And in next week’s meeting, they’re going to nominate Cabinet members

Pat Powers

From facebook, comes a little arrogance, and a lot of presumption.

So, apparently this happened last night.

In fact, they even went on television as part of the process:

Here’s what the County Republican Party Chairwoman is looking for in the next state representative.

“Someone who is a good conservative Republican and someone who has our values and everyone in Lawrence County feels that way so I’m sure we’ll find a quality person. We’ve been kind of in a turmoil because it is something new, it isn’t something we had a lot of time to think about,” Margaret Sager, the Chairman for the Lawrence County Republicans said.

Read that all here.

They haven’t had a “lot of time to think?” Obviously.

The problems with the Lawrence County GOP making that selection? For starters, I’m hearing there are already hard feelings from those not picked, and there are already people questioning the legitimacy of the meeting.

I had people dropping me a notes last night concerned that the county sent out an e-mail last Friday calling a county central committee meeting without five business days’ notice. The point was questioning whether a selection can really be a selection if the meeting possibly was not done according to their bylaws? I’m told one person described it akin to watching an election in Venezuela.

And there’s the other part, which is really the only thing that matters. As noted in Article III, § 10 of the South Dakota Constitution.

§ 10.   Filling legislative vacancies. The Governor shall make appointments to fill such vacancies as may occur in either house of the Legislature.

Maybe something the Lawrence County group should have read up front. It’s not their choice to make. Whatsoever.

If after taking office, the Governor wants to appoint a Republican to the office, she can. If after taking office, Kristi wants to appoint an independent, she can.  I won’t go so far as to say if she wanted to appoint a duck, she could. But she has a stronger argument for her ability to appoint the duck, than the Lawrence County GOP has in their declaration of last night.

Under what presumption did they believe it was advisable to have a public folderol complete with media and facebook announcements to tell the Governor who the pick will be?  Are they also going to meet and offer their choice for Cabinet members?

If… and only if the Governor-elect asked for their opinion, at that time it might have been appropriate for them to meet and discuss, and provide a list of people that might be considered.

But the way they seem to have gone about it? Not so much.

103 thoughts on “And in next week’s meeting, they’re going to nominate Cabinet members”

  1. It’s going to be embarrassing for everybody if Noem chooses somebody else, which is apparently the whole point of this publicity stunt.

  2. We should change the Constitution. Legislators supporting the Governor’s agenda instead of the will of the people does not follow the philosophy of a representative republican form of government. Specifically, it violates the idea of separation of powers.

    1. Hey, Steve: remind us what you’re doing to affect change in South Dakota other than grousing about stuff here at DWC.

      1. And what exactly are you doing? I think Steve has made a reasonable suggestion. The people of Lawrence County can easily call our governor and give their input. There’s also an opportunity to change the Constitution, it has happened in the past.

        1. Anybody interested in filling the position may contact Noem directly and offer his or her services. Nobody needs the imprimatur of the county Republicans, Democrats, independents, libertarians, etc

    2. Well you are right, we could change the state Constitution to allow this method of replacing members of the legislature, but we haven’t. And since we haven’t, what they tried to accomplish with their nonsense is unconstitutional.
      And let’s not forget that one of the ring leaders of last night’s circus is married to a former candidate for AG.
      Too bad none of the Lawrence County Republicans know any good lawyers.

      2. So we can add a violation to free speech in addition to the violation on the separation of powers. Anything to keep conservative in check.

  3. Dayle Hammock is an excellent choice. He has years of experience in laws for enemy and is an ardent supporter of the 2nd amendment. Hopefully Kristi realizes his value and makes the appointment.

    1. He might be the greatest pick the world has ever seen but the state constitution provides the procedure for filling a vacancy, and this isn’t it. This was an effort to force the governor’s hand in the matter, by publicly announcing their selection as if the meeting had any legitimacy at all, so that they can trash any other appointment as a trespass upon the “will of the people.”

        1. Agree with Troy. This puts the new governor in a tough spot. “Good” Republicans should have known better.

      2. If he isn’t appointed, I can see Noem losing Lawrence County’s support very quickly. We already don’t really like her as it is, and I think a lot of us are sick of being ignored by the folks in charge.

        2. 5984 voted for her in Lawrence County–I just looked it up or

          55% of the voters of the county voted for her’ 43% Billie and 2% Evans.

          1. Yes, Lawrence, along with Meade and Pennington counties, provided Noem’s margin of victory.

  6. I commend the Lawrence County Republicans on their recommendation. Strong local parties should be encouraged.

    1. they make a public ass of themselves upstaging the incoming governor and that should be commended?

