Commission Votes to Keep S.D. Base Open

Excuse me for being gratified about this. It's a real feather in Thunes cap for having done something it's likely Daschle could not.

WASHINGTON - The base closing commission voted Friday to keep open Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.

The surprise decision was a setback for Pentagon leaders, a blessing for South Dakotans who feared losing some 4,000 jobs, and a victory for Sen. John Thune and the state's other politicians who lobbied vigorously to save the base. Thune, a freshman Republican, unseated then-Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle partly on the strength of his claim that he would be better positioned to help save the base.

"Oh my, God. It's a fantastic day," said Pennington County Commission member Mark Kirkeby, who had tears in his eyes as he watched the vote on television in Rapid City, S.D.

A politician actually keeping a promise made to voters, go figure.