Author: @SoDakCampaigns

Thune: America Must Continue to Lead the World in Automated Vehicle Technology

“For automated vehicle technology to advance, it is imperative that the regulatory framework catch up with private-sector innovation… Unfortunately, bipartisan agreement on my amendment collapsed when special interests expressed their opposition, despite major efforts to accommodate their concerns.”

Click here or on the picture above to watch the video. 

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today discussed his work to develop a bipartisan legislative framework to govern the testing and deployment of automated vehicles (AVs) and his amendment to the Endless Frontier Act, which would’ve helped keep the United States ahead of China in the AV revolution. Thune expressed his disappointment that Democrats blocked his amendment due to pressure from outside interest groups, which is ultimately not in the best interest of our economy or the American people. AVs have the power to transform the way we move in numerous ways, making the transportation system safer, more efficient, and more accessible.

 

Thune Calls For Judiciary Committee Hearing on Potential Beef Market Manipulation

“It is essential that we hold the highly concentrated meatpacker industry accountable to the consumers and producers who depend on it. And I will continue to press the Department of Justice to thoroughly investigate this situation.”

Click here or on the picture above to watch the video. 

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today called on the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold a hearing on the possible improper and anticompetitive activity in the cattle market. Thune also spoke on the Senate floor about his ongoing effort to press the Department of Justice to investigate this potentially uncompetitive behavior. He recently encouraged Attorney General Merrick Garland to make this investigation a priority so ranchers and consumers can learn more about how this is affecting cattle prices and prices at grocery stores across the country. Thune noted that while the Justice Department agreed to start an investigation following an earlier request, it hasn’t shown any indication that the investigation is ongoing, nor has it released any results to the public.

Click here for full text of Thune’s letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).

Flags at Half-Staff in Honor of Victims of San Jose Tragedy

PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Kristi Noem ordered that flags be flown at half-staff statewide, effective immediately until sundown on May 30, 2021, in honor of the victims of the recent tragedy in San Jose.

This is in response to a proclamation by President Joseph R. Biden, which can be found here.

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Interesting story on FOX News, where it sounds as if Democrat strategists and poll watchers are convinced more and more that people are fatigued with woke culture, and it may become a great hammer for Republicans to use against Democrats:

“Wokeness is kryptonite for Democrats,” Haidt wrote. “Most people hate it, other than the progressive activists. If you just look at Americans’ policy preferences, Dems should be winning big majorities. But we have strong negative partisanship, and when people are faced with a party that seems to want to defund the police and rename schools, rather than open them, all while crime is rising and kids’ welfare is falling, the left flank of the party is just so easy for Republicans to run against.”

That belief is shared by Democratic strategist James Carville, who made perhaps an even bolder statement on how cancel culture will impact the party last month.

“Wokeness is a problem and everyone knows it,” he said. “It’s hard to talk to anybody today — and I talk to lots of people in the Democratic Party — who doesn’t say this. But they don’t want to say it out loud.”

Read the entire story here.

We get plently of wokism in South Dakota, with our elected democrats with examples such as Sioux Falls City Councilor Patrick Starr deriding Mt. Rushmore as “vandalism,”  and State Representative Erin Healy dismissing the country’s founders  on the monument as merely “slave holders.”

If we’re to take anything away from the story, it’s looking more and more like wokeness could cause Democrats an electoral headache in the next election as voters rebel against the self-righteous.

My latest podcast guest is a rising star in the Republican party, Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota. Growing up on a ranch, she learned many life lessons that she shares in this episode. @govkristinoemhttps://t.co/AqcGqmE8e5

— Newt Gingrich (@newtgingrich) May 11, 2021

Courtney, Johnson Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Allow Active-Duty Servicemembers to Count Full Service Period Towards Public Service Loan Forgiveness

NORWICH, CT—Today, Rep. Joe Courtney (CT-02) and Rep. Dusty Johnson (SD-AL) introduced the Recognizing Military Service in PSLF Act, a new bipartisan bill that would finally enable American service members to count the full length of their service towards their student loan forgiveness. Although they are currently eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), existing rules prevent many active duty servicemembers who have deployed far away from their families from applying their full period of service towards PSLF—meaning that they are made to complete a longer period of service before qualifying for student loan forgiveness. The Recognizing Military Service in PSLF Act would ensure that American servicemembers have their full service periods appropriately counted towards their loan forgiveness.

