John Thune

John Randolph Thune (born January 7, 1961) is the junior U.S. Senator from the state of South Dakota.

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Born in Pierre, South Dakota, one of the smallest state capitals in the United States, and raised in Murdo, South Dakota, an even smaller town, Thune graduated from the Christian evangelical Biola University in 1983, and received an MBA from the University of South Dakota in 1984.

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A member of the Republican Party, Thune worked for U.S. Senators James Abdnor and Larry Pressler, as well as the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Under President Reagan, Thune worked at the Small Business Administration. From 1991 until 1993, Thune was the Railroad Director of South Dakota under an appointment by Governor George S. Mickelson.

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In 1996, Thune was elected to South Dakota's seat in the United States House of Representatives; he won reelection in 1998 and 2000. Thune supported term limits and promised to serve no more than three terms in the House. As a result, he challenged Senator Tim Johnson, but lost to Johnson by 524 (disputed) votes or 0.15%. Thune ran for the Senate again two years later; on November 2, 2004, Thune defeated Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle with 51% of the vote in the 2004 senatorial elections.

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Thune made news again when it was found out he would be voting against John Bolton for the position of United Stated Ambassador to the United Nations. Thune joins George Voinovich of Ohio as the only other Republican to break ranks from his party on this issue. Thune said his vote would be a protest against announced plans to close Ellsworth AFB. During the campaign, both Thune and Majority Leader Bill Frist had claimed that having a senator who belonged to the majority party would help increase the odds of Ellsworth staying open. In fact, on August 26, 2005, the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission voted to go against Pentagon recommendations and keep Ellsworth AFB open.

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Several controversies have surrounded Thune, including his lobbying activity on behalf of big beef importers before running for the Senate. Since much of South Dakota's economy is based on the beef industry, ranchers were not thrilled by Thune's aid to the suppliers of foreign beef.

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January 7: January 7 is the seventh day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 358 days remaining (359 in leap years)....

1961: 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar)....

U.S. Senator: REDIRECT United States Senate...

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