Janklow speeding in fatality, police say

The Charlotte Observer ^ | Thu, Aug. 21, 2003 | CARSON WALKER

[GraniteStateConservative]

This clears the way for Thune to get nomination. There'd been talk of Janklow wanting to run to face Daschle.

[OldSmaj]

Janklow, 63, injured his head...

Well, damn, did he have a helmet on?

Fry this idiot.

In 41 years of riding a motorcycle, every incident I've had was because of a damn fool like this, running a stop sign, with the later statement of: "Duh, I didn't see the motorsickle."

Republican, dimbulrat, it doesn't matter, this POS needs to be prosecuted for manslaughter, at the very least.

[bushfamfan]

Too bad Ted Kennedy got away with Chappaquiddick. That was deliberate, but he's a Kennedy.

[fieldmarshaldj]

SD Leadfoot Janklow *ping*

Well, Janklow does for his fellow motorists what he's done for the SD GOP at the federal level. If he doesn't step aside, this could open the seat for Steffie Herseth, and knowing Wild Bill, he doesn't step aside for nobody. Thanks a lot, Bill.

[Theodore R.]

Yet, Janklow may have to step aside for a prison sentence on this. This clear negligence as reported THUS FAR. Who knows what a jury might decided. I don't see how he can avoid legal charges though.

[Theodore R.]

There must always be a special election for the U.S. House when a vacancy arises; no governor can name a temporary member of the House.

[Impy]

I think it happened once with Steve Largent.

http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=L000096






Janklow is toast and I don't feel sorry for him.

[Theodore R.]

I did not recall that Largent got a brief appointment to the House. Was this because there were a few weeks after Largent's election and the taking of the regular oaths of office the following January? Largent proved a dismal disappointment to many conservatives when he embraced the pro-Castro line on little Elian Gonzalez. Still OK Free Republic contributors says that "little Elian" played no real role in Largent's disastrous gubernatorial campaign in 2002. Largent misapplied the idea of "father's rights," some conservatives thought, much as liberals say "no establishment of religion" means "separation of church and state."

I agree on Janklow: he might as well resign now. Perhaps he is using resignation as part of some plea bargain. A Democrat could well win this seat in a special election too. It was held for a long time by now Senator Tim Johnson, D-SD. Plus, Janklow should have never run for Congress: he really did not want the job, as I understand it. Were Janklow to leave, Thune might decide to forget about Daschle and return to his House seat. Just speculation on my part.

[GraniteStateConservative]

Surely Thune isn't the only person who could beat Herseth in a special election.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Reckless driving, at the very least. He's an arrogant SOB. I call him a Conservative RINO, qualifying under the terms of doing zilch for the state party and everything for himself. He's "mowed down" a lot of good people in the state party, and this is rather poetic justice.

[Theodore R.]

DJ, though he is no longer young, Representative Janklow reminds me of the spoiled young man in Booth Tarkington's "The Magnificent Ambersons." I wonder why SD continued to vote for Janklow and Daschle. The two never opposed each other, but didn't Janklow try to run against Daschle once but was stopped in a primary?

[fieldmarshaldj]

As was said, you can't "appoint" a House member. What is done, on rare occasions, is that if a seat is vacant and an individual has won for the session beginning at the start of a new Congress, they might allow him to fill in for the remaining time AFTER the November election, though technically one is supposed to go through a "special" election just to fill even a short month or two term. Technically objections could've been raised to Largent's being seated under such circumstances, but the House is apparently the final arbitor of how one can be seated, so they raised no objections to his serving the 5 weeks. Interestingly, that would've been crooked outgoing 'Rat Gov. David Walters that "appointed" him to the seat, as he did with Jim Inhofe who vacated the Largent seat to take Dave Boren's seat who resigned 2 years early.

