Author: @SoDakCampaigns

From SDPB, it appears that State Republican Party Convention Resolutions Committee Chair Ed Randazzo has taken ill with COVID after attending a remote convention site with the Pennington Co GOP:

The state party set up a digital convention this year, and passed temporary rules that allowed members to attend virtually for social distancing.

and…

Randazzo was unavailable for comment, but according to an email sent out to Pennington County Republicans he was diagnosed with COVID 19 on Wednesday.

Dan Lederman is chair of the state Republican party. He says Pennington County Republicans took precautions needed to stay within CDC guidelines.

Read the entire story here.

Johnson Introduces Legislation Protecting Mount Rushmore

Washington, D.C. –U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-SD) today introduced the Mount Rushmore Protection Act. This legislation prohibits the use of federal funds to alter, change, destroy or remove the likeness, the name of, or any of the faces on the Mount Rushmore National Memorial.

“These presidents championed the cause of freedom,” said Johnson. “Those seeking to remove these iconic faces are undermining the contributions these leaders made in pursuit of a more perfect union. Removal would do nothing to move our country forward.”

Full text of Johnson’s legislation is attached.

Mount Rushmore Protection Act by Pat Powers on Scribd

This facebook comment from Theresa Stehly was somewhat prophetic.

Originally coming in 109 votes short after the June 2 municipal election, Stehly asked for a second look at the ballots and a three-person panel assembled in cooperation between both candidates and the Sioux Falls City Clerk spent nearly 10 hours sifting through nearly 29,000 ballots.

While Stehly did cut into Jensen’s margin of victory, ending up just 97 votes behind when the dust settled on the recount, the end result of the previous vote count held.

Read that all here.

After all the recount drama, there ended up being a change of 12 whole votes. Which does not come as a shocker.

From Facebook:

It’s a good thing Governor Kristi Noem is ready to defend Mt. Rushmore. Because one of the state’s more liberal politicians is claiming that the carving of the mountain were “vandals erasing history.”

Sioux Falls City Council Member Pat Starr, the same liberal politician who engaged in victim blaming in 2018 because he didn’t like it when crime victims were gun owners, has taken to Facebook this afternoon and is publicizing a meme attacking the presidents on Mt. Rushmore as slave owners and racists by today’s standards and claiming that the mountain was carved by white men who were “vandals erasing history.”

I’m guessing he didn’t put in for the lottery to join President Trump to see the fireworks next weekend.

(Update – a reader tells me this post has mysteriously vanished from the councilor’s facebook page.)

REDSTONE WELCOMES T.J. NELSON AS A POLICY ADVISOR

Redstone Law Firm is excited to announce that T.J. Nelson recently joined the firm’s Sioux Falls office as a Policy Advisor. Nelson will focus on government relations, public affairs, political consulting, and lobbying during the South Dakota Legislative Session.

Prior to joining Redstone, Nelson served as Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken’s Campaign Manager and Deputy Chief of Staff. While in the Mayor’s office, T.J.’s focus was communications, media relations, special projects, and policy initiatives at the local, state, and federal levels. Nelson has also worked in campaign and official office capacities for U.S. Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds. His public relations and communications background includes focus areas in health care, human resources, transportation, railroads, and crisis communications.

Nelson is a native of Sioux Falls. He graduated from Augustana University in 2005 where he studied Government and International Affairs, Business Management, and Journalism. He and his wife, Katie, are parents to Henry and reside in Sioux Falls.

T.J. may be reached at 605.444.2812 or tj@redstonelawfirm.com.

Had a person closely associated with the legislature give me a hot tip today.

They’re telling me that there are some House members trying to form different leadership pacts before the November General Election – four groups of people so far.

One they particularly claimed was active is Rep. Latterell working with Reps. Pischke, Dennert and others to pull together a Libertarian bloc of leadership and looking to introduce District 6 GOP Candidate Aaron Alyward into a run for a House whip position… despite the fact Alyward wasn’t a registered Republican until late 2019.

There’s a lot of time between now and November for people to start forming plans to carve up the leadership positions amongst themselves.  Maybe even a general election or two to win first.

Stay tuned. I’m sure we’ll hear more about the machinations of those who wish to be in charge before the 2021 session.