      1. They didn’t make a public ass out of themselves – they just did something stupid and self-serving. And alienated the incoming governor.

    2. Strong local parties need to obey the laws of the state as well as party bylaws.
      The meeting was illegitimate in formation, by not sending notices out five business days in advance, and in intention, by trying to circumvent the process established in the state constitution.
      Strong local parties also manage to file their pre-general disclosure statements on time, too. Maybe they should pay more attention to what they are supposed to be doing instead of what they are not. But then, they haven’t had time to think, you know.

  7. One thing which can be done easily to prevent this from happening again is to change the Republican party bylaws to require that all districts, not just the multi-county ones, have their candidate replacement meetings called by the state party chairman.
    If they had been courteous enough to notify the state chairman before they went rogue on this, he might have been able to stop them before they made fools of themselves. Or maybe not. But at least he would have known about it ahead of time.

    1. One thing which can be done easily to prevent this from happening again…

      would be for someone in Lawrence County to read the law and the state by-laws and understand that they do not have any right, authority or involvement in the process…..

      and let the Governor make the proper appointment

      1. Yes well maybe the Lawrence County Central Committee could consult a lawyer, like somebody one of them is married to, before going off the deep end.

  8. “This business will get out of control. It will get out of control and we’ll be lucky to live through it.” – Admiral Josh Painter, Patriot Games

    1. Watched patriot games again the other night. Good movie. Not as good as Red October, but good.

  9. First, the law before Chuck died was the appointment was to be filled by the Governor. People in the Legislative District knew Chuck had died. Thus, the easiest presumption is the will of the people is to defer the decision to the Governor. Finally, the Governor is free to listen to whoever she wants (including the local party) for advice and counsel before SHE makes her decision.

    Second, it is my advice that the local party “adjust” their public communications as an endorsement/recommendation. As a corollary to this, the State Party should inform all local parties this is not their legal prerogative and they likely do harm to their choice if they choose to act precipitously as this party organization did.

    Third, if the local party fails to adjust their communications in accord with the law and presumed will of the people, I would recommend to the Governor she inform the local party that Dayle will not be considered. It is bad precedent for the Governor to be perceived as delegating her legal obligation to a local party organization.

  10. The Party has a role as part of the election process, and if Chuck had passed away before the deadline for replacement of candidates, then they had every right to choose who they wanted. After that, they may be consulted for their opinion, but it doesn’t hold sway over anyone else’s opinion.

    But this? I would agree that they probably damaged the chances of their “pick” being considered.

    1. I thought your position was that the locals should have no say. To be fair, that should be one way or the other. Thereby, their actions should have no effect on who the governor believes to be the best pick. Demonizing vocal conservatives in order to blame them is all too typical among certain elements of the SDGOP.

      1. Here’s how it works, Steve: the voters knew they were electing a candidate who had passed away. They knew that the next Governor would fill the vacancy, and this was one of the factors influencing their vote for governor. This means that 5,984 people voted to let Noem pick the replacement.
        They were not asked if they wanted 30 Republicans most of them never voted for to fill the vacancy. Perhaps somebody should ask them now.

  11. For the record Lawrence County has been preparing for this since the election of Noem. It was not a last minute notice and the person commenting on this page is upset he did not receive enough votes to win. The executive board consists of Sager, Doering, Weisenberg, and Brueckner. I do not believe there were any ringleaders. It’s politics, not everyone wins or gets a participation trophy.

    1. So their stupidity was intentional? Makes the line about them not having any good lawyers in town more than funny but appropriate. If this is the case, the Governor Noem should do more than not select Dayle.

      Governor Noem should make it clear he will not be considered. Once the issue was no longer about nominating a Republican candidate on the ballot (within the legal purview of the County Party) and replacing person selected by the broader electorate, it is the Governor’s legal purview and the perception this decision was made by the local party is too improper. Dayle Hammock should not be the replacement for Chuck Turbiville.

    2. Nobody “won” anything.
      There was nothing legitimate about this fiasco. There was nothing to be won. No prizes, no trophies.
      If the participants believed they were actually selecting their new legislator, they were mistaken. They were lied to.
      This is possibly the case, as I question how many people would have attended the meeting if they knew it was a pointless exercise?