Largent was indeed a disappointment in Congress, and his position on Elian was beyond moronic and embarrasssing. His campaign was scarcely better and allowed a Conservative running 3rd party to funnel off the votes needed for a win. It's too bad we couldn't have run the more distinguished Wes Watkins for Governor. Watkins had been a disgruntled Conservative Democrat who helped Frank Keating win in '94 running 3rd party and switched parties to help us win an almost impossible-to-get House seat. He definitely was deserving of some payback for his help.

If Janklow were to resign, and they'll probably have to drag him out of office, Thune could run and win, but it would be a bitch for him to mount a special election while having to almost simulataneously announce he was running for the Senate. He probably should focus on the Senate race and maybe let fmr. Sen. Larry Pressler have a crack at the House race (to at least hold it for the interim).

[fieldmarshaldj]

Herseth did a bit better than expected. Larry Pressler might be able to do it. He was one of Janklow's "victims" and it would be nice to see him take the seat again.

[Theodore R.]

Good report, DJ. I just think SD is much more Democrat in orientation than most on this forum do. Sure, it will vote for a Bush every time there is one on a presidential ballot, but the other offices can be and are often won by Democrats.

[Guillermo]

Members of the House of Representatives are never ever ever ever ever ever appointed.

One can only become a Rep. if elected.

If Janklow resigns, there will be another election to choose his successor.

Again, Reps are NEVER appointed to serve. Ever.

[Guillermo]

If Janklow would have sported a neck brace in a press conference the day after, no one would question his guilt in the death of the cyclist.

[Trust but Verify]

Thanks for the clarification. I should have known that. i think Janklow should resign. His reckless actions killed a man and he should hold himself accountable.

[GraniteStateConservative]

I don't know that Pressler could. I'd hope the SD-GOP would find someone else.

[fieldmarshaldj]

"DJ, though he is no longer young, Representative Janklow reminds me of the spoiled young man in Booth Tarkington's "The Magnificent Ambersons."

I have to search my brain for remembering the characters as portrayed in the Orson Welles film, which was ordered butchered by the studio and his former friend and "Citizen Kane" editor Robert Wise had to do the deed under protest. I met the distinguished future director in the mid '90s at a screenwriting conference, quite a character (he turns 90 next year). I did see the horrid A&E remake done recently, but it wasn't worth commenting on.

"I wonder why SD continued to vote for Janklow and Daschle. The two never opposed each other, but didn't Janklow try to run against Daschle once but was stopped in a primary?"

Janklow was viewed in some quarters as heroic going back to the infamous Indian uprisings in the '70s (back when it appeared that the liberal 'Rats embodied by dangerous extremists like then Sen. Jim Abourezk, who was more leftist than his colleague, Sen. George McGovern, were in ascendence even prior to Watergate) when he was elected state Attorney-General in '74. After the GOP started regaining its lost positions, starting with Abourezk's seat in '78 and McGovern's in '80, Janklow had nowhere to go when he was term-limited out in '86. He opted to take down Jim Abdnor, who vanquished McGovern after so many had failed, but Abdnor beat him instead, but he was damaged so badly that Daschle won in the fall. The open House seat that was Janklow's for the taking (which he felt was beneath him) instead went to, yup, Tim Johnson. We could've had an-all GOP Congressional delegation in SD in 1987 and Janklow ultimately could've ended up with Abdnor's seat by '98 and John Thune would've replaced him and the decent Walter Dale Miller, yet another victim of Janklow's, who served as Lieutenant-Governor until the untimely death of Gov. Mickelson in that terrible plane crash elevated him, was stomped into the ground by the hungry Janklow in '94. The more I think about Janklow who is the Dakota's version of William Weld, the angrier I get. He all but helped Daschle and Johnson to the offices to which they now occupy, and that need not have happened... :-(

[Jim Noble]

Gov. Mike Rounds could appoint former Rep. John Thune, perhaps putting him in a better position to run again Tommy Daschle next year

Except that the only way for a Representative to join the House is by election.

Article I, section 2, paragraph 4