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Both Congresswoman Kristi Noem and US Senator John Thune have their petitions distributed to the GOP faithful, with many of them receiving them this past week via the US Postal service. In case you’re interested, except for the petitions themselves, here’s what went out:

Circulation Instructions From John Thune and Kristi Noem

The most interesting part? Both of them highlight the need for the bottom of the petition to be signed in the presence of a notary public.  And I suspect that’s not going to change at any time in the near future, given the heightened atmosphere of petition scrutiny courtesy of Annette Bosworth.

I haven’t heard hide nor hair of petitions being circulated for signature for Paula Hawks yet. One of my correspondents thinks there’s an even chance that the congressional run may not actually happen. But, we’ll know more about that when we see some fundraising figures for the last quarter in the next few coming weeks.

And still no petitions……  or fundraising……  or hints of anything regarding a candidate from Democrats for the US Senate seat.    I’m kind of thinking you can stick a fork in that potato. It’s done.

New Year, Same Priorities  
By Sen. John Thune

I hope the holiday season was as joyful for your family as it was for mine. My son-in-law Luke joined me and my daughter Brittany on our annual father/daughter Christmas morning run, I was fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it) able to sharpen my snow shoveling skills, and we were able to help celebrate my dad’s 96^th birthday the best way we know how: a successful pheasant hunt. Now that the gifts have been opened and the occasions have been celebrated, a new year is in front of us.

Each and every day, I am humbled and honored to be one of your elected representatives in the Senate, and I thank you for that opportunity. I take the responsibility of being your voice in Washington seriously and am always appreciative of your ideas and feedback. While a new year presents new challenges and opportunities for South Dakota and our nation, I intend to continue making your priorities my priorities. Fighting to make our economy stronger, our government more efficient and accountable, and our nation and our world safer and more secure have been my goals since the first day I took office, and that won’t change as long as I am your U.S. senator.

I’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating. The first year of the new Republican-led Senate was a productive one. We accomplished a lot of important things for South Dakotans and the American people. I helped author the first long-term highway bill in a decade that finally ends the need for the dozens of short-term patches that kept the industry in a perpetual state of uncertainty. As the leader of the Senate Commerce Committee, I spearheaded important reforms to the Surface Transportation Board (STB) – the first of their kind – that will be welcome news for anyone who deals with the federal agency responsible for economic oversight of our nation’s freight rail system.

There is more work that lies ahead in 2016. There are still too many Americans who are struggling to make ends meet. We must make it our mission to enact pro-growth policies that continue to help our economy grow. It’s critical that the long arm of the federal government and the costly red tape it creates be reined in, and we will continue to fight overreaching federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency. We also must work toward ensuring the American people and our allies are safe and secure by providing our men and women in uniform with the tools and training they need to accomplish their mission.

I’m excited about the new year and what’s in store for our state and country. Please continue to contact my office to share your stories, concerns, or thoughts about what we’re working on in Washington. Like me, my talented and dedicated staff’s top priority is working for you, and we all stand ready to assist. Thank you for helping to make South Dakota the greatest state in the country, and here’s to a happy and prosperous 2016.

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A Five-Year Fight
By Rep. Kristi Noem

For five years, I have fought for the day that we could put a bill on the President’s desk that would repeal Obamacare.  January 7, 2016, turned out to be that day.

From my first day on the job to now, I have spoken to thousands of South Dakotans about the President’s health care law.  The mandates.  The costs.  The plans that have been lost.  Year after year, the problems seem to become more pronounced – and more expensive.  It’s hard to believe, but this year, every single health care plan on the exchange in South Dakota saw a double-digit rate increase, according to analysis from Agile Health Insurance.  It’s too expensive and there seems to be no end to these increases in sight.

The President’s health care law fundamentally failed to do anything that actually drives down the cost of health care in this country.  Instead, Obamacare issued top-down mandates to ensure more people would foot an even larger bill.  It isn’t working.

Nonetheless, President Obama was quick to threaten a veto on our legislation.  That doesn’t mean, however, that we don’t owe it to the American people to take our best shot at repealing a piece of legislation that the majority of Americans oppose.  Moreover, we’ve been able to get some smaller wins by making big pushes in this way.  In fact, we’ve had more than a dozen repeals or delays of Obamacare provisions become law because of our efforts.

We’ve been working toward this for a long time.  I’ve joined the House in passing a number of full and partial repeals, but our efforts have repeatedly been blocked by Senate Democrats.  This time, however, we were able to use a process called “budget reconciliation,” which allows Congress – once a year – to avoid a Senate filibuster and pass legislation with a simple majority in the Senate.  There are strings attached to that process, so we weren’t able to do a full and complete repeal, but we did successfully target major portions of the President’s health care law, including the individual and employer mandates.

We also found significant savings for hardworking taxpayers. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office estimates our legislation would reduce the deficit by $516 billion over 10 years.

I understand it’s not enough just to repeal Obamacare.  Our health care system is broken.  But there is a better way.  We could create competition by letting people purchase insurance across state lines.  Small businesses could be allowed to pool together to purchase more affordable coverage.  You could get a tax break for purchasing insurance, rather than a tax penalty if you didn’t.  There is an alternative – a conservative, patient-centered alternative.

This isn’t the last you’ll hear from me on this, I’m sure.  Even if we can’t replace Obamacare under this administration, I will do everything I can to provide relief where possible until we have a new President.  And in the meantime, I’m grateful that we got a bill through Democrat gridlock and to the President, a small victory.

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A Big Week For Veterans
A column by Gov. Dennis Daugaard:

As I write this, the 2016 Legislative Session is just four days away. It will be a busy week at the Capitol as lawmakers return to Pierre to start filing their bills and considering proposals. It’s also going to be a big week for South Dakota veterans.

