state capital with probably the least national profile of any state capital. South Dakota is indeed a peculiar place.
Yes, I think we share with New Mexico the distinction of having a state capital that isn’t even served by a Regional-class airport…