This is Nice

Two former Daschle staffers have formed an organization to criticize Sen. John Thune for his stance on social security reform. 

Sioux Falls, SD – With the first hearings on the future of Social Security
planned for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee later this month, concerned
South Dakota citizens have formed a new statewide coalition called South
Dakotans United to Protect Social Security with the sole objective of
defeating President George W. Bush’s expensive and risky scheme to privatize
Social Security.

“President Bush and the anti-Social Security forces, like John Thune, want
to replace Social Security with a privatization plan that is a bad deal for
South Dakotans,” said Jeremy Funk of Americans United to protect Social
Security, the national campaign arm of South Dakotans United. “Privatization
is a bad deal because it replaces security with insecurity by slashing the
guaranteed benefit.  It will hurt our economy and put a huge new tax burden
on Americans by requiring massive new borrowing and debt.  Private accounts
don’t add a single day to the life of Social Security, and privatization
will weaken Social Security by diverting trillions that would otherwise be
used to pay guaranteed benefits.  We believe that instead of replacing and
weakening Social Security, we should be taking common sense steps to
strengthen Social Security so that people who pay into the system can rely
on it as a foundation for retirement security throughout the 21st century,”
Funk added.

Steve Hildebrand, a South Dakota native, who is serving as co-manager of the
national campaign for Americans United, will also head up the South Dakota
effort.

“It’s unfortunate that Senator Thune has agreed to be the President’s ‘point
man’ in promoting a risky investment scheme that would slash our guaranteed
benefit by 45 percent and explode the national debt by $5 trillion.  That’s
just not a ‘South Dakota value’ we share with the Senator.  Instead of
carrying the President’s water on this terrible plan, John Thune should tell
the Senate Finance Committee what the people of South Dakota certainly
believe – privatization is a bad deal for South Dakotans,” said Hildebrand.

South Dakotans United is also disappointed with Senator Thune’s failure to
address his constituents’ grave concerns over privatization back home in
town hall settings.

“You would think the ‘point man’ for Bush’s privatization plan could find
the time to hear his constituents’ thoughts on the matter,” added Funk.

Hildebrand and Funk are veteran South Dakota Campaign operatives
both having worked most recently on the campaign of former U.S. Senate
Minority Leader Tom Daschle.

The leaders of the group are former Daschle campaign manager Steve Hildebrand and Jeremy Funk.  Funk is best know for being arrested for tailgating John Thune's campaign bus in 2002.  In addition, he now runs a blog where he promoted T-Shirts that say F$#@ John Thune.  Funk has also mentioned on his blog how he would like to tear off various parts of John Thune's anatomy and said that John Thune's message to Native Americans is F@#$ You.  This group seems more like a personal vendetta fueled by an intense hatred of the person who beat their boss in a fair election than anything constructive.  Maybe rather telling us why privatization is so bad and John Thune is evil Funk should come up with a better solution.   At the very least he should follow Tom Daschle's example and show some dignity and class in defeat.