Category: Uncategorized

Looks like the Minnehaha County GOP of 2024 is the State Democrat Party of 2006 or 2008. Because both spend more time worrying about ballot measures than the thing they’re actually supposed to be there for. After quite a bit of waiting, their campaign finance pre-general report has finally been posted. And aside from it being a mess, the picture it does paint is a that the State’s Largest County Republican Party really doesn’t seem to give a flying fig about candidates – the very reason they’re supposed to exist.

Minnehaha County GOP Disclosure by Pat Powers on Scribd

Under income, it starts by painting a bleak picture..

Which gets a little better when you get to the “other income.” But, someone explain to me how it’s allowable to say you took in over $36,000 from an event (Over 21K in expenses for it, BTW) without disclosing the source, and just lumping it all together in a mish-mash?

But I digress..  They raised some cash, and did so at great expense (about 55% of every dollar raised via an event). So, what did South Dakota’s largest county GOP organization do with all this money they raised?  Well, they really didn’t do much:

First and foremost at the Minnehaha County GOP’s donation list were Vote No on H ($500), The Life Defense Fund ($750) and $1000 to the SD Property rights and Local Control Alliance – a group who’s cause is not even endorsed by the Republican Party. And they threw in $950 to the Free-dumb Caucus PAC.

And only then did they think of why they’re there, to support & take care of candidates. And in some cases their contribution to the efforts were in silly amounts.

Tony Kayser (D14) and Joni Tschetter (D15) both received a respectable $1000. Bethany Soye (D9) got a check for $750, and Brenda Lawrence (D15) received $700.  Tesa Schwans (D9) $500. Chris Karr (D11) $450.  And then the downhill slope picks up.

The two most competitive races in Sioux Falls were supported with $200 for Larry Zikmund (D14) and $175 for Arch Beal (D12).  Another contested race – Sue Peterson in D13 got a whopping $130.  Don’t think I would have given Brad Lindwurm (D15) or Bobbi Andera (D10) $250, but they fared batter than Greg Jamison (D12) who received $125.  Tom Pischke who doesn’t have a general got a check for $199.50, and came out almost even with Keri Weems and Brian Mulder (D11) added together – who both have a race, but only saw a $110 donation each from the Minnehaha County GOP.

Who got stiffed by the Minnehaha GOP? No help to Amber Arlint (D12) or Assistant Majority Leader Taylor Rehfeldt (D14), despite the fact Minnehaha County donated to their running mates.

It’s like they’re not taking a thoughtful approach to anything, and just running things in a thoughtless or haphazard manner making significant donations to the candidates and causes they like, and telling Weems and Mulder that here’s their obligatory check, when they wouldn’t even go that far for Arlint or Rehfeldt.  As big of a dipstick as he is, I don’t notice Cole Heisey on that list, nor do I see Dean Karsky – Minnehaha County candidates who both have a fall contest.  (Apparently county races don’t count).

The conclusion that we can draw from looking at Minnehaha’s campaign finance report? Candidates don’t seem to be as important as ballot measures. Zero funding a few, $110 donations to others. 

The only remaining question I have?

How many Louis Vuitton bags is Tom Pischke sitting on exactly?

From my mailbox, former South Dakota Republican Party Chairman Dan Lederman is urging Republicans and others to make sure they get out and vote YES on Referred Law 21 tomorrow via an e-mail blast:

—

Hello,

As a former legislator and chair of the South Dakota Republican Party, I am writing to ask for your vote on an important ballot measure.

Referred Law 21 provides landowner protections, revenue for counties and the potential for thousands of jobs along with major economic impact for South Dakota’s economy.

Please vote Yes on RL21

Opposition to the measure is funded by extreme liberal groups like the Jane Fonda Climate Fund and a New York City progressive group called the New World Foundation. Both groups have been funding the text messages, postcards you have received that make outlandish claims about the measure.

The simple fact is that RL21 will give farmers protections that guarantee utility companies respect their property rights and provides $1 per mile tax revenue to counties and landowners affected by transmission lines.

When I served as chairman of the SDGOP, I was proud to support President Trump and the historic tax cuts he passed. Part of President Trump’s agenda was to make America energy independent and under his leadership we went from dependence on foreign energy to becoming a net energy exporter. As we go to the polls tomorrow, let’s vote to return President Trump to the White House so he can continue his work making America Great Again and let’s vote YES on Referred Law 21 to give our farmers the rights they deserve to continue feeding the world and creating American energy!

If you want to know which side you should be on when voting on RL21, just compare who supports and who opposes the measure.

Supporters of RL21 include groups including, South Dakota Corn Growers, South Dakota Chamber of Commerce, South Dakota Farm Bureau and South Dakota Ethanol Producers.

Opposition to RL21 include groups that want to destroy production agriculture and block energy production like the Sierra Club, Dakota Rural Action, Jane Fonda, Bold Nebraska and Nebraska Democratic Party Chair Jane Kleeb.

