“Each day’s news is a reminder that we live in a dangerous world – and that while we never invite conflict, we have to be prepared for it.”
Click here or on the picture above to watch the video.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today called on Majority Leader Schumer to prioritize the National Defense Authorization Act, which would strengthen national security, address concerns about U.S. military readiness, and ensure our armed forces are equipped to meet evolving threats.
Hot off of my phone, a text message supposedly from Representative-Elect Chris Reder is resonating out there, telling people that it is his intent to resign from the legislature before he is sworn into office:
The messages in reply were from Rep. Julie Auch and Logan Manhart’s cell numbers, so I think it’s safe to say that this should be considered pretty seriously. I’m told that Sen-elect Carl Perry was also in the text chain spouting gibberish about getting the precinct people together, which illustrates his ignorance of the process (much like his ignorance of many other things).
Because at this juncture if Chris Reder fails to take office, it has nothing to do with the Republican organizational hierarchy but the Governor at the time. Party replacements are only during the election process for candidates. Once we’ve hit a certain point (called an election), Article III, Section 10 of the South Dakota Constitution says:
§ 10. Filling legislative vacancies. The Governor shall make appointments to fill such vacancies as may occur in either house of the Legislature.
If it’s before Governor Noem takes her new job, it will be her appointment. If it’s after a new Governor is sworn in, it would be Larry Rhoden’s. So, either it will be Kristi’s last appointment, or Rhoden’s first. And the process is run as the Governor deems fit. Period.
My only other thoughts in the matter are “is there something coming we need to watch for when it comes to Rep-Elect Reder?” Because people usually don’t quit before they take office without an outside reason.
The opinions expressed here are the author’s and do not reflect the views of the Board of Regents, the University of South Dakota, its Knudson School of Law, their employees, faculty, or administrators. The foregoing represents Simmons’ views as a private citizen.
Guest Column: Bedtime for Bolsheviks (Movie Review)by Thomas E. Simmons
My first memories of Ronald Reagan are tethered to memories of my father. My dad and I shared an impression: inklings of a Reagan as a man with guts, determination, and a clarity of vision; a vision about what was right and what was wrong. We liked his leadership, my dad and me. We liked that Reagan operated under a moral framework.
That’s no easy thing, developing a morality that can guide one’s actions. In fact, for most men and women, it’s a very difficult thing. But the best of us learn to practice it, sensing that therein reside the secrets of a worthwhile life. The efforts to hone a personal moral vision to guide one’s family, one’s community, and the world are efforts well-spent.
That is what both my dad and I perceived in Reagan’s 1979 campaign, his third presidential bid. And that’s my first memory of Reagan.
The film Reagan (2024) condenses the life of a man (who lived to the age of ninety-three) into two hours twenty-one minutes. We shouldn’t expect an exhaustive exploration, At most, a film presents a theme linked to conflict and resolution. We’ve only got a bit over two hours to work with. But critics have seen the film as flawed because it omits sizable chunks of Reagan’s life.
Here are a few such comments: “Reagan the movie has a strained relationship with reality.”
“The new biopic leans into this nostalgia with ahistorical bravado and selective story-telling.”
“Reagan can’t even trace the broad outlines of your stock biopic.”
“Reagan is an insubstantive [sic] Greatest Hits compendium.”
“Reagan’s dedication to narrow themes proves limiting.”
It’s fair to note that the film does not explore Ronald Reagan’s life in the same depth as a book. The film cannot, for example, compete with Bob Spitz’s Reagan: An American Journey (2018), though Spitz allows himself 880 pages to explore the rich, nuanced life of the 40th president (the equivalent of a 20-hour book-on-tape).
So, yes, the film is selective; its theme, focused – yet important. The primary lens through which the film presents a drama is Ronald Reagan’s anti-communism. Reagan saw communism as a totalitarian threat as serious as the German Nazis, the Italian Fascists, or the Imperialist Japanese. This same theme is considered in The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism (2006) by Paul Kengor.
