Author: Pat Powers

I was just tipped off that anti-porn activist Chris Sevier is at the South Dakota Capitol today. (Wearing dress blues.)

Apparently, he’s been traveling the country on his crusade, and is back in our state with his legislation. If you’re not familiar with it, there was a story in the Kansas City Star last February:

Sevier has made national headlines for his bizarre opposition to pornography and LGBTQ marriage. Since being deemed mentally unfit to practice law in 2011, he has tried to marry his laptop in multiple states and sued Apple Inc. for a porn addiction that he said ruined his marriage.

But most recently, Sevier has been pushing his anti-porn, anti-gay legislation in states from Virginia to Hawaii. Last week, Sevier was found to be behind six bills in the Kansas House.

Read the entire story here.

And last year, he brought that same bill to our state as he lobbied on an anti-porn measure last year in Pierre:

South Dakota’s bill, like its counterparts being introduced in state legislatures across the country, was created and championed by an anti-porn advocate.

Chris Sevier, a Tennessee native, was in Pierre during the hearing to speak in favor of the South Dakota bill. He compared telecom companies to Columbian drug dealers, and then compared the regulations proposed in the bill to the same restrictions on non-Internet porn vendors.

Read that here.

Yeah..  I have to say I would question any law being championed by someone who tried to marry their laptop.

(Update… so I’m being told security may have just walked him out… )

PIERRE, S.D. – Governor Kristi Noem today issued the following statement regarding COVID-19:

“The state’s Public Health Laboratory in Pierre has confirmed the first presumptive positive cases of coronavirus in South Dakota,” said Noem. “The cases are travel related. While we wait for the CDC to conduct their confirmatory testing, the Department of Health staff is working to identify additional people who came in close contact with these individuals to decrease the spread of illness.”

“Our team has been preparing for weeks, and I am confident we have the right people in place to address this fluid situation. Without panicking, I encourage all South Dakotans to take this seriously – now is the time to prepare and to stay informed.”

So, this is interesting. Dakota Vaping Association Lobbyist and marijuana legalization petitioner Jordan Mason was out posting on facebook this afternoon that he’s recruiting candidates to run for a number of legislative offices, despite there being current office holders who intend to run again, as well as declared and filed office seekers:

The problem with this is that a lot of those are filled already. I mean it’s a free country and all, but i’s pretty widely known that in the House in D31, Mary Fitzgerald and Rep. Dayle Hammock have already filed petitions. Same goes for Joel Koskan who has already filed in Senate 26.  There’s also 3-4 who are already running in House 17, not to mention Rep. Jess Olson and former Rep Mike Derby who have staked their claim on the House in 34.

When Jordan is recruiting people to run against Sen. Novstrup, Sen. Schoenbeck, Sen. Steinhauer, Sen. Curd, Sen. Art Rusch, Sen. Schoenfish, Sen. Klumb, Sen. Cammack, Sen. Duhamel, Sen. Partridge and Sen. Casleberry among others, that brings into question why he’s looking for people to put those current officeholders out on the street?

Not a lot of lobbyists who are actively recruiting their own candidates to take on current office holders.

From Facebook, Minnehaha County States Attorney Candidate Daniel Haggar is hosting a campaign fundraiser in Sioux Falls at the Remedy Brewing Company on Thursday night from 5-7pm, with a few familiar names as hosts:

State House hopeful Mike Derby of Rapid City is hosting a campaign kickoff at the Canyon Lake Resort on Thursday in Rapid City. Here’s the flyer:

“The Veterans Town” Is Stronger Than Ever
By Sen. John Thune

Hot Springs recently received some long-awaited news: their VA medical facility, which so many South Dakota veterans depend on, will stay open. If I’m being honest, it was not the news I expected to hear during my latest trip to “The Veterans Town,” but I share in the community’s excitement after this long-fought battle has finally been won. I want to thank Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, who accepted the congressional delegation’s invitation to meet with stakeholders from throughout the region. They told powerful stories, and the secretary, to his credit, listened.

There’s a lot more to the story, though, and you have to go back nearly 10 years to fully appreciate what this recent news means to the community. The story spans two presidential administrations and four VA secretaries, but it all starts with the Obama administration’s 2011 proposal to “realign” the facility. That’s a fancy Washington term for “shut it down.” I knew what the facility meant to the community – after all, it’s nearly synonymous with Hot Springs itself – so there was no way it was going to shut down, at least while I had something to say about it. I was joined in the fight by a spirited community of veterans, VA employees and Hot Springs neighbors, and my colleagues in the delegation.