Update: After posting this, Rep. Latterell sent a note claiming that he isn’t “aware of or involved in any such discussions,” denies that the rumor is accurate, and claims that this rumor is “somebody’s attempt to smear (him) or someone else.”

Plague. Riots. Murder Hornets. And we’re barely halfway through 2020.

It might be a good time to mention that we’re living in a great state in South Dakota. Because aside from our Governor Kristi Noem, we’re also awesome because South Dakota has been named the #2 state for surviving a zombie apocalypse:

According to Cabletv.com:

• Given the low population densities and bountiful farmlands, the Midwest is the best prepped in the event of a (zombie) apocalypse. You wanna be where the farms are and the people aren’t (more people in denser areas means more infections).
• North Dakota is the best state for surviving a zombie apocalypse, and in second place? South Dakota. The Dakotas are the place to be in the midst of a zombie apocalypse.
• Big, open, and undeveloped land is your best bet, which is why places like Montana and Idaho also land high on the list.
• While you might think you could find more resources and possibly gather with a good group of people, chances are if you’re in a densely populated area, you’re that much more likely to get infected or injured among the chaos. That means anyone in the East might have to go way out west before they can catch a breath.

You can read the full report here!

The #1 state for zombie apocalypse survivability? Those dirty so-and-so’s in North Dakota.  I’m guessing that’s because they’re frozen solid for 3/4th of the year.

While you’re reading the report, I’m going to start digging my underground bunker. (If only I didn’t live in a town where the water table is 6 inches below the surface!)

Governor Noem Appoints Brock Brown to Board of Regents

PIERRE, S.D. – Governor Kristi Noem announced today that she will appoint Brock Brown, of Lake Norden, to the South Dakota Board of Regents. Brown will serve as the board’s student member.

“My mission is to make South Dakota stronger for the next generation,” said Governor Noem. “Brock has the right drive, focus, and experience to help the Board of Regents accomplish our shared vision for his generation.”

Brown is a rising junior at South Dakota State University, where he is majoring in History with a Teaching Specialization. He also has a minor in Political Science. Brown is active in student government, having served in Hall Government and as the Residence Hall Association President. He has interned in Governor Kristi Noem’s office since January.

“I am truly honored by Governor Noem’s appointment and am excited to join the Board of Regents,” said Brown. “I look forward to working with the existing Regents to make our state better for my generation and to promote initiatives that will improve students’ and staff’s academic experiences.”

To learn more about the South Dakota Board of Regents, visit sdbor.edu.

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Thune, Smith Introduce Bill to Ease Application Process for the Impact Aid Program During COVID-19 Pandemic

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) today introduced the Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act, legislation that would allow school districts participating in the Impact Aid Program to use their student headcount from the 2020-2021 school year, which have already been calculated, on their Impact Aid applications for the 2021-2022 school year. School districts will begin to complete their Impact Aid applications for the 2021-2022 school year this fall, and this bill would ensure that schools do not need to recalculate federally connected students during the uncertainty created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Impact Aid is a program that reimburses school districts located on federal property or for their students that live on federal land and, therefore, collect less in local property taxes to fund their schools.

“There are several school districts throughout the state of South Dakota that rely on the Impact Aid Program to help support their schools and students,” said Thune. “By allowing these school districts to use prior-year student headcounts on their Impact Aid applications this fall, we can ensure that school districts across the state will have the funding they need during these uncertain times and will continue benefiting from this important program.”

“As we continue to respond to the coronavirus pandemic we need to make sure that schools in Minnesota have strong investments so students can keep learning,” said Smith. “We have a special obligation to federally impacted schools, which are located in school districts with a significant amount of nontaxable land and because of that receive direct federal payments. I’m glad to work with Sen. Thune to help ensure that next fall’s Impact Aid applications and student counts are not disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.”

“As federally impacted school districts develop our plans for the next school year, we appreciate Senators Thune and Smith for addressing our concerns about conducting accurate Impact Aid student counts,” said Chad Blotsky, president of the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools and Finance Director of the Todd County School District. “This legislation is a commonsense way to enable all 1200-plus federally impacted school districts – including Indian lands, military and federal property school districts – to submit timely applications while keeping our staff and communities safe. In my state of South Dakota, there are 37 Impact Aid school districts, representing all aspects of the program. The National Association of Federally Impacted Schools supports this legislation and thanks Senators Thune and Smith or their leadership.”

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