SD-Sen: Tragic Irony

Has Tim Johnson's illness saved his political career? Quite possibly

South Dakota is to many the GOP's best chance of picking up a Senate seat next year, but the GOP is having trouble recruiting a candidate and in fundraising. Seems the GOP doesn't exactly know how to attack a man when he's down (Quick, call Ann Coulter!)

Aside from Governor Mike Rounds, there isn't really a Republican who stands out against the popular Johnson. If Johnson is about to return to work, which is likely before the summer, and fully recovers, his brave fight with overshadow any other issue in the race. Although, I would say that shouldn't be the case, that is the tragic irony.

Johnson's vulnerability is not because of his illness, but rather his electoral history. Johnson defeated Republican incumbent Larry Pressler in 1996 by a 51%-49% margin and won reelection in 2002 by a few hundred votes.

If the Republicans do not manage to target Johnson and defeat him, they leave GOP Freshman Senator John Thune at the mercy of Democratic Rep. Stephanie Herseth in 2010. Despite it's Republican lean, South Dakota has seen a Republican Senator defeated as recently as 1996 (when Johnson defeated Pressler.) If the GOP continues on it's downward spiral, the popular Herseth could prove trouble for Thune in 2010.

With Landrieu up in Louisiana, there's a chance the GOP may be shut out two cycles in a row.

Wouldn't that be interesting.