Kengor, who also wrote God and Ronald Reagan: A Spiritual Life (2004)) penned the script for Reagan. (Tellingly, Chauncy K. Robinson’s review of Reagan for “People’s World” (a/k/a “The Daily Worker”) refers to Kengor’s second book by omitting the first two words of said title (i.e., God and – and I doubt that the omission was accidental.)
Kengor’s assessment of Ronald Reagan in term of Reagan’s anti-communism (and, to a lesser extent, Reagan’s spiritualism), permeates the film, Reagan. The film offers an abridged Reagan biography told by a KGB agent named Petrovich (a composite of actual KGB operatives who observed Ronald Reagan’s routines over several decades). Through this lens it presents a coherent narrative, somewhat inspirational, though admittedly not the greatest movie of all time.
My biggest nails-on-the-chalkboard complaint of Reagan is the CGI. Filmed in Oklahoma, the film digitally reconfigures the Oklahoma City Capitol Building as the U.S. Capitol and a masonic lodge as the White House. It’s a fakery that incorrectly insinuates that the film’s story is similarly contrived. The film’s truths should not be shrouded in computerized flimflam.
The film’s score is similarly unnerving. Repeatedly, President Reagan (played by the excellent Dennis Quaid) will offer a quip and the orchestra will endorse it in swelling strings. The instrumental emphasis is overdone, cheap, and preachy. It reminded me of Gandhi (1982). Ronald Reagan’s words, actions, and moral vision do not need clunky underscoring to hit home.
See the film. But also devote some effort to the study of the moral vision of Ronald Reagan without all the Hollywood limitations – and the schmaltz.
Thomas E. Simmons University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law Vermilion, SD
South Dakota Republican Party Chairman John Wiik has sent out a few thoughts on the election and the aftermath, which I share here for Republicans who might not get the e-mail forwarded to them if they’re in one of the counties with a dysfunctional Republican organization.
A few thoughts on the election and the aftermath…
From Chairman John Wiik
As chairman of the South Dakota Republican Party, I first would like to thank everyone for your hard work defeating Amendment H. This has been a priority for the central committee to defeat from the moment it was introduced. Thank you for your work.
Amendment G was also defeated, and largely because of your work, you should be proud that we maintained the pro life state we have worked so hard to become.
We see our majority increasing in the South Dakota legislature, and finally, all 3 branches of the US government are in the capable hands of Republicans. Governor Noem is likely the next Secretary of Homeland Security. Senator Thune was just elected Senate Majority Leader, and Congressman Johnson was reelected by tremendous margins.
Governor Noem’s departure will move Lieutenant Governor Larry Rhoden to the Governor’s Office, and the search for a Lieutenant Governor begins. Our bench is deep and we will find the best fit for the Rhoden administration and for South Dakota.
Regarding Senator Thune and the Majority Leader election, please allow me to chime in with a little history. Senator Thune was elected to Congress in 1996. Before that, all three of our national Congressional delegation members were Democrats. In the years since, he led this party to take down the Daschle Democrat organization in South Dakota piece by piece. By 2004, he ran against Daschle himself, vanquishing the sitting Majority Leader and shutting down Daschle’s Democrat state mechanism once and for all. We are standing on the shoulders of three decades of hard work by and for Senator Thune, Governor Noem, Senator Rounds, Congressman Johnson and countless others.
While Democrats tried to pick up the pieces with the election of Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin, a relatively unknown State Representative from Hamlin County swooped in, worked harder than anyone else could have, and defeated her, effectively ending Democrat relevance, with no Democrat elected to a statewide office since 2008.
As someone who has shed blood, sweat and tears and invested time, treasure, and talent to get those two elected, this is the reddest red-letter day in South Dakota history! Both Governor Noem and Senator Thune have pledged to work with President Trump to enact his mandated agenda for the American people. Let’s use this day to celebrate the accomplishments of the last 30 years of hard work and trust that President Trump’s administration is in incredibly capable hands and the SDGOP had a huge part in Making America Great Again.
“I look forward to working with my Republican colleagues here in the Senate and with President Trump and Vice President Vance to build a strong and prosperous America and a bright new dawn for the American people.”
