August 29, 2007
Tim Johnson's Return Raises Questions About '08
Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., spoke before a cheering crowd of supporters in Sioux Falls yesterday, his first public appearance since a severe brain hemorrhage incapacitated him last December. The event was described by the AP as "a carefully choreographed gathering that took on the appearance of a campaign event" and by others in attendance as a moving experience.
The senator was brought onstage in a wheelchair but was able to stand up at the podium and speak for about 15 minutes, impressing supporters with the extent of his recovery. Johnson has spent the past eight months recuperating with his family near Washington and going through a demanding regime of speech and physical therapy.
This week, Johnson told ABC News reporter Bob Woodruff, "I expect to run and to win" re-election in 2008, but his staff later clarified that he is still considering the matter. Adding to the speculation, a national political firm working to re-elect Democratic lawmakers recently launched a Web site welcoming back the senator, which some have read as an attempt to lay the groundwork for a campaign next year. Johnson won the state in 2002 by a precarious 524-vote margin, and Republicans have already announced their intention to target his seat in '08.
