Author: Pat Powers

Abortion numbers continue to fall in South Dakota

Pierre, SD, December 3, 2015– Recently released 2014 Abortion Statistics, published on the SD Department of Health website, show the number of reported abortions in South Dakota decreased. There were 551 total abortions reported performed in South Dakota in 2014 compared to 601 in 2013.

“These numbers represent fifty more children who now have the opportunity to grow and contribute to our society. While we are encouraged by this trend, our efforts to share the truth through education and legislation must continue until taking an innocent human life becomes unthinkable,” stated Debbie Pease, registered lobbyist for South Dakota Right to Life.

The drop in abortions follows a trend in the United States and is the lowest number reported in SD since 1973. The next lowest number was 597 abortions in 2011. The highest number ever reported in SD was 1,693 abortions in 1982.

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He’s the newest legislator in Pierre, so we thought we’d take the opportunity to speak with State Representative Wayne Steinhauer, who was recently appointed to the seat that was once held by State Representative Steve Hickey.  According to a release from the Governor’s office:

Steinhauer is the outgoing chairman of the Minnehaha County Planning Commission, on which he has served for 14 years. He retired last year as chief operations officer of Amesbury, after a 30 year career in business. He also owns and operates the Best Western Hotel in Murdo.

“I am extremely honored to be appointed to the South Dakota House of Representatives,” said Steinhauer. “I am enthusiastic about the opportunity to represent District 9 and to work in Pierre with other South Dakota leaders for the benefit of all.”

Steinhauer has been active in many community organizations, including Rotary International, Downtown Sioux Falls, Sioux Empire United Way and Sioux Falls Tomorrow. He is also a member of the Murdo Chamber of Commerce.

Steinhauer and his wife of 40 years, Cindy, have two children and nine grandchildren. They are members of St. George Church in Hartford.

And with that, we have 5 Questions with State Representative Wayne Steinhauer:

 I have a varied background in business and civic activities that will help me understand the complexities of the issues facing the state.   After 14 years on the Minnehaha County Planning Commission I have grown in my appreciation for the give and take that can occur between an individual’s needs and those of the community plus the role government can play.  Previously I spent a dozen years on the Sioux Falls Planning Commission which facilitated my involvement in tax increment financing, Main Street Sioux Falls (now Down Town Sioux Falls), RISE, the river greenway, bicycle plans, ordinance changes and the like.   My prior work with the Sioux Empire United Way helps my awareness of the social issues we face and the great organizations we have.   I have been a senior executive in an international manufacturing firm but I also own a small Best Western Motel in Murdo SD.   So I have a unique view of the issues facing both large and small business.   Additionally, owning a motel in Murdo increases my awareness of the issues faced by a small community dependent on our two biggest state industries; Agriculture and Tourism.

Not so much yet, but I am reaching out to leaders in this area to learn all that I can.  Within days of my appointment I met with the superintendents of both Tri-Valley and West Central School districts to learn more about the issues they are facing and initial thoughts on the task force report.

That is an interesting question.   Even after checking with my wife, Cindy, I would have to say that I am very aligned with the stereotypical concept of a Republican.   That said, I would like to think that I am very open to listening to both sides of an issue and looking for creative solutions that might not always be mainstream.

Clearly there are several significant issues that will take considerable focus; teacher pay, and Medicaid expansion for example.   Speaker Wink has informed me that I will be on the Transportation and Commerce & Energy standing committees.  I also am very interested in Local Government issues and believe my background may be of benefit in this area.

Most important to me at this time is preparing to do a good job during the upcoming session.  I think I must first prove that I am a capable legislator and then later focus on a campaign.   That said, I believe that by reaching out to those in my district to get their opinions on issues will serve me well in a future campaign.

 
As you can see from the above postcard, which I received from a lobbyist, on December 5th, State Democrats will be shilling for dollars and cozying up to state lobbyists to raise money for their elections.

Would that include some of the same Democrats who were helping to circulate the Taxpayer Funded Campaign Act which as part of the measure limits lobbyist gifts and donations to elected officials?

Damn, that’s ironic.

Have you clicked on the link at the top left of the page to make a donation to the Augustana College Republicans to attend CPAC in March? They’re at 47% of their $5000 goal.  In case you’re wondering why:

One of the greatest opportunities for young conservatives to hit the ground running is the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in Washington, D.C. in March, 2016. The conference hosts thousands of conservative leaders, and is even hosting a few of the Presidential Candidates who are fighting for Republican Nominee. CPAC is a bootcamp for young conservatives: it engages them in the political process, creates networks, and provides hands-on learning about how college students can relay their political experience and skills onto their campuses; thus sharing conservative values, engaging more students into one of most important parts of being an American citizen.

That’s where you come in. Augustana University Republicans want to take as many students as possible. Our goal is to take 18 students to Washington, D.C for four nights during the conference. We will use the funds to pay for flight tickets, transportation to and from the airport, and lodging.

As the conference is in Washington, D.C in March, we are trying to reach our goal of $5,000 by the end of January 2016 in order to book flights for 18 students. As any conservative knows, hard work and dedication will reap results. We know that with hard work and dedication, we can make this trip affordable for 18 college students.

Read that here.

