At Brookings Co Lincoln Day Dinner

I’m sitting at my nearly empty table, tapping this out as people snake through the food line at the 2015 Brookings County Lincoln Day Dinner.

Congresswoman Kristi Noem is the keynote speaker tonight, a speech I’m looking forward to hearing. Other constitutional officers are here such as Steve Barnett, Chris Nelson, and Marty Jackley.

Very interestingly, State Rep Mark Mickelson is here visiting the city of his youth. I’m not sure of we should chalk that up to nostalgia, or to the fact that the two other main contenders for Governor in 2018 are here as well.

Jason Ravnsborg is here too, which coincides with the rumor of his interest in 2018 contest for Attorney General.

Legislators? State Senator Larry Tidemann and State Representative Scott Munsterman are here locally, and Reps Leslie Heinemann, John Wiik, & Fred Deutsch all made it to town.

The candidates for Mayor, Keith Corbett & Mayor Tim Reed are here, as are other city and county officials.

It’s a nice crowd, especially for an off year. I’ll update on any interesting things that come up tonight.

79 thoughts on “At Brookings Co Lincoln Day Dinner”

    1. Yes, it would be nice to see a fresh outsider’s face in the AG’s office to clean up the coruption there and at DSS/CPS. I think Ravnsborg could be the man to do it !

      1. Lora, let us know when you find any, because your buddy Stranahan isnt a reliable source.

    2. I like Jason but he seems a little too overtly ambitious to me. Why not run for the legislature or a county-level position? He went straight for the U.S. Senate and now he’s already plotting to be AG? Gotta earn your stripes

      1. Isn’t he the party chairman in his county? That sounds like he is earning his stripes to me.

      2. Is there a book level or check list one must complete before he or she is a credible candidate?

        Does being a two term legislator qualify one to be a congressman? If so we should probably vote Kristi Noem out next year.

        Pretty sure Janklow wasn’t a state legislator before he was AG.

        All I am trying to say is that the notion that one must “earn their stripes” has about as much credibility as the aforementioned Mr. Stranahan.

        1. I think he earned his stripes by fighting for all of us as a combat vet…so the rest of us could “earn” our stripes in the dangers of the legislature.

          Instead we have “leaders” like Mikelson voting for common core and against gun rights in the legislature. Talk about poor judgment.

            1. Oh please don’t tell me you are one of those who think you are a vet only if you had bullets whizzing by your head.

            1. Oh please don’t tell me you are one of those who think you are a vet only if you had bullets whizzing by your head.

      1. And how would it be his fault what someone else does? Plus who is paying attention to Stranahan outside of here on the blogs anyway.. I know I’m not.

        1. Here’s the deal. Decisions have consequences and Ravnsborg hired Stranahan to stalk Mike Rounds on the campaign trail and film Ravnsborg also.

          What kind of judgment does it show that he hired Ken Crow and Lee Stranahan? Now Stranahan is lying about Jackley and Ravnsborg is silent about Stranahan’s character. Who will he hire as AG? Better not be Stranahan.

          I like Ravnsborg but he has some maturing to do. I really like Marty Jackley because he’s a good man. I don’t like seeing lies spread about him.

            1. Didn’t Stranahan question the real reasons Ravnsborg was running? Ravnsborg was more likely a good decoy candidate. Great shots of him being an A-10 Warthog pilot! There is no shame in being a transportation unit officer since support is a vital role and always a good target in war to hit. It’s an honorable role but why the campaign photo making it look like he was an A-10 Warthog pilot?

      2. How do we know he’s lying about Jackley? Just because Jackley says so ? So when Obama and Holder say that their opponents are lying about them then we’ll know that’s true too !?

        1. I’m sorry did you just say you are taking Stranahan’s word over Marty Jackley’s? You are a waste of time and a moron.

          Anyone who clicks like on a Stranahan post or pays him to work on a campaign is done with me.

          1. Well thanks Sunshine ! No, I’m just saying take the time to read and listen to the FACTS.

    3. Could Ravnsborg contend with Seward, Gosch, McGuigen, Vargo, L. Russell or T. Wollman? These are all heavy weights who make good decisions. They will not be bringing Lee Stranahan on their campaigns… Ever.

