Category: Uncategorized

Medicare Advantage is a Lifeline for South Dakota Seniors
By Lori Jorenby

Seniors across South Dakota rely on Medicare Advantage as an essential resource for their health and well-being. Medicare Advantage is more than just an insurance plan for them – it’s a critical program that fosters independence, provides comprehensive care, and ensures financial security for those who need it most.

Unlike traditional Medicare, Medicare Advantage offers a range of benefits that make health care more accessible while still bringing costs down. This comprehensive coverage – from appointments with top-tier doctors to robust prescription drug benefits – ensures that enrollees receive care without facing overwhelming expenses. Further, the program’s focus on preventive measures and care coordination helps keep individuals healthy, reducing medical emergencies and the need for costly hospitalizations. In a state like South Dakota, where access can be limited, Medicare Advantage provides essential services like telehealth and transportation assistance, ensuring that care is never out of reach.

Medicare Advantage serves not only seniors, but people with disabilities as well. By offering them customized care solutions, the program helps pave the way for their long-term health and independence. Medicare Advantage also helps enrollees stretch their incomes further, protecting them from the financial burden of unexpected medical expenses. Without it, many would struggle to afford the care they need in the immediate or long-term future.

Unfortunately, recent funding reductions have already impacted seniors leading to higher premiums and fewer plan options. With the rising cost of living, the last thing our communities need is further cuts to a program that has proven to be effective and fiscally responsible. Medicare Advantage isn’t just good health care policy – it’s smart budgeting too. By emphasizing preventive care and reducing unnecessary hospital visits, the program saves taxpayer dollars while still improving health outcomes.

From my personal experiences, I’ve seen how Medicare Advantage delivers undeniable successes for South Dakotans. That’s why I urge South Dakota’s leaders in Washington – Senators John Thune, Mike Rounds, and Representative Dusty Johnson – to defend and strengthen it. Now is the time to ensure the program remains a stable resource so that the thousands of South Dakotans who rely on it, including seniors, people with disabilities, and their families, continue to receive the care they deserve.

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Lori Joreby is a retired nurse who continues to reside on her family farm and live independently while being in her 80s. She has seen first-hand the role Medicare Advantage has taken to ensure her medical and independent living remains intact.

With Julian Beaudion filing paperwork to start a committee to run against Mike Rounds, I did a check for anyone else. And there was another Democrat who has filed for office that slipped by me:

A Scott Schlagel of Dell Rapids filed a Statement of Candidacy to run as a Democrat for Congress back on March 12th.

Apparently he is a former correctional officer at the State Pen. Beyond that we don’t really know a thing. So, we’ll see.

Not taking this as a serious effort at this point.

Thune: Democrats Distract While Republicans Act

 “[T]he resolution we passed this weekend – and, I might say, over the objections of my Democrat colleagues, who are apparently perfectly okay with allowing taxes to rise for working families – was a major step forward on delivering on our agenda, and I’m looking forward to arriving at a final bill.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor:

Click here to watch the video.

Gov. Rhoden Visits Standing Rock Sioux Tribe alongside ND Gov. Armstrong

PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Larry Rhoden visited the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe on his Open for Opportunity Tour. He was joined on the visit by North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong. This is the first time in over a decade that both the South Dakota and North Dakota Governors were on the Standing Rock Reservation simultaneously.

“My job is to be governor for all South Dakotans, including our Native American people. We are at our strongest when we work together for our people,” said Governor Larry Rhoden. “I am grateful to Chairwoman Alkire and the tribal council leaders for hosting me today. And I am grateful to Governor Armstrong and excited about how we can work together to benefit the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. This meeting was a great step towards rebuilding trust, and I look forward to many more to come.”

Governors Rhoden and Armstrong met with Standing Rock’s Chairwoman and tribal council leaders. They discussed several key topics, including education, economic development, water permits, and the effects of federal funding.

“Collaboration with our tribal nations is key to North Dakota’s success, and with our neighbors in South Dakota we share a commitment to strengthening government-to-government partnerships and relationships,” said North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong. “We appreciate Chairwoman Alkire, Gov. Rhoden, and the Tribal Council for today’s meaningful engagement and discussion about ways we can work together for the prosperity of all our citizens.”

“It was our honor to host these gentlemen alongside state legislators to discuss various issues that the Tribe faces,” said Standing Rock Chairwoman Janet Alkire. “Though there are many things that we don’t agree upon, being able to come to the table with a good heart and openness to compromise, we can work together in diplomacy to achieve success, provide opportunities to those we serve, and build lasting relationships with our neighbors, the state governments of North and South Dakota.”

The governors also toured a few locations on the reservation and stopped by the local school district.

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South Dakota Democrat Julian Beaudion filed paperwork this afternoon to take on incumbent Republican US Senator Mike Rounds in the US Senate race, potentially beginning an 18-month campaign battle for the highest office on the 2026 ticket against the two-term Senator and two-term Governor:

Julian for US Senate by Pat Powers on Scribd

Oddly, Beaudion participated in a Press Conference earlier today with South Dakota Democrats, but nothing was said about his potential entry into the race.

A bio for Beaudion notes:

“Julian Beaudion is the co-founder and executive director of The Hub SD, a nonprofit that shares sustainable business and professional resources to support the success of entrepreneurs and business professionals from underrepresented communities

Julian is also the current executive director of the South Dakota African American History Museum, vice president of the local NAACP chapter, and the president of Juneteenth Sioux Falls. Julian spent over a decade as a South Dakota law enforcement officer.”

Read the entire bio here.