The ultimate goal has always been to take care of our veterans – there’s nothing more important than that. So, we went to work right away trying to convince then-VA Secretary Eric Shinseki and the previous administration to come to a different conclusion. It became clear pretty quickly that this decision was already made, and it seemed like they were essentially trying to kill the facility by starving it of resources.

In 2014, and every year since then, my legislation to prevent the closure of the Hot Springs facility has been adopted by Congress and signed into law. Until there was actually a national realignment strategy in place, I didn’t believe it was appropriate for Hot Springs to be on the chopping block. And today, the VA has yet to complete those plans, which has kept the facility’s doors open – but it has always been under a cloud of uncertainty.

Four years ago, rather than shutting the doors completely, the VA announced plans to move substantial parts of the Hot Springs facility to Rapid City, including the vital post-traumatic stress disorder program hosted in the historic domiciliary. While Washington bureaucrats may have thought the plan sounded good on paper, I didn’t think it was a viable option because it would leave a deep void in the “The Veterans Town,” in which South Dakota, Nebraska, and Wyoming veterans receive the care they need and deserve. So, the fight continued.

I’ve always believed in a collaborative approach to solve this problem, again, in order to fully serve the veterans in Hot Springs. For years, I’ve been trying to get the VA to simply listen to the community and hear what a closure would mean to everyone who depends on the medical center. We finally got that opportunity in 2016 when then-VA Secretary Bob McDonald visited Hot Springs, but the facility’s future remained threatened the following year after he signed the record of decision to finalize the misguided realignment.

Fast-forward to today. When I heard Secretary Wilkie would be traveling to Hot Springs in early March, a longstanding request from the delegation, I wanted to ensure we didn’t let this opportunity pass us by. After I learned the secretary’s original itinerary lacked any substantive interaction with the community, I organized an effort that ultimately resulted in the secretary modifying his schedule so he could hear firsthand from veterans and stakeholders. That meeting turned out to be the pivotal moment in this story.

To hear the secretary say the facility will not close and that he will look at what can be done to create a process that allows buy-in from our veterans, that is collaborative and not driven by a top-down bureaucratic process, that actually looks at the needs of our veterans – well, it was something I’ll never forget.

As simple as it might sound, to finally have an administration that was just willing to listen – to sit down at a table and have a conversation – it’s made all the difference in the world. Secretary Wilkie’s visit will be long-remembered, and the certainty and peace of mind he’s brought to the community is something I’m excited and humbled to have played a small role in helping achieve. The real credit goes to Hot Springs – to the community and the veterans the facility serves. This was a big win and a battle worth fighting.

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Thune’s Week in Washington Wrap-Up

“Like many Americans, the Senate is closely watching the coronavirus outbreak, and we have already taken action. The Senate just passed a bill to provide funding that can help medical professionals get the tools they need to address the outbreak.”

🥼#COVID19 funding approved
🇮🇱Support for Israel
📱Protect against China digital security threat
⚡️Bipartisan energy bill (and more on that next week)
More critical items in Washington this week? 👇🏻#WeekInWashingtonWrapUp pic.twitter.com/cCqUFCBtND

— Senator John Thune (@SenJohnThune) March 6, 2020

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

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today released his “Week in Washington Wrap-Up,” which highlights what’s on the Senate floor, bills he’s introduced, groups he’s met with in Washington, and other weekly activities. Click on any of the links below for more information.

Protecting Your Health During Coronavirus Outbreak
By U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.)

As the coronavirus continues to spread across the world, we should take precautions to stay healthy. Coronaviruses are a family of many different viruses. The strain of the coronavirus that we’re currently concerned about is officially named SARS-CoV-2, and the disease it causes is called COVID-19. As of March 5, South Dakota has no confirmed cases of COVID-19. However, it is still important to be prepared. The administration is taking steps to make sure our country is ready to handle a greater number of COVID-19 cases. Additionally, the South Dakota Department of Health has taken steps to make certain our state is prepared to respond if needed. Their webpage, doh.sd.gov, includes a number of resources to help keep South Dakotans informed.