    1. WTF does no one know the law or read it in Lawrence county

      I would say all five candidates that ran would be out immediately

      1. I don’t really see anything wrong with it. The people that lost are upset. Blaming others doesn’t solve much. Maybe they should ask themselves why they didn’t receive votes from a room full of county officials, legislators etc

        1. No the people who are upset are all the residents of the state that think you are putting our new governor elect in an awkward spot by Lawrence County GOP overstepping their authority

  13. Noem should just pass this stinkin’ pile of hot manure back to Daugaard and let him make the appointment. She’s got more important things to deal with.

      1. I see. So if Sibson’s idea of amending the state constitution were to become a reality, the locals wouldn’t be able to fill a vacancy this early, either?

        1. two things–gov Daugaard can fill the spot but only till the next session…really no point in that

          then second is Noem fills it for the next 2 years starting with the January session

  14. Maybe we can hand out ribbons to the losers of this thing. Or was the brown nose a good enough gift.

  16. We just watched attempts in Georgia and Florida to try to change the rules after an election.

    The rules in SD were the Governor picks the replacement for a successful candidate who has died. People who suggest changing the rules after the election are equivalent to the fraudsters in Florida and Georgia.

    In the US, the rule of law is what protects us. This is Governor Noem’s legal obligation and prerogative. I stand for the rule of law.

    1. I stand to changing the rule of law so that it respects the separation of powers, plus giving the will of the people free speech rights. In other words, time to restore republican values.

      1. Good for you, Steve, you can stand for changing the rule of law. Later. The state constitution says what it says for now. If you want to amend it, get busy.

  17. no knife in the fight – but the Gov picks and my money is on John Teupel being appointed

      1. Who were the 5 that “ran”?

        How did it play out in voting..who got eliminated first round etc…at least lets get some facts

      2. Who are “they?”
        Maybe the majority of the 5,040 who voted for Turbiville agree with Lee, they want Noem to appoint Teupel. Did you ask them?

  18. The state differs from the Federal. Our current state method is more authoritarian and has the capacity to be disenfranchising of the district. It would be more (small r) republican for the district to place the vacancy. To what this Governor will do is yet to be seen. But the past 8 years offer plenty of examples.

    1. The time to amend the constitution was a long time ago. For years the governor has filled vacancies, there seems to be at least one every session, and I don’t recall anybody complaining about the process. There have been grumbling about the picks, but not the process.
      Changing the Constitution because nobody in Lawrence County knows any good lawyers, and none showed the courtesy to discuss this with the state party chairman first, is rather extreme.

  19. Short of calling a special election for one seat (expensive, who would pay (the counties?) and onerous to a district if not paid by the entire state), you have these choices:

    1) The County Party or parties (not very democratic since none of them are elected directly by the voters nor accountable directly to even the registered voters of the district)

    2) The Caucus of the Body from whence the vacancy occurred. It is possible none or only one of those making the selection are accountable to the people of the district.

    3) Selected by the other two members of the District delegation.

    4) The Governor.

    Pick your poison folks because all have pros and cons for a position that is less than 3% of either body.

    1. The County Auditor, Treasurer, a few County Commissioners, two legislators, and precinct men and women (are elected by the voters of Lawrence County). All of the above were present and voted.

      1. Unless the party by-laws give the Auditor, Treasurer, County Commissioners, and Legislators official positions without regard to party on the committee and they are voting in their public capacity, they are power to vote on this matter is not accountable to the people.

        There is a point on the precinct people. But, even then would the Dems and indies who voted for Chuck done so if they were delegating the decision to people only elected by Republicans?

        The party still has up a post under their Facebook page in their words that says “Lawrence County Selects Dayle Hammock.” Since that is not their legal prerogative, it is deceptive to infer this was a selection of an official governmental body and not a committee of the Party, and they have failed to correct the record, I think Governor Noem should not consider Dayle for this position. If Dayle is as solid a candidate as I have been told, it is a shame by the stubbornness and/or arrogance of the party organization, his service is no longer an option.

        1. What a stupid line of logic. Regardless of the missteps of the Lawrence County Republicans, it should by no means disqualify Dayle.

          1. Dayle had a day to get the record cleared and distance himself from the usupers. He didn’t do so. Now he owns it and is in on it. When you align yourself with dopes, you become one. Of course, the Governor can do as she wishes. I think she should start anew.

  20. Gov. Elect Kristi Noem doesn’t seem like the kind person who has her dinner ordered for her when she goes out to eat. She can read the menu herself.

  21. Dana Boke
    Dayle Hammock
    Tom Nelson
    Fred Romkema
    John Teupel

    Nelson, Romkema, Teupel all former legislators. All lost.

