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S. Dakota senator out of intensive care unit (Senator Tim Johnson)
AP and Washington Post ^ | 12 January 2007 | Mary Clare Jalonick

Posted on 01/12/2007 2:22:19 PM PST by shrinkermd

WASHINGTON -- Senator Tim Johnson has been transferred out of intensive care and has said some words, his doctor said yesterday, nearly a month after the South Dakota Democrat had a brain hemorrhage.

An MRI on Wednesday showed the speech centers in the senator's brain were spared injury in the initial hemorrhage Dec. 13, said Johnson's neurosurgeon

"This is confirmed by the fact that he is following commands and has started to say words," Deshmukh said in a statement released by Johnson's office.

Johnson will be participating in "aggressive therapy" in the inpatient rehabilitation unit at George Washington University Hospital, the statement said.

Johnson's doctors have said that when he arrived at the hospital, he was feeling weakness on his right side, and that condition will require physical therapy.

The senator has responded correctly when asked his name, Fisher said, though there is not much sound coming out of his mouth because of a tracheotomy tube in his throat.

"It is clear that he understands that people are introducing themselves, he is looking at name badges to try to associate it with the person, he is saying words and responding to commands," she said.

The progress is slow, Fisher said, but he is improving.

"The fact that Tim is beginning to use words is remarkable as is his strength and determination," the senator's wife, Barb, said in the statement. "He even maintains his sense of humor when I share e-mails about his grandsons' adventures."

On Tuesday, Johnson's condition was upgraded from critical to fair, and his doctors said he no longer needed a ventilator to help him breathe. He is being weaned off the tracheotomy tube that remains in his neck, his office said Wednesday.

His office has said that his recovery is expected to take several months

(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; Politics/Elections; US: South Dakota; Unclassified
KEYWORDS: congress; good; news; senatorjohnson; ussenate
Good news. The report is much more positive than one would expect from his lengthy time in the ICU as well as his recent history.
1 posted on 01/12/2007 2:22:22 PM PST by shrinkermd
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To: shrinkermd
Glad to hear it. A stroke is a nasty piece of business I wouldn't wish on anyone.
2 posted on 01/12/2007 2:25:47 PM PST by Lx (Do you like it, do you like it. Scott? I call it Mr. and Mrs. Tennerman chili.)
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To: shrinkermd
The senator has responded correctly when asked his name, Fisher said, though there is not much sound coming out of his mouth because of a tracheotomy tube in his throat.

So is he "saying words" or not?

3 posted on 01/12/2007 2:25:49 PM PST by Bahbah (.Regev, Goldwasser & Shalit, we are praying for you.)
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To: shrinkermd

I am so glad he is out of ICU but he sure has a long road ahead of him.

I wonder at what point will it be determined if he can remain in the Senate. I really do not see him returning.


4 posted on 01/12/2007 2:27:31 PM PST by Kimmers (It's not what you take when you leave this world behind, it's what you leave behind when you go)
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To: Bahbah
The senator has responded correctly when asked his name

Which proves conclusively that he is more intelligent than at least 90% of the other democrats in congress.

5 posted on 01/12/2007 2:28:29 PM PST by Graybeard58 (Remember and pray for SSgt. Matt Maupin - MIA/POW- Iraq since 04/09/04)
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To: shrinkermd

PRAYERS UP FOR HIM AND HIS FAMILY !!!! GOOD NEWS !!!


6 posted on 01/12/2007 2:28:31 PM PST by Jeffrey_D. (Seek first to understand, then to be understood)
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To: shrinkermd

Very good. Wishing you a full recovery, Senator Johnson.


7 posted on 01/12/2007 2:30:20 PM PST by Lexinom (Duncan Hunter 2008 - www.peacethroughstrengthpac.com)
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To: shrinkermd

Best wishes for all.