Courtney was joined by Rep. Johnson, a fellow member of the House Armed Services Committee, as an original co-sponsor upon introducing the bill today. The Senate companion to the Recognizing Military Service in PSLF Act is sponsored by Senators Maggie Hasson (D-NH) and Marco Rubio (R-FL), and co-sponsored by Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Jack Reed (D-RI), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL). The legislation has earned the endorsement of veterans service organizations including Veterans Education Services and Student Veterans of America.

“There are no public servants more deserving of our gratitude and support than our servicemembers, especially those deployed around the globe, far away from their families,” said Congressman Courtney. “The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program was designed to encourage and support people who dedicate their careers to serving our communities and our country, and our servicemembers and National Guard members shouldn’t be barred from taking full advantage of its benefits while they’ve been deployed on active-duty. Rep. Johnson and I have teamed up before to move bipartisan bills across the finish line for the folks who wear our nation’s uniform, and I’m glad to join him once again to advance this effort. Our troops and their families deserve the full benefit of student loan forgiveness that they’ve earned while serving overseas, and this bill will help them get it.”

“Servicemembers time in the military is eligible for public service student loan forgiveness except while they are on active duty deployment. That policy makes no sense. I’m proud to partner with Rep. Courtney to make certain all military service time is counted towards this critical military benefit,” said Congressman Johnson.

Currently, service members are eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), which means they can enroll in income-driven repayment plans that will result in student loan forgiveness after ten years of qualifying service. Servicemembers also have access to student loan deferment and forbearance periods during military deployments. These loan deferment and forbearance periods are intended to account for the unique financial impacts of deployment on a servicemember’s family, but currently those periods do not count as PSLF qualifying payments—meaning that if a servicemember chooses to put their loans into deferment or forbearance during a deployment, they will need to complete a longer overall period of service before qualifying for student loan forgiveness.

The bipartisan Recognizing Military Service in PSLF Act would count military student loan deferment or forbearance as qualifying payments to PSLF so that servicemembers who deploy have their full time of service appropriately counted towards their loan forgiveness. The bill would extend the new coverage to:

• Active-duty service members deployed overseas on a combat tour;
• Active-duty service members deployed away from their families and home station to support a Department of Defense mission;
• National Guard and Reserve members brought onto active duty orders for more than 30 days to support a federal mission, such as an overseas deployment or U.S. disaster relief;
• National Guard members brought on to state active duty orders to support a state mission, which includes those members who have been supporting the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Reps. Courtney and Johnson have worked together successfully in and outside of the House Armed Services Committee to support America’s servicemembers and their families. In August 2020, they co-led the introduction of the Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act (H.R. 8075), a bill that provided support to public schools that serve high percentages of children from military families and others. Their bipartisan bill was passed by the House in October 2020, and was signed into law by President Trump on December 7, 2020.

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Governor Noem Asks Board of Regents to Preserve Honest, Patriotic Education

PIERRE, S.D. – Yesterday, Governor Kristi Noem asked the South Dakota Board of Regents to set policies that preserve honest, patriotic education throughout South Dakota’s institutions of higher learning. You can read the her letter, which was sent to each individual member of the Board, here.

“As governor, I have become increasingly concerned about a growing movement throughout the country to reject patriotic education and downplay the positive revolution in human affairs set in motion by our Founders,” wrote Governor Noem. “Our children and grandchildren should understand the full picture of our nation’s history – our fundamental values, our greatest achievements, and the long struggles to overcome injustice as well.  Our next generation must also learn about our triumphs as well as our mistakes, with those mistakes being examined in context.”