      1. Frankly, there are some on this list I would not vote for because of the decisions they have made. Let’s see who runs first.

    1. So Noem leaves congress and its in pretty much the same condition now as in 2010 to run against Jackley and Mickelson. Who are the 10 republicans who run as advocates to reign in DC and to do the job she didn’t get done?

      The reason I don’t think she runs is because a lot of people want that spot. She could be majority leader in 10 years. Thune could be majority leader also.

  1. This why Noem has an advantage in the Gov race: she was the keynote and Jackley and Mickelson got to listen from the audience like everyone else.

    1. Problem she will have though is she will be in DC while the others will be here… plus she has another election cycle in 2016 before she can focus on governorship; if she even wants to run for it.

  2. I’m voting for Marty in 18 but Mickelson is a stud. He will be the front runner in my opinion. Noem passes once she sees the backers Mickelson has.

    1. I would think Marty is the frontrunner. Who knows Mickelson outside of the legislature?

        1. Maybe Mikelson is supporting Stranahan. Seems like he is the one that benefits by someone attacking Marty without doing it himself.

          1. and if what Stranahan says is true,then we all benefit,whether you like it or not. “and you shall know the TRUTH and the TRUTH shall set you free”

              1. Stephanie Herseth shouldn’t get left out of the conversation. She could win if the GOP beats each other up.

      1. Seriously?!?! Who knows George Mark Mickelson outside of the legislature?? I’m guessing the 25th anniversary of the plane crash will provide him a substantial amount of free media too.

        Noem will have another cream-puff election in ’16, that will allow her to raise more money for her coffers… She will enter the race with close to $2 mil in the bank. Mickelson can raise a ton of money in no time… By the time the actual campaign starts, he will have a lot of the big money tied up. Jackley will be the one looking in. Lowest name ID, and smallest bank account will eventually cause him to take a step back.

        The R’s will also need someone who can raise money after the primary, because Heuther will likely be the strongest candidate the Dems have put up in a long time.

        1. Jackley will get crushed against Noem and Mickelson in a Governors race. That’s just reality considering what he’s up against.

        2. I bet if we did a poll right now Kristi would have 32%, Marty would have 26% and Mickelson would be at 20%.

          The other 22% decides the race and each candidate has a minimum of 5% soft support.

          1. I can just see a multi-ring circus start with Jackley running for Governor. Ring one Stranahan/Haber/Bosworth. Ring two Lingering issues from EB-5 and the battle for Benda’s death records since everything is being blamed and buried with a dead man Ring three I’m sure there will be other actors involved. Plus Jackley will not have the financial and political resources to go up against Noem and Mickelson.

          2. Kristi wins if it’s about personality but if it’s about issues and accomplishments she loses because her only accomplishment is the black hills cemetery act. the next congress person will be running on fixing a 20 trillion dollar deficit. How many trillion has it gone up since Kristi went to dc to decrease it? Same problems same issues.

            Mickelson is changing tech schools and proposing bigger ideas than Daugaard.

            Jackley has an impressive resume himself of keeping SD safe.

            1. Jackley and Mickelson operate in Pierre where 85 percent of the people are fellow Republicans. Frankly I think having been in some of the battles in DC these past few years gives Noem more credibility. She’s battle-tested as opposed to being a part of a supermajority that never gets challenged on anything.

              1. She has the same Rounds record when she was in Pierre. I suppose the crazies will oppose her for that common sense governing.

  3. The race will come down to Noem and Mickelson. Jackley will run for Congress once he sees that all the big backers are already committed to the other two

    1. Marty already has half a million in the bank. He will raise 1.5 by the governors race.

      1. ‘Marty already has half a million in the bank. He will raise 1.5 by the governors race.’

        And how do you know this? Were you one of the two guys with Jackley at the Summit League tournament game between SDSU and usd? Where you talked about needing central committee support, support of key party leaders, fundraising, etc?

