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The timing on this is astonishingly brazen, but it needs to have the right spin on it. Thune should lamblast Daschle and Johnson ...get Indian voters on the warpath ..because the democrats in power have denied their children this largesse for so long. It's a crime how neglectful Daschle and Johnson have been!! Lookie here: Democrat Senator Dorgan got his share to North Dakota Indian children over a year ago!!!

"K.I.D.S. Partners with Great Plains Food Bank to Distribute Clothes & Toys to Needy Children
By Helmut Schmidt, Summer 2001

The Great Plains Food Bank already feeds the hungry throughout the region. Now it’s aiming to warm children’s bodies and souls.

Working with K.I.D.S., a New York-based charity, Sen. Byron Dorgan and four corporate sponsors, the Great Plains Food Bank announced that it will distribute new clothing, toys, shoes, books, beds, car seats and other products to needy children in North Dakota and part of western Minnesota.

Steve Sellent, program director of Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota’s Great Plains Food Bank, said about $200,000 worth of materials — more than a semi trailer load — has been received. Some $500,000 in goods is expected to be arrive at the Food Bank this year. “I don’t think it took us a second to decide to get involved in the program,” Sellent said. “We think it’s going to be fun.”

K.I.D.S. stands for Kids In Distressed Situations. K.I.D.S. President Mark Gelber said the organization takes donations of products from about 300 manufacturers and retailers and distributes them around the nation and the world.

K.I.D.S. started in 1985, focusing on the nation’s largest cities.But as is has grown, it has shifted some of its focus to rural areas. Gelber said K.I.D.S. figures there may be 50,000 children living in poverty or near poverty in North Dakota who could use the donated goods.

“There’s no seconds. There’s nothing damaged. It’s the kind of thing that would make a child or a parent happy,” Gelber said. Both Sellent and Gelber credit Dorgan with making the partnership possible. Dorgan said the program will be a great help for American Indians on reservations in North Dakota and other children around the state.

Dorgan said having good clothing can increase a child’s sense of self-worth. A toy can bring “a measure of joy.” Dorgan praised local sponsors Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota, Community First Bankshares, MDU Resources Group and Alerus Financial. “This represents the best of our country,” Dorgan said. “Children are all of our responsibility ....."