Sen. John Thune (R-SD) for president?

[Suburbia]

Would Sen. John Thune of South Dakota be a good Republican presidential candidate? What are his appeals, what are his disadvantages? Is he too Midwestern?

[I Will Not Be Wrong]

He would be a great candidate, as he is has proven to be a very popular politician. Too bad he will not run.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

No.

[Vega]

He won't run.

[GLPman]

What evidence is there that Thune won't run?

[Bull Moose Base]

What evidence is there that Thune won't run?

The lack of a single piece of evidence that he will?

But there are usually people who surprise by running. Maybe that'll be Thune this time. He would be utterly annihilated.

[Supersonic]

Boring.

[Suburbia]

He announced recently that he isn't running.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/23/john-thune-2016_n_5202271.html?utm_hp_ref=politics
What a disappointment. He could have been a dark horse and sane choice. Why would he want to be a Senate Minority or Majority Leader when he defeated Tom Daschle, when he had that same post in 2004?
I thought Thune would want more higher national aspirations. What a shame. If the 2016 field is very weak, and Bush and Walker does not run, does anyone see the establishment forcing Thune to be a last-minute candidate like they tried to do with Mitch Daniels in 2016?
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0212/73160.html
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/212087-demint-hypothesizes-mitch-daniels-as-last-minute-candidate-calls-it-unlikely-event

[henster]

No one knows who he is even the Beltway press isn't even talking about him.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

No one knows who he is even the Beltway press isn't even talking about him.

                             ^
                              ;


Please see me after class. ~ Mrs. Sanchez   


(sorry, couldn't resist)

[Suburbia]

Jimmy Carter was an unknown governor from Georgia and he rose up to win the '76 nomination and the presidency. Thune I guess just likes to stand next to Mitch McConnell and nod at press conferences instead of being one of the GOP's leaders for 2016 and the future.

[MurrayBannerman]

Thune would be great at the top of the ticket.

[Suburbia]

If Indiana Gov. Pence is the nominee, a Pence-Thune ticket would be a classic, but if Thune doesn't run for President or accept a VP slot, he may be in a Cabinet post.

[Pessimistic Antineutrino]

He's already Republican Conference Chair-next in line after Cornyn. He could easily become the Republican Senate Leader within 10 years, I don't see why he would want to detract from that goal by running for president. He would be a decent candidate (albeit boring) but it's clear he wants to be Senate Majority Leader instead.

[Lincoln Republican]

Jeb Bush/John Thune 2016. 

[pbrower2a]

He draws little attention even in right-wing media such as FoX Propaganda Channel. Until I see otherwise I don't take him seriously as a candidate for President.

[Suburbia]

Thune was on "Face the Nation" this morning. He had a bland performance, but bland may be better than eccentric.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

He's #3 in the Senate, so he's going to be on the Sunday shows. That means nothing.

[Fuzzy Says: "Abolish NPR!"]

To be a viable Presidential candidate in a situation as is the 2016 GOP field, you have to stand out from the rest of the crowd in some way that will draw you attention and money early on.  Being a solid, workmanlike legislator, even rising up the Senate leadership ladder, is not the way to do that.  You've got to have some sort of leadership props, or, at the least, a new gimmick.

Marco Rubio is fading, while Ted Cruz is hanging in.  Why?  Because Cruz is seen as a leader.  A leader of an unruly GOP faction, to be sure, but a leader.  Rubio isn't seen as a leader; he's seen as an attention hound, whose gimmicks (immigration reform) don't play well with his potential audience.

Jeb Bush breaks out of the pack because of who he is.

Mitt Romney COULD break out of the pack because of who he is, past gaffes aside.

Chris Christie actually DID break out of the pack, because of where he's from, and he hasn't been swallowed up yet.

Rand Paul COULD break out of the pack because he, like Cruz, is a leader of a faction.

John Thune is the kind of guy who would be a compromise candidate in a brokered convention where all the leaders were hopelessly damaged by their primary campaigns and the convention was deadlocked.  Short of that unlikely scenario, he's got no chance.  He's not the LEADER of anything, nor does he have a gimmick to stand him out from the rest.

[ElectionsGuy]

Too establishment, boring, dull, etc.

[Suburbia]

Too establishment, boring, dull, etc.

Do you see him being picked as a running mate?

[ElectionsGuy]

Too establishment, boring, dull, etc.

Do you see him being picked as a running mate?

Yes, there's a good chance he'll be a VP consideration.

[pbrower2a]

From a sure R state with three electoral votes, from a political region with little clout. He'd be extremely valuable if he could swing Iowa and Minnesota together, but those two neighboring states are little like South Dakota in their politics.

Good side for the Republicans:

1. Knocked off the Tom Daschle.
2. Not controversial.
3. Won't abandon the VP race to defend a House seat.
4. SD is a likely R state in the election to replace him 

[history nerd]

Even South Dakotan Republicans have a hard time getting excited about Thune. He is on the Senate fast track to leadership so I don't see why he would want to run for President when he doesn't have a major chance to win. Even as VP I am unsure about. The GOP seems to like to have establishment candidates with more energetic running mates. Unless Paul or Cruz gets the nod and needs someone safe for the VP slot then I don't see it happening.