        1. Never under estimate the willingness of the NAAG super PAC to support former AGs’ races for Governor.

    2. I think Kristi is the outsider looking in. I don’t see her wading into fisticuffs with Jackley or Mick.

      She stays put and that’s that. Besides she still hasn’t done anything in DC. Her top accomplishment has been beating SHS 5 years ago. Nothing the house passes ever gets signed because they are opposed to working with the president just like he is opposed to working with Boehner.

      What they do in DC Is bad for our country.

      1. What are Jackley and Mickelson’s accomplishments? Who have they ever beaten? Why would Kristi be afraid of either of them? I’m not saying she’ll win but I see nothing that keeps her from entering the race.

        1. Look at the trials Marty has won in his time as AG. Look at what Mickelson is doing with the tech schools. He’ll be the face of that issue on the ballot in ’16.

          1. Jackley won a trial while he was AG? No. Jackley never personally won a case since arriving in Pierre. For goodness sakes, all most all SD appellate work was won or lost by Jeff Hallem, and the circuit court stuff was won by the sitting States Attorney and their staff.

            1. Charles Tournquist was personally tried and convicted by AG Jackley for the murder of Tournquist’s mother: http://news.sd.gov/newsitem.aspx?id=16550

              John Graham was personally tried and convicted by AG Jackley for the cold case murder of Anna Mae Aquash: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Mae_Aquash#Graham_convicted_of_felony_murder

              Death Penalty sentences for Berget and Rhines, both argued by AG Jackley.

              Go find AGs from other states that personally try capitol cases. Its a short and distinguished list.

    1. With the entirety of the family out of town, except for my 2 youngest under the supervision of a new babysitter, I chose the location closest to the door.

      I wasn’t sure how my youngest daughter would be with a sitter, so in case I needed to make an escape, it provided the least disruption. Thankfully, everything went well.

  4. What do you mean huether democrat.He is a republican he hasnt done anything for the common guy.If he does run as a dem Im voting republican.

          1. I agree Stephanie would but she would take a huge paycut and expose herself and family to what happens in political campaigns. Does she really want to do this? She would make an excellent Governor but would she make a big sacrifice to hold public office like this?

            1. it obviously doesn’t take much effort to end up being the state’s strongest democrat.

    1. Huether was a Delegate to the Democratic Convention for Obama. You can’t get more partisan than an actual delegate.

  5. I am skipping over all posts from Anonymous or code names Sorry I Don’t consider comments credible or worthy if you don’t use your name. Maybe it is just me—

    1. Are you Boss Tweed’s corresponding secretary in charge of distributing patronage from SD’s own version of Tammany Hall ?

  6. what a fascinating debate. pardon me if i happen to think that it’ll be a different set of names and a somewhat different landscape by 2018. if nothing else, three more years of absence won’t help the herseth fans in here much at all.

  7. If SHS runs I think she wins against any republican. People didn’t vote for Noem as much as they voted against democrats. She’s done well for herself, could raise a ton of cash, was very well liked, and people are ready for a change from Wild West gun bills, wacky abortion bills, and how we can increase our reserves even more. I think the brass in Pierre needs a serious house cleaning.
    The harbinger is the dems are winning the initiative/referendum process so putting a blue dog dem in
    Pierre wouldn’t be out of the question. Also we are all Republican which influences a lot of moderates to want more balance.
    I’m not advocating this just making an observation.

  8. At this stage in 1986, the handicappers saw it this way:

    Lt. Governor Lowell Hansen’s to lose.

    Former Congressman Clint Roberts could make a run in a two person race but State Auditor Alice Kundert was cutting into his support and might even beat Roberts.

    Former Speaker of the House George Mickelson must be campaigning for Lt. Governor as he is unknown outside Pierre and Brookings.

    Final tally: Mickelson with Roberts in a close 2nd. Hansen and Kundert in distant 3rd and 4th.

    The point: Elections provide opportunities for issues to upset common wisdom. I won’t even speculate on how it turns out among the three.

    1. Troy in that election Mickelson beat Herseth by less than 11,000 votes. 153,300 to 142,800. I wonder if there are 142,000 Democrats left in South Dakota.

        1. they wear the big R but are really still Dems kinda like many of those legislators in Pierre

  9. Rounds runs for governor in ’18 and appoints Daugaard or Jackley to his Senate seat.

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