Please join me in supporting our farmers, our ag economy and President Trump’s goal of making America energy independent by unleashing South Dakota’s biofuel industry.

Please Vote Yes on RL21!

See you at the polls,

 

 

PS. Find out more about Referred Law 21 by clicking the image below

Attorney General Jackley Joins Call For Peaceful Transition of Power After Election

 PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley urges citizens to support a peaceful transition of power after Tuesday’s Presidential Election.  

Attorney General Jackley is part of a bi-partisan group of 51 Attorneys General who are encouraging calm after the election. The peaceful transition of power is part the nation’s democratic system.

“This election has been divisive, and our Nation’s Attorneys General are urging that any election issues be resolved legally and in an orderly means without violence or property damage,” said Attorney General Jackley.

Other Attorneys General calling for a non-violence response are from: Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

The Attorneys General statement can be found below:

“Regardless of the outcome of Tuesday’s election, we expect that Americans will respond peacefully and we condemn any acts of violence related to the results. A peaceful transfer of power is the highest testament to the rule of law, a tradition that stands at the heart of our nation’s stability. As Attorneys General, we affirm our commitment to protect our communities and uphold the democratic principles we serve.

We call upon every American to vote, participate in civil discourse and, above all, respect the integrity of the democratic process. Let us come together after this election not divided by outcomes but united in our shared commitment to the rule of law and safety of all Americans. Violence has no place in the democratic process; we will exercise our authority to enforce the law against any illegal acts that threaten it.”

 

-30-

The postcards are hitting all over the state, and there’s more of them finding their way to my inbox. So, here’s another selection for your review!

District 5’s Glen Vilhauer is on track to be the next State Senator from Watertown as he brings things home with a positive final message:

Ballot measures are pushing hard to the last minute as well:

I personally received this card from the Protect South Dakota’s Ag Future ballot question committee. Which, they didn’t have to. They already had my vote.

The SDGOP took a hit against Indy Karen McNeal and her wackadoodle agenda in this Halloween themed card that hit last week, urging people to vote Republican (and not McNeal) on November 5th:

Pac N Heat brought the thunder in a couple of races starting with the District 18 Senate race, pointing out Lauren Nelson’s agenda includes stripping funds away from underfunded schools to put towards private academies:

Ouch. If you thought that hit was hard, check out what they had to say in the District 15 House Race when it comes to “Bad Brad Lindwurm”:

I’m not sure that Bad Brad Lindwurm should expect anything else, since all three protection orders are public record.

Bringing it back home on a more positive note is State Senator Helene Duhamel’s latest mailer noting her family’s history of serving Rapid City for generations:

Just remember that tomorrow evening everything campaign related will be at an end.

At least for 2024.  🙂

From Facebook:

Remember when things made sense?

This was the ad that put John Thune over the top. Where he’s been ever since!

Pn Amendment E, the bill proposed to fix the language in the state constitution regarding recognizing that women are elected to office too (Which they’ve been truing to fix since 1889 or so).. this popped up on facebook a few days back, where State Representative Brandei Schaefbauer was declaring her terror over the Constitution being gender neutralized!:

Heavens to Betsy! We’d better start clutching those pearls! Brandei Schefbauer is all of a sudden in fear over about gender neutralizing our State Constitution – as if it’s going to go in the same bathroom as her!  (I imagine her yelling “Get out of here Constitution! I’m trying to powder my nose!”)

I’m not sure where she suddenly developed her Constitutional gender-phobia from, since it wasn’t a problem when she was one of the votes in favor of it back in 2023:

How did Brandei’s “Yes” vote get through?  She must have been confused by everyone voting yes before her.  Keep in mind when you go to the voting booth tomorrow – Brandei Schaefbauer thinks you should vote No because Women are being recognized as able to hold office all over “we the country.”  And we’d better stop that!

*sigh*

Is the election over yet? I just want to stop the stupid, even for just a moment.

From Facebook:

It would not sound like everyone believes Minnehaha County Leah Anderson will do the job that she’s supposed to as the US Attorney has announced that the Department of Justice will be monitoring how elections are being conducted in Minnehaha County tomorrow night:

The press release does not say why the four counties were chosen for monitoring. There is a history of voting rights litigation in tribal areas, some of which helped redefine state legislative districts that a federal judge ruled had diluted the representation of Native Americans.

and..

In the June primary, 132 ballots from one Minnehaha County precinct were successfully challenged – at least initially – by an activist named Jessica Pollema, who claimed the ballots were fraudulent because the voters listed P.O. boxes for their address. The state Supreme Court later sided with the Minnehaha County state’s attorney and the Secretary of State’s Office, denying a request to invalidate the votes.

Read the entire story here.

When are the voters of that county going to wisen up and get her out of there?