DAYTON IS SORRY
Dayton apologizes for dig at S. Dakota
Sen. Mark Dayton apologized Tuesday to Sen. John Thune and the people of South Dakota after telling Fortune magazine that Rochester's Mayo Clinic "is worth a hell of a lot more than the whole state of South Dakota."
Dayton, D-Minn., was addressing Thune's role in expanding a federal loan program that would allow the South Dakota-based Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad to apply for a $2.5 billion loan for an upgrade project. The Mayo Clinic opposes that project, which runs through Rochester.
Thune, R-S.D., who lobbied for the railroad while campaigning for the Senate in 2004, condemned the comments Tuesday, calling them "unconscionable, offensive and wholly unbecoming of a United States senator."
"Unlike Senator Dayton, we may not all be millionaires in South Dakota, but we understand the value of hard work and appreciate real-world experience," he said.
Dayton issued a letter of apology, stating, "I had no cause to make a comparison with the also-inestimable value of the great state of South Dakota."
Dayton did not, however, back off criticism of the project and of the railroad in the letter.
Thune said in a statement that he accepted the apology.
Sen. Mark Dayton apologized Tuesday to Sen. John Thune and the people of South Dakota after telling Fortune magazine that Rochester's Mayo Clinic "is worth a hell of a lot more than the whole state of South Dakota."
Dayton, D-Minn., was addressing Thune's role in expanding a federal loan program that would allow the South Dakota-based Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad to apply for a $2.5 billion loan for an upgrade project. The Mayo Clinic opposes that project, which runs through Rochester.
Thune, R-S.D., who lobbied for the railroad while campaigning for the Senate in 2004, condemned the comments Tuesday, calling them "unconscionable, offensive and wholly unbecoming of a United States senator."
"Unlike Senator Dayton, we may not all be millionaires in South Dakota, but we understand the value of hard work and appreciate real-world experience," he said.
Dayton issued a letter of apology, stating, "I had no cause to make a comparison with the also-inestimable value of the great state of South Dakota."
Dayton did not, however, back off criticism of the project and of the railroad in the letter.
Thune said in a statement that he accepted the apology.
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