Click here or on the picture above to watch the video.
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today discussed how the Senate will deliver on the mandate the American people have given President-elect Trump and the new Republican Congress to secure the border, grow the economy, and restore American strength.
South Dakota Republican Women select new leadership
At their biennial convention in the beautiful Black Hills, the South Dakota Federation of Republican Women unanimously elected a new slate of officers to represent the group for the next term:
President – Beka Zerbst
1st Vice-President – Jeni Boerger
2nd Vice-President – Debbie Schnell
3rd Vice-President – MaryLee Plut
4th Vice-President – Karen Brandt
Secretary – Nancy Ziegeldorf
Treasurer – Kari Shanard-Koenders
Member-at-Large – Maryann Bierman
Member-at-Large – Lauri Davis
Member-at-Large – Val Higgins
Member-at-Large – Sandy Rhoden
In addition, SDFRW honored four special ladies with awards given out only every two years:
Lauri Davis – Winner of the SDFRW Hero Award, given to a Republican woman who has contributed significantly to SDFRW at the state level over the past two years
Sandy Rhoden – Winner of the Cec Nankivel Award, given to a member who has contributed significantly to the SDFRW and the GOP over the past two years
Teresa Thompson – Winner of the Maree Raschke Award, given to a distinguished Republican woman who has displayed a true commitment to the Republican Party by donating her time on political activities during the pre-election year
Judy Trzynka* – Winner of the Legacy Award, given to a Republican Women in honor of a lifetime of service to SDFRW and SDGOP. (* SDFRW presented the Legacy Award to Judy in April with the help of U.S. Senator Mike Rounds)
Attorney General Jackley Calls On FCC to Block Robocallers
PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley and 46 other Attorneys General call upon the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to improve their Robocall Mitigation Database (RMD) and close what has effectively been an unmonitored loophole that bad actors exploit to access the U.S. telephone network.
“Illegal robocalls are a nuisance to all of us, and a means for scammers to take advantage of us,” said Attorney General Jackley. “It is time for the FCC to strengthen its database and crack down on scammers.”
Providers must register on the FCC’s database to operate as a voice service provider in the United States. However, since it went live in 2021, the database has done little to prevent bad actors from obtaining legitimate registrations to send illegal robocalls through the U.S. telephone network. The coalition of Attorneys General is calling on the FCC to strengthen the database so providers understand what information they need to submit and have deadlines to submit this information, validate the data providers submit to flag inaccurate or misleading data, penalize providers for submitting false or inadequate information by preventing them from getting authorization to operate, and block non-compliant providers.
Other Attorneys General who have signed onto the letter to the FCC are from: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and the District of Columbia.
In case you missed this post from incoming House Majority Whip Brandee Schaefbauer (before she deleted it), it doesn’t sound like the incoming House Leadership is going to be very “South Dakota nice.”
“At least I know who my “enemy” is when up against a democrat but I never know who the real “enemy” is when it comes to republicans.”
(You know, if you paired that with “Welcome to Aberdeen” that could be a t-shirt.)
I had always thought legislators referred to each other as “colleagues” and the people they represent are considered “constituents.” Silly me. it’s about enemies and when the knife comes out.
Here we go, as the hard right is making their first move, this time to have the new legislative leadership put two of South Dakota’s worst on the Board of Elections:
That’s … great. Just great. (Please infer a sarcastic tone here.).
Please take note that this group can’t even get the legislators correct (Karr is President Pro Tempore, NOT the Majority Leader), so that’s the level of intelligence making these demands.
It’s official: @SenJohnThune is our next Senate Majority Leader!
With President Trump in the White House and Republican majorities in both the Senate and House, Republicans are positioned to spend at least the next two years getting our country back on track. My colleagues and… https://t.co/raPtLZLjjg
As chairman of the South Dakota Republican Party, I first would like to thank everyone for your hard work defeating Amendment H. This has been a priority for the central committee to defeat from the moment it was introduced. Thank you for your work. 