  22. Teupel is very unpopular in Lawrence County. People were outraged at the thought he would be appointed.

  23. I’m with El Rayo X on this one. I doubt if she lets someone order for her. There is a lot of sexist pseudologic (re: mansplaining) underlying much of what Lawrence County did … and I’m hearing it from a lot of other naysayers of our Governor Elect – including Dems who should be more supportive. Quit being a$$es and let her do her job. She doesn’t need a load of machismo or condescending BS from people who are still uptight about the primary or the general. She is completely capable and I hope she picks anyone but those 5. Can’t wait to see the changes that might come or the positives she will bring to the State.

      1. And you’ve never met /seen women in the GOP that think the “fairer sex” should take a step back and let their husbands lead? The worst comments I’ve heard come from other women. Awful. Just awful.

        1. You are making things up and got busted. Have the courage to mea culpa rather than expose your own chauvanism.

  24. Why would a strong, competent gop and governor be upset that a local GOP party made a recommendation? For crying out loud, this isn’t the communist party, is it?

  26. Big deal. They’ve basically endorsed someone…this maybe foreign to a lot of people, but I for one, like to see the local parties weigh-in on who they’d like to see in office. This doesn’t mean that they’re always right, but it’s not a bad exercise for them to do so.

    2. I won’t quibble with you whether this was an endorsement or not which is debatable.

      Let me lay out an analogy. Your house needs to be painted. The color you select affects your neighbors.

      1) You can just do what your want without regard to your neighbors thoughts. It is your decision but not very neighborly.

      2) OR you can ask them their thoughts and give their thoughts every due consideration while preserving your prerogative to make the final decision.

      Because you appreciate the impact this decision would have on others, you decided you were going to ask for suggestions in due time. However, before you could even begin focusing on your house paint color or reached out to your neighbors announced to the neighborhood their selection AND if you didn’t paint the house this color they were going to not invite you to any of their parties (ala withdraw support for Noem). How would you feel about that neighbor and the color they selected?

      Kristi Noem’s new job is to represent the interests of the entire state and obey and honor the words and spirit of the Constitution. A “neighbor” who decides to usurp the Constitution and overreach their power is a “neighbor” I’d ignore. But even then, you could decide you like that color best and pick it.

      However, in this case, Governor’s have big jobs and prerogatives and they should not be perceived as deferring/delegating their Constitutional obligations and prerogatives to entities/people not so Constitutionally obligated/empowered. If this Dayle is selected, rightly or wrongly it will be perceived she deferred to these yahoos. A perception she doesn’t need as Governor of the entire state.

      1. Nobody deserves it. They didn’t run and win. Chuck ran and won.

        Side note: Probably because all were driving for Thanksgiving, I have gotten three calls regarding this fiasco. All say essentially the same thing: Morons must be running Lawrence County Republicans. One compared it to when Hubbel was Minnehaha chair and she just did dumb things without asking if it was appropriate.

        Turbiville is laughing pretty hard I am sure.

  27. By an hysterical coincidence, I’ve been binging Season 3 of Deadwood this week. If you haven’t seen it, the whole story is the first local election, playoffs and payoffs between Yankton and Helena over annexation of the camp all with George Hearst’s enormous presence looming over all.

    Chuck would no doubt be amused.

  28. I have participated in two candidate replacement meetings in the last few years, when a candidate needed to be replaced before the deadline to get on the ballot.
    Our district has also had two members (one Representative and one Senator ) replaced recently.
    We know the difference between meeting to select a replacement candidate and submitting names to the governor for consideration. In the case of a candidate replacement, we send out notices to the central committee members with five business days’ notice, hold a meeting and an election. In the case of a legislative vacancy, we quietly and individually email the governor’s chief of staff with suggestions.
    We don’t call the press for either process. An announcement is made after the choice is made, and anybody unhappy with the choice keeps their mouths shut.

    This was clearly an effort to force Noem to appoint their pick and create a controversy if she selects somebody else. What they did was appalling. Lawrence County needs new leadership.

    1. KOTA news reported the results almost immediately after the vote and published remarks made by Margaret Sager, the Chairman for the Lawrence County Republicans.

      Its obvious they were contacted.

    2. If the media was not called what was the TV crew doing there, eating pizza? There is a video in which Margaret Sager is telling a reporter what kind of person they were looking for. If Noem chooses anyone else, and KOTA seeks Margaret out for comment, she needs to say it’s all for the best. We don’t want to hear anything else from them.

      As for the gender issues here I do wonder if they would have pulled this stunt if the Governor-Elect were a male.

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