Pressler Receives Another Boost in South Dakota Comeback Bid

Former South Dakota Sen. Larry Pressler’s quest to “end the poisonous partisanship in Washington” received another last-minute boost yesterday when his independent candidacy for the U.S. Senate was endorsed by the Rapid City Journal, the state’s second-largest newspaper.

Pressler, who is currently running third in the polls behind Republican Mike Rounds, a former two-term governor, and Democrat Rick Weiland, a folksy, guitar-playing restaurateur, is hoping to regain the U.S. Senate seat he lost in 1996.

The Rapid City Journal’s backing of his long-shot candidacy follows closely on the heels of a similar endorsement from The Argus Leader, the state’s largest newspaper.

It also comes only a few days after Sen. Angus King of Maine — one of only two independent members of the U.S. Senate — publicly endorsed the 72-year-old Pressler. In endorsing Pressler, the Maine senator said that the South Dakotan would help to “build bridges between Democrats and Republicans” in badly-polarized Washington.

In throwing its support to the former lawmaker, the Rapid City Journal criticized former Gov. Rounds for his handling of the EB-5 federal immigration/investment program and faulted the Democratic candidate for failing to demonstrate a sufficient understanding of the issues.

“Pressler, who famously turned down a bribe during the Abscam sting in Washington D.C., has the integrity and experience to bring real change to Washington,” wrote the Journal, adding that the former senator’s independent candidacy was particularly “attractive at a time when deep partisanship divides our leaders and much of our nation.”

Describing the independent candidate as “an elder statesman,” the South Dakota newspaper said that Pressler’s 18 years of experience in Washington — he actually served on Capitol Hill for 22 consecutive years, including three terms in the U.S. Senate and two in the House — “gives him a strong foundation of knowledge about how government works, or can work, and he will bring immediate seniority and clout to the post if elected.”

The “Vietnam veteran, Rhodes Scholar and Harvard Law graduate,” concluded the Journal, “also demonstrates a deep sense of caring about South Dakota, and its people, and appears willing to tackle local issues such as improving air service to Rapid City and other smaller towns across the Great Plains.”