As Trump acts even more deranged, Thune remains silent

Several reporters were hollering questions at Donald Trump on May 12 as he boarded Marine One. One pertinent question was whether the impact of his war against Iran on America’s economy factored into his negotiations strategy.

His response was clear: “Not even a little bit. The only thing that matters when I’m talking about Iran: they can’t have a nuclear weapon. I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation. I don’t think about anybody.”

Of course, Trump had bragged before the war that Iran’s nuclear capabilities had been decimated, and the agreement that Barack Obama had made with Iran over a decade ago gave us significant protection against Iran developing nuclear weapons, including regular inspections. But Trump had torn up that agreement when he took power, largely because he hates Obama.

But Trump rambled on: “Now, we had a choice: Let these lunatics have a nuclear weapon. If you want to do that, then you’re a stupid person. And you happen to be, I mean, I know you very well.”

Another reporter, Akayla Gardner from MS NOW, had a question about the radically increased cost of Trump’s planned ballroom, which would take the place of the White House East Wing, which he demolished without seeking approval from appropriate historical authorities. The original story was that the ballroom would cost about $400 million, all of which would be paid by private sources, presumably billionaires who seek to curry favor with our mercurial president.

Now Trump is seeking $1 billion from Congress, adding to the ballooning federal deficit, to add purported security features to the project. Rather than give a respectful or responsive answer, Trump chose to insult Gardner. “I doubled the size of it, you dumb person. You are not a smart person.”

As Trump becomes more unhinged, insulting and volatile, one might ask a simple question: Where is John Thune these days? You may remember that the man from Murdo is the majority leader of the U.S. Senate, in which capacity he presumably wields some influence.

Back when he ousted our previous Senate leader, Tom Daschle, in 2004, Thune seemed to be rational. In the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election, Thune made a point of endorsing his Senate colleague from South Carolina, Tim Scott, as soon as Scott announced his candidacy for president. From that, you might conclude that Thune wasn’t totally enamored with Trump. 

If you are waiting for Thune to show a modicum of courage and object to some of the excesses of the Trump administration, you may have a long wait. What did Thune think of Vice President JD Vance actively campaigning for the far-right party in Germany and for Hungary’s authoritarian leader Viktor Orban?

It appears that Vance’s meddling in the Hungarian election actually backfired, as Orban lost by a landslide.

What does Thune think of the plan to spend $1 billion of public funds on the vanity project, Trump’s ballroom?

Is Thune happy that the Trump administration has essentially abandoned Ukraine in its defensive battle against Russia, or that Trump has started a war against Iran with no clear objectives, no strategy, and a diminishing chance of success? 

Your guess is as good as mine. Thune isn’t saying much. 

Jay Davis of Rapid City is a retired lawyer and a regular South Dakota Standard contributor.

Photo: public domain, wikimedia commons

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