While South Dakota Republicans have a sense of excitement and competition over the choices they have to lead the South Dakota Republican Party over the course of the next two year cycle, Democrats involved with their party aren’t sounding very enthused over what their party is doing.
In fact, they’re openly noting that their leadership has forgotten that they’re a political party, and it’s time for “an intervention:”
Locally, I attended an E-board meeting of the South Dakota Democratic Party (SDDP) on Saturday. I will not bore you with the details. Suffice it to say, the SDDP has lost its way. Its Chair has forgotten its primary goal is to elect Democrats. Instead, she wants to husband its resources for ballot initiatives, referendums, and constitutional amendments. Despite her own promises, she resists committing $100,000.00 in unbudgeted funds to organize in the Black Hills and Indian reservations and her staff stated they would stay holed up in the Sioux Empire. An intervention is needed.
Speaking of Sioux Falls, Mayor Huether vetoed an ordinance directing the Parks Board to video its meetings. He believes the light of day would inhibit their work. If he is right, you have to wonder about what nefarious work the Park Board does that he doesn’t want the public to learn about. We seem to have government at its most autocratic. Thank God, Mayor Huether left the Democratic Party to become an Independent. Or was it a Libertarian or Constitutionalist. Has anyone checked? Let me know. Maybe he just became a Huetherite.
Rock Bottom within view…
Well, at least the SD Dems don’t have a “Stationerygate” going on in their Party right now. Where elected state party leaders using Party stationery and a “Debbie Wasserman Schults attitude” are blatantly telling fellow GOP Party members who to support for State GOP Chair.
Having a legitimate debate about how to spend Party resources is a honest debate. But having party leaders telling you more or less who will be the next leader, on Party stationery of all things, is nothing but a Soviet Politburo mentality…..
No lessons learned after one of the most crushing defeats in state party history. Every month the SDDP is losing more registered Democrats with some on the E board and elsewhere that would seem to connect better with voters in eastern Oregon than in South Dakota. The SDDP is a non factor in regards to a healthy and competitive political system in South Dakota. It is a prime opportunity for others to start a unique to South Dakota truly competitive opposition party that would not end up being some fringe party.
Tornberg is bad but so was Nesselhuff. He could have put the Secretary of State’s office in play if he would have found someone to publicly challenge Gant. He sat quietly by and let the GOP clean up that mess.
Now Tornberg is bad but what is the alternative. Change the name of the person but have the same bad ideas that have put Democrats in this mess for the last 8 years?
Who has new ideas?
Just a funny sidenote (not being critical);
The irony of a group called “Drinking Liberally” calling for an “intervention.”
That said, so long as the SDDP thinks their role is to impact initiatives, referendums, etc. and not electing Democrats to office, they will remain irrelevant.
Troy the SDDP seems to be completely clueless. Would it be better if they just formally changed their constitution and mission to being an organization focused on ballot initiatives and let other actual political parties focus on electing candidates to public office where the real power to make comprehensive change is? It is so sad what has become of that party.