Three years ago, the Legislature passed a bill to build a new State Veterans Home. We had some challenges, and establishing the new home in Hot Springs has not been easy. Our first request for a federal grant was rejected. Then the federal government changed standards midway through our design process, forcing us to redesign the building. Then the bids came in too high.

Lt. Gov. Matt Michels and the South Dakota Department of Veterans Affairs spent many months reviewing our costs and working with the VA. Ultimately, the federal VA agreed to extend our grant, which gave us time to redesign and simplify the building, to reduce the cost of the project without sacrificing quality.

Though we’ve encountered many hurdles along the way, the State Veterans Home is finally finished. It has been completed on time, under budget, and it’s debt-free. Move-in day is Wednesday, Jan. 13, and staff will be holding a grand opening event in the spring.

On another front, for the past two years, the South Dakota Department of Veterans Affairs has been on a mission to contact all veterans in South Dakota. With over 70,000 veterans, this has been a challenging undertaking.

Operation Reaching All Veterans garnered national recognition and was awarded the National Abraham Lincoln Pillars of Excellence Award. Then in 2015 Operation Ketchup was launched, with hopes of locating still more of South Dakota’s veterans.  More recently, the Department has been working on a new effort – Operation Korea – with the Republic of Korea.

Over 60 years have passed since an armistice was signed to allow United States troops to come home from the Korean War. Wedged between World War II and Vietnam, the Korean War is many times referred to as the “Forgotten War.”

In an effort to thank our heroes and to let them know they are NOT forgotten, the Republic of Korea began dedicating Ambassador of Peace medals to all U.S. Veterans who sacrificed for South Korea’s democracy. After I conclude my State of the State Address on Tuesday, the state Department of Veterans Affairs will be holding a Korean Peace Medal ceremony where hundreds of South Dakota veterans will be receiving the “Korean Ambassador for Peace Medal.”

With the first week of session coinciding with these two big events, I am reminded it is because of the men and women who have served that we are a government of the people. Although there’s no way to fully compensate for the service these individuals have given, we must always remember those who have fought for our freedom.

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From the Argus Leader, Mark Mickelson is profiled, with discussions surrounding his potential entrance into the contest for Governor in 2018:

The stars are aligning for a gubernatorial run in 2018, with Mickelson already building his war chest through a political action committee for a possible Republican primary showdown with attorney general Marty Jackley and perhaps U.S. Representative Kristi Noem.

“There are things you need to prepare for if you feel like that’s something you would be good at and find rewarding,” says Mickelson carefully, mindful of his 2016 House re-election bid. “I’d be lying to you if I said I didn’t have an interest in running (for governor), but it’s premature to talk about it.”

And just as Mickelson stresses that he must make his way politically as more than just a famous name, legislative colleagues agree that any future laurels will be merit-based.

“His name recognition is good, but I still don’t think a lot of people truly know who he is,” says Dean Wink, a West River rancher and current House speaker. “He’ll have a chance to win them over.”

Lee Schoenbeck, a Watertown lawyer and longtime state legislator, agreed that Mickelson still has work to do to prove that he’s more about leadership than legacy.

“With the populist nature of South Dakota, nobody gets to inherit anything in politics,” said Schoenbeck. “He may have found some early opportunities in the legislature because of who he is, but the governor’s race is going to be won by somebody who earns it.”

None of this is news to Mickelson, whose passion for economic development, technical schools and agricultural modernization has him excited about becoming more than the grandson or son of a famous governor and simply someone who can make South Dakota better.

Read it all here.

What are your opinions on Mickelson’s chances if he gets into the race? If there a favorite among he, Marty Jackley, Congresswoman Kristi Noem, or anyone else who might enter the race?

Had this sent to me yesterday. And if I’m reading this correctly, former South Dakota US Senate Candidate Annette Bosworth managed to have one court appearance last year that wasn’t live-streamed on KELO.

In fact, it’s been kept pretty quiet until now.

Annette Bosworth Haber and the big credit card bill

So, “Annette Marie Bosworth-Haber,” debtor, acting as a pro se litigant (acting on her own behalf), was sued in Lincoln County (Case 41CIV15-000215) by American Express Bank FSB, Creditor. And on July 15th, AMEX had judgement awarded to them in the amount of $55,283.02.

Interesting.

The Sioux Falls chapter of Drinking Liberally continues to give us some of the best insight into the workings of the Democrat party that we get in South Dakota.

In their latest post it would not appear that the Democrat faithful are very confident of the party’s ability to produce the candidate promised in the U.S. Senate race:

Faced with their ever increasing voter registration disparity, the South Dakota Democratic Party (SDDP) has been all but silent. The SDDP has not offered a plan to reverse the decline.

And…

The SDDP needs a plan and it needs to act on it soon.

Perhaps we can share voter registration ideas over a shot of Tequila at Drinking Liberally tonight. All of our thoughts will seem brilliant I am sure.

In the meantime we await the promised announcement of a Democratic candidate to challenge John Thune. Time is running short. The time to circulate nominating petitions has arrived.

I’m not holding my breath. Tonight I am drinking to Voter Registration and a plan.

Read it all here.

From a release:

The South Dakota Democratic Party announced today it has expanded staff in preparation for the 2016 election cycle and hired South Dakota native Michael Ewald to fill the new role of Communication Director.

A graduate of Watertown High School and the University of South Dakota, Michael Ewald returns to South Dakota from Chicago, IL where he previously served as Director of Debate at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and legal assistant at the law firm Baker & McKenzie, LLC.

Read it all here.