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President Trump on Friday called on South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to challenge outgoing Republican Senator John Thune for his seat in Congress in 2022.
Trump supported Noem’s Senate bid while referring to Thune as a “RINO” or “Republican in name only.” Thune recently drew Trump’s ire after criticizing the president’s attempt to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election.
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“Hope to see the great South Dakota Governor @KristiNoem, run against RINO @SenJohnThune, in the next 2022 primary,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “She would do a fantastic job in the US Senate, but if it isn’t Kristi, others are already lining up. South Dakota wants strong leadership, NOW!”
Noem has been a staunch ally of Trump since taking office in 2019. The president has clashed with Thune on several occasions.
In a tweet last month, Trump called Thune “Mitch’s boy,” in a reference to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and warned Thune would be “primaried in 2022, political career over.”
The president stepped up his attacks on Thune after the senator said any attempt by Trump or his allies to challenge the Electoral College vote “would fall like a hound.” Congress is expected to consider the results on Jan.6 in a final step before President-elect Joe Bide becomes president later this month.
In December, Noem said she had no plans to challenge Thune in 2022.
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“@Johnthune is a friend of mine, and I’m not going to challenge him,” she wrote on Twitter. “I am honored to be Governor of South Dakota and I will ask people for the opportunity to continue serving as Governor in 2022.”
As for Thune, he apparently took the attack in stride, telling a group of Capitol Hill reporters on Friday, “What took him so long?” He asked, laughing: “It’s good. This is how he communicates.
When asked if he would try to work things out with the president, Thune replied, “No, I’m not sure what I did to deserve all of this, but it’s okay. I’m not sure if anything changes his mind once he’s done it.
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