While the risk of contracting the disease right now is low, it could increase at any time. The president has appointed Vice President Mike Pence to lead the administration’s coronavirus response. Vice President Pence is working with top health officials to make sure the government is ready to combat the spread of the virus.

In the United States, we are fortunate to have some of the best therapeutic treatments to help those affected by COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), potential symptoms include fever, coughing and shortness of breath. Symptoms may show up in as few as two days, or up to 14 days. In the Senate briefings on COVID-19 that I’ve attended, we have been told by administration officials that the virus is similar to the flu but also impacts the lungs and respiratory system, so the symptoms may be similar to what you’d experience with pneumonia. Because of its impact on the respiratory system, those with breathing issues, compromised immune systems, the very young and the elderly should take extra precautions against contracting the virus. Healthy adults are less at risk of experiencing serious symptoms.

There is currently no vaccine to prevent against getting the virus, although scientists are working to develop one. We’ve been told that it could take anywhere from 18-24 months for a coronavirus vaccine to become widely available to the public. However, President Trump has been calling for an expedited timeline, and we recently learned that clinical testing for a vaccine could happen in five months. Advanced therapeutic drugs will become available much sooner, possibly in a matter of months. These drugs would treat the symptoms of COVID-19 while work continues on an approved vaccine to combat the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

The CDC recommends that we take the following actions to keep ourselves healthy: avoid close contact with people who are sick, avoid touching your face, stay at home if you feel ill, use tissues to cover your cough or sneeze, clean and disinfect frequently touched items and wash your hands frequently. If you don’t have access to soap and water, an alcohol-based hand sanitizer like Purell should be used. If you think you may be experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, call ahead before going to your doctor’s office so they can be prepared for your arrival. This is especially important if you’ve traveled to China recently or been in close contact with someone who has traveled from China recently.

The White House has requested funds to help deal with COVID-19. In Congress, we recently passed supplemental funding legislation to provide additional money to the administration for emergency preparedness. The additional funding will provide the resources needed for experts to combat this crisis, allowing them to move quickly and craft a thorough, comprehensive response.

We will continue to share updates on COVID-19 as necessary. In the meantime, I encourage you to follow the CDC guidelines for staying healthy.

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Fighting for Hot Springs
By Rep. Dusty Johnson

Earlier this week, the South Dakota delegation hosted Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) Robert Wilkie, Jr. for a tour of the Hot Springs VA and a roundtable discussion about the vital role this facility serves for the local veteran community. The Hot Springs community’s identity and purpose has long been grounded in serving veterans at the historic Battle Mountain facility. As many South Dakotans know, veterans in this area have endured years of uncertainty about the future of the Hot Springs Campus due to past VA leadership who failed to appreciate the Hot Springs VA and the overwhelming support it has from the community.

That all changed earlier this week when Secretary Wilkie unequivocally stated that the Hot Springs VA will not close. He further stated that he will review the adverse decisions made by VA’s past leadership and consider ideas put forward by local veteran groups to sustain the Hot Springs VA as a location that robustly serves veterans.

Born in Germany with a father serving in the military, Secretary Wilkie joked that he was born in khaki diapers. He is a military officer in the United States Air Force Reserve and grew up in military communities around the United States. During his visit, Secretary Wilkie remarked that he believes government should do less detached, centralized Washington decision making and instead engage with local folks to hear about how they view the future of their community. I could not agree more – Secretary Wilkie’s take is a breath of fresh air.

I am thankful for Secretary Wilkie’s gesture of goodwill toward the more than 65,000 veterans in our state, the Hot Springs community, and the South Dakota delegation. As the Secretary takes a second look at his predecessor’s decision, I am ready to work with the VA and the local community to identify a positive, community-supported path forward for the Hot Springs VA. Every stakeholder agrees that the status quo is unacceptable, and the Hot Springs community has endured enough uncertainty. This is a clear opportunity for Hot Springs.

In 1865, President Lincoln signed legislation into law that led to the creation of the original Battle Mountain Sanitarium, which is now the Hot Springs VA. Hot Springs, SD has served veterans for more than 100 years. Since opening its doors, the name on the door has changed, the government branch has changed; and the leadership has changed, but service to veterans has remained constant. President Lincoln once said, “All through life, be sure and put your feet in the right place, and then stand firm.” We’ll continue to fight for the Hot Springs community’s tradition of serving our nation’s veterans.

 

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