8 posted on 01/12/2007 2:37:02 PM PST by Socratic (A family is more than a matter of genetics.)
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To: Kimmers

He can stay in the Senate as long as he's alive. And the Dems will make sure he stays. They would most likely lose their majority if he resigned.

There's plenty of precedent for Senators to stay on when they can't really function, it's just that it hasn't happened when the majority status was at stake.


9 posted on 01/12/2007 3:20:18 PM PST by speekinout
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To: shrinkermd

He has already surpassed both Ted Kennedy and Bobby Byrd in present verbal capacity. Good for him.


10 posted on 01/12/2007 3:29:48 PM PST by rod1
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To: speekinout

The elected always seem to have some interesting ideas...."do as I say not as I do"..health insurance, retirement, general perks of the game..

I doubt you or I would be kept on in an organization if we were a none functioning warm body.


11 posted on 01/12/2007 3:52:36 PM PST by Kimmers (It's not what you take when you leave this world behind, it's what you leave behind when you go)
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To: Bahbah

When my son had a tracheotomy tube in his throat he could not speak.


12 posted on 01/12/2007 3:58:45 PM PST by BARLF
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To: BARLF

I feel terrible for Senator Johnson and his family, but I have a sneaking suspicion that they are trying to make him sound better than he is for political purposes, which I think is just an awful thing to do. They are telling us he is saying words under circumstances where he cannot be doing so.


13 posted on 01/12/2007 4:02:49 PM PST by Bahbah (.Regev, Goldwasser & Shalit, we are praying for you.)
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To: Kimmers
I doubt you or I would be kept on in an organization if we were a none functioning warm body.

That's not necessarily true. I personally know of several cases where an employer has kept a job open for someone who has had a long term disability. And they weren't even as important as keeping a party in power.

14 posted on 01/12/2007 4:04:11 PM PST by speekinout
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To: Bahbah
I feel terrible for Senator Johnson and his family

I totally agree.

15 posted on 01/12/2007 4:10:41 PM PST by BARLF
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To: speekinout

You know, you are so right....my cynical side can take over once in awhile.. Years ago my husbands father was dying of cancer and Carrier still offered him a vice president position of which he declined. They still kept him on at full pay and benefits even when he could not work.

I am glad for this family. It is such a heartache and feeling of helplessness seeing your loved one like this. I hope he continues to improve.


16 posted on 01/12/2007 4:21:00 PM PST by Kimmers (It's not what you take when you leave this world behind, it's what you leave behind when you go)
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To: shrinkermd

I hope this fella recovers from this trauma fast and fully. That said, the responsible thing for him to do for the people he represents is to resign. He is not representing them right now and I don't think anyone would seriously disagree with that fact.

This is not to say he cannot run for this office again in the future because he most certainly could, and should, if his health allowed it.

It may sound cold, it may even sound partison, but the reality is that his constituants are not being represented yet they are still being taxed. That is wrong IMHO and it is irresponsible to allow this to continue.

Allow the proper process to play out so that the people have what they are supposed to have as far as representation. If that means a Republican is put in his place, and Senate control is lost, well that is the breaks. If a Democrat is chosen to replace him, so be it. Either way, a serious breach of trust and properness would be repaired.

Culture of Corruption some say? Is there any corruption more serious than taxation without representation?


17 posted on 01/12/2007 4:22:08 PM PST by Just sayin (Is is what it is, for if it was anything else, it would be isn't.)
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To: Graybeard58
Which proves conclusively that he is more intelligent than at least 90% of the other democrats in congress.

A good point, and funny too.

18 posted on 01/12/2007 4:43:26 PM PST by El Gato ("The Second Amendment is the RESET button of the United States Constitution." -- Doug McKay)
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To: shrinkermd

Poor guy probably wants to retire and spend time recoverying surrounded by loved ones but Harry Reid won't let him.


19 posted on 01/12/2007 4:44:23 PM PST by proudpapa (Forget Rudy McRomney it's Duncan Hunter in '08!)
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