In the letter, Governor Noem urged the Board of Regents to consider:

1. Whether funds are being used to advance or promote the 1619 Project, Critical Race Theory, or any similar theory; or requiring, compelling, or otherwise directing students to personally affirm, adopt, or adhere to any such beliefs or tenets;
2. Whether South Dakota’s post-secondary public institutions remain a place of learning, not indoctrination;
3. Whether diversity offices in post-secondary public institutions are still working within the scope of their original mission, or whether they have experienced inappropriate “mission creep.”

“I trust you will agree with me that we need to preserve honest, patriotic education throughout South Dakota – education that that cultivates in our next generation both a profound love of our country and a realistic picture of its virtues and challenges,” continued Governor Noem. “I look forward to working together with the Board of Regents on this goal.”

This past legislative session, Governor Noem advocated for and signed legislation to enhance civics curriculum at the K-12 level. She recently became the first officeholder in America to sign the “1776 Pledge to Save Our Schools.” Last week, Department of Education Secretary Tiffany Sanderson and State Historian Dr. Ben Jones wrote to the Biden Administration to push back on their proposed policies advocating for the teaching of the 1619 Project and Critical Race Theory.

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Democrats are clucking about a chicken dinner featuring both Tim Johnson and Tom Daschle raising money for Democrat Legislative Candidates.. except it sounds a lot less star studded than the announcement makes it out to be.

On Tuesday night, they will try to help do so again. The former senators are scheduled to speak at the JFK Dinner, sponsored by the Democratic Forum of Sioux Falls.

and..

He said Daschle will speak live via Zoom while Johnson and his wife Barb will speak online from their home in Sioux Falls.

An in-person dinner will be held at 1737 S. Cleveland Ave. for up to 40 persons, with chicken from The Keg served. The cost is $50. People also can watch on Zoom for $35.

Read it here.

So, they’re not really speaking AT the dinner.. they’re piping them both in via zoom.

And looking at the address on Cleveland Ave, up to 40 people are going to pay $50 a head to eat take-out chicken on folding tables in what used to be the Tim Bjorkman for Congress office.

And for $35 you can zoom in and watch all this take place.

I’ve gone to rubber chicken political events for years. And this one sounds like more of a turkey.

 

I had this flyer sent over to me this afternoon, which seems to have generated some controversy in the Rapid City School election coming up in a couple of weeks:

As I’m told, the flyer was supposedly distributed and deposited to the in-school mailboxes of Rapid City Education Association members.

With the association apparently sparing no expense, the front of the flyer notes that for every 10 people that the teachers union speak with about the election, they will be entered into a drawing for a $20 gift card. And they could double their chances for that $20 gift card if they speak to 20 people.  (Big spenders, eh?)

That flyer seems to have drawn the ire of Pennington County Republicans, who wrote themselves about the controversy on Facebook today:

I’m sure there are some federal labor rules which permit labor union communications to members at the place of work.

And while there are laws against paying for petition signature collection, offering the opportunity/raffle of a $20 gift card to union members for teachers to talk to people about the RCEA’s selected candidates isn’t going to run afoul of any laws.. and is kind of cheap.

But the appearance of it might be a turnoff, as evidenced by the Penn Co GOP’s unhappiness over the issue.

There’s a message in the Rapid City Journal and on the website for State Senator Jessica Castleberry asking voters to consider who they put on our school boards, noting that stalkers and beraters are not needed:

It would be highly detrimental to have people at the helm of our school system who stalk, berate, and belittle people they don’t agree with. And- while I firmly believe in free speech- it may be unwise to have school board representatives who have repeatedly stated how much they hate our community, our country, and the people who live in Rapid City. We need people who can see the flaws in the system but fundamentally love and respect our hometown. Just as our teachers should look at our children who are struggling and say, “How can I help?” so should our school board ask our school system. People (even politicians) will show you exactly who they are; all you have to do is look, just a little. Choose carefully, and please do not skip an election of this magnitude.

Read here editorial here.

I missed the accusations of stalking in the school board race.

But it’s Rapid City. So I’m not entirely shocked.