It’s a far more educational experience than they could ever receive in a classroom with some liberal professor. It’s real, and you can help them achieve it.

Click on the image, or go here, and send them a few dollars to help them along their way. They are the party’s future, and you can help shape it.

I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday this past week, now that we’re officially moving into the Holiday season with ice, snow, school closings, and the Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer Christmas special tomorrow night.

At the Powers’ household, we were fortunate enough to have two of our three daughters return home from college for the holiday, and a day or so after daughter #2 went back to Vermillion, she and her long-time boyfriend announced their engagement, with planned nuptials this coming June.  So, I’m not losing a daughter. I’m gaining wedding expenses.  (Now might be a good time to mention that the campaign season is almost upon us, and dakotacampaignstore.com is prepared to serve your campaign needs.)

We’re literally one month – 31 days – until petitions for office can be circulated on January 1, 2016. There’s a good number of Republicans who are chomping at the bit to get moving on things, and possibly one or two Democrats (but no more than one or two), so it’s looking to be a lively election. There are already reports of primaries, those who are switching chambers, several new candidates who are announcing, and the possibility of an old friend or two who will be making a return.

This coming year, South Dakota voters will be voting for President, US Senate, Congress, Public Utilities Commission, all 105 State Legislative seats, various County Commissioners, and a majority of the County Coroners, County State’s Attorneys, and County Treasurers.

The Presidential race is still anyone’s call, but in South Dakota, the next three seats down the ticket can arguably be considered “done” already at this point.

United States Senator John Thune is incredibly strong, and no opponent is even considering the race yet, much less raising money for it.  Congresswoman Kristi Noem is equally on firm footing as she faces Democrat Paula Hawks, who has yet to run anything resembling a coherent campaign. Republican Chris Nelson running for the Public Utilities Commission is also likely to be a shoe in, as no Democrat will even consider the contest until the last moment, and will be doomed to obscurity a moment after they announce.

The real battlefield will be in those legislative races across the state – and if you’re a new Republican candidate running, drop me a note. I’d love to hear from you, and the readers want to find out more!

I’m giddy with the promise and possibilities of the coming year. We have lots to be thankful for in the upcoming months. And first and foremost, we can be thankful we’ll have another good year for Republican candidates.

I should feel a little bad pointing out the obvious to South Dakota Democrats, but their willful blindness, as they’ve shifted hard to the left, is pretty hard to punch through despite using facts and a hard dose of reality.

Yesterday, I’d noted how Thune was tied for 9th most popular Senator in the country. Laughably, dems were out there yesterday claiming they still have time to find someone who can compete. Despite not much more than a month remaining until petitions have to be circulated, much less time to raise the money for a US Senate race.

He’s not running, but today’s dose of reality comes from the same poll – noting Governor Dennis Daugaard is the second most popular Governor in the country.

Leading the pack is Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican who won election in 2014. Nearly three quarters, 74 percent, of Massachusetts voters say they approve of the job Baker is doing, while just 14 percent say they disapprove.

About two-thirds of voters in four other states approve of the job their Republican governors are doing. South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard (R), Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple (R) and Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval (R) all have approval ratings north of 66 percent.

Read that here.

The simple fact of the matter is that Republican leadership is trusted in South Dakota, and Democrats are not even a hot mess, they’re just a mess. 

I’m sorry to announce that due to budget limitations it appears that the Rapid City Journal, the flagship newspaper of West River South Dakota, sadly had to let Twitter go as a result.

We have heard rumors that they may instead rent out part of their online presence to MySpace, much like the newspaper rented out part of their building to a hair salon.

Okay, all of that above is satire, but the Rapid City Journal has oddly let their Twitter presence go completely silent as of November 12th.

Kind of a sad situation for a newspaper who was once a pioneer in on-line news and discussion through Mt. Blogmore. Now they’re devolving into a parody.

  
I was watching KDLT this morning while getting ready to face the day when they announced that South Dakota’s Congresswoman Kristi Noem would be appearing on the channel this evening cooking South Dakota’s State Bird.

No announcement from the invisible Hawks campaign. She’s probably busy trying to prevent her goose from being cooked!

From the a Rapid City Journal comes notice that it’s not just education who wants a penny sales tax. Cities are going to push to make it two, because they want one for themselves:

Other ideas included raising the sales tax to boost pay and retention of quality instructors at vocational and technical colleges; more freedom for local governments to find innovative ways to create economic incentives to foster growth; generating new revenue streams to improve municipal infrastructure; finding money to pay for proposed Medicaid expansion; and even finding more money for the South Dakota aeronautics fund.

• Yvonne Taylor, director of the South Dakota Municipal League. Taylor said her group may propose a one-cent jump in the state sales tax to pay for local roads, sewers, workforce housing and other projects that she said create a platform for growth and development. Taylor also wants to change the trigger point for when rural land bought for development is re-assessed. Now, it is assessed at a new rate when platting is done, even if the development isn’t planned until long into the future. That can stifle long-range plans for growth, she said.

Read it all here.

So, a portion of the property tax, and 2% of the sales tax isn’t enough for cities?

Increasing the sales tax for schools is going to be difficult enough. I think a further increase for municipalities is completely D.O.A., and woe be to the legislator who sponsors it, as they shall see it in campaign ads.

What do you think?

From CNN: