As Paula Hawks tries to gain purchase on the porcelain as her campaign continues to circle the drain, a number of agriculture groups came together to point out how Congresswoman Kristi Noem has been an effective representative for the State on the Ways and Means committee.
Their letter appeared on the Argus Leader website yesterday:
As farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses we strongly disagree with recent criticisms of Rep. Kristi Noem’s transition to the influential House Ways and Means Committee. This was a strategic move –made with the understanding that having a voice during tax, trade and health care debates would be essential to ensuring fair deals for agriculture and all South Dakotans. For this reason, we each offered our encouragement and support to Noem when the opportunity to join Ways and Means arose in early 2015.
and…
There is no doubt that if you’re a farmer or rancher, you care about the Farm Bill, but the conversation must not stop there. We need to fix what’s wrong with our tax code, level the playing field so products can be sold more easily overseas, eliminate harmful regulations, and make it easier to pass our operations to our children. The agriculture industry’s interests are not isolated to a sole committee in Congress, and our representation shouldn’t be either. In her role as the first South Dakotan in history to serve on the Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Kristi Noem is giving agriculture a powerful and effective voice in Congress.
Todd Wilkinson, president, S.D. Cattlemen’s Association, DeSmet
Brenda Forman, executive director, S.D. Association of Cooperatives, Pierre
Keith Alverson, president, S.D. Corn Growers Association, Chester
Scott VanderWal, president, S.D. Farm Bureau Federation, Volga
Jerry Schmitz, president, S.D. Soybean Association, Vermillion
“Rep. Kristi Noem is giving agriculture a powerful and effective voice in Congress.” That small letter to the editor speaks volumes.
That’s a great endorsement. And, worth noting that Keith Alverson is a Democrat. Shows that this is nothing more than a political argument being made by Hawks and not one of substance.
Of course they support her – she’s lining their pockets (and her own) with subsidies and cash payments. Yay for red state welfare!
http://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/communities/spearfish/the-farm-bill-a-hand-up-or-a-hand-out/article_8ca1be96-cc84-569a-87be-dcb7a3c4ba32.html
I have heard it many times throughout the years, from business people, when the farmers are doing well, the rest of us do too. You sound like you support Paula Hawks, who claims Noem isn’t doing enough for the farmers!
Always nice to see the truth comes out.
she has mada a killing on farm subsidies she wont talk about that though will sehe.
Her family never made near as much as Stephanie Herseth Sandlin’s family did.
Hawks is a loser running as a Dem Lite but Noem has done exactly diddly squat for South Dakota except to feather her donors’ nests. Did you see the WalletHub survey that shows South Dakota voters have the least clout in the US?
Anonymous,
Do you even read what you post. Wallet hub measured us on how we mirror the rest of the nation with regard to racial, age and gender composition.
In short, we have too many Whites and Indians (the major thing that makes us unlike the rest of the nation), too many elderly and kids, and not enough men.
And those that are off-topic as well.
If you think Nom has no clout in the US House then you have no idea what you’re talking about.
Don’t base effectiveness on number of bills signed into law. How they impact policy is hard to measure but most legislation is packaged together with other bills and doesn’t count on those trackers like GovTrack. I’d be money if you asked other Members of Congress whether they consider Noem effective and the vast majority would say yes.