Beaudion was also selected as the Biden nominee to be the U.S. Marshal for the Territory of South Dakota, but did not go through the Senate confirmation process.

Game on.

This is not your dad’s Republican Party. Hardly your grandfather’s Republican Party.  Because it looks like the new South Dakota Republican Party is looking more and more like Chairman Jim Eschenbaum’s old Democrat Party.

Because for the first time in nearly 50 years, the sitting Chairman of the party joined with Democrats to take a shot at our State’s All-Republican delegation in Washington, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune:

“The South Dakota Democratic Party announced on Monday that it will conduct public town halls in four South Dakota cities “in the absence of South Dakota’s Republican senators and congressman.”

Afterward, state Republican Party Chairman Jim Eschenbaum told South Dakota Searchlight by phone that he’s also heard complaints about the congressional delegation’s accessibility.

“Even some Republicans have been saying that,” Eschenbaum said.

Read the entire story here.

When was the last time a sitting chair of the SDGOP took a shot at a sitting SDGOP member of our delegation in Washington?  The last I’m aware of was way back in 1979:

That was in September of 1979, in relation to Sen. Larry Pressler making a bid for the Presidency. It was more of a political campaign as opposed to being in connection with the service he was giving South Dakotans at the time. About 46 years ago.

Yet 50 years later, we have State GOP Chairman Jim Eschenbaum, a 32 year Democrat now in charge of the Republican Party, taking his swings at Senators Thune and Rounds and Congressman Dusty Johnson right alongside the state Democrat party.

Somebody needs to throw this guy out.

South Dakota Democrats had a presser this AM that they live-streamed to make a big announcement:

So you don’t have to try to get the time back in your life, I took one for the team, as Democrat activist & former Minnehaha Dem chair Nikki Gronli droned on for far too long (8-10 min?) complaining about Trump and Musk, and Trump again until she got to the damn point: She and Julian Beaudoin are apparently hosting listening meetings across the state.

And once they are done? They are going to write a report and give it to our Congressional delegation.   I’m sure it will be a strongly worded report. And there might be bullet points in it. I would also expect a chart and that they use the best comb binding they can find, unless it’s a long report. Then they will put it in a binder.

This was worth a press conference?  I think they could have covered that in a press release.  And not necessarily a long one.

Certainly, not as long as it took them to get to the point.

After nearly a week of hot criticism over their demands that the National Guard be obligated to “shoot down these poison pushing planes,” I notice today that the South Dakota Chem Trail kooks have backed down slightly, and are now only calling for the National Guard to take “military action.”

So much for “doubling down” as these goofballs were pretending to claim they intended to do.

Either way, just another day in the decaying state of South Dakota politics.

Heard an interesting rumor that I’m working on tracking down.   Do you recall at the end of last year, when State Representative Chris Reder had a moment, and made noise that he was taking off and not going to serve in the legislature:

Read that here. This took place towards the end of November 2024.  Of course, that freaked a few people out (mainly the people who had just taken over the House), because a resignation could have tipped the balance of power.  And so I heard, he was convinced to walk that back:

Read that here.

I bring it up, because there are rumblings anew about Representative Reder, this time about the actual physical residence where he hangs his hat. And that it’s possibly other than South Dakota. I had a note last night indicating:

Heard Chris Reder fully moved to Minnesota – kept drivers license but sold his land. Since his (relative) said it, possibly true. 

What was I able to track down on this? A few interesting anecdotes.

First off, looking at Rep. Reder’s voter registration, the live data as of today indicates that he’s supposedly registered to vote at an address in Warner, SD:

Establishing where he claims to vote and supposedly legislates from is 13958 387th Ave, Warner, SD 57479, What else can we find out about that location?

There are on-line tax records for the county that show the landowner and taxpayer for that location is his DTOM 22/0 Foundation.  Here’s what I pulled off of the Brown County system today:

Okay.. but there’s more available from Brown County through the Register of Deeds office. Here’s where it starts to get more interesting. The current owners and taxpayer for that parcel in the land ownership system seems to be a bit more updated. And it’s not Chris Reder nor his DTOM Foundation:

The location Reder has on his voter registration is now owned by a business called “JH Rentals,” now owned by the neighbor down the road.

Reder’s foundation that had been at that farm address that he also uses as his legislative address? Interestingly, in filings with the Secretary of State, that Foundation seems to have changed Reder’s address in the corporate filings:

DTOM Foundation Paperwork B0345-5410 by Pat Powers on Scribd

Bagley, Minnesota. Not Warner, South Dakota.

On January 19, 2025 when this document was filed, this document shows Christopher D Reder as hanging his hat in Bagley, Minnesota, or at least where his business is located.  Reder would have been seated in the Legislature on about January 14th.   And anecdotally, I’m hearing reports that the land sale in Warner occurred in December.

Which would make sense given this article about the business, published in March of last year:

This was the biggest step for Reder in the process that DTOM would become the DTOM 22/0 Veterans Ranch north of Warner, S.D. Initially, they were able to build an outside arena, then a barn over the arena. The first horse was Max. Growth continued and they were able to assist veterans at no cost. It was at this time he knew he was fully committed and never looked back.

A nearly 10-acre ranch was purchased, where they worked until they ran out of room. After an exhaustive search for land, a 40-acre ranch was found south of Bagley. They moved to Bagley the summer of 2023.

Read that here.

So Reder’s entire Foundation operation appears to have moved out of Warner SD, selling the land last December where he maintains his voter registration and represents voters in Pierre from.  And the operation appears to have moved over to Minnesota where he is taking care of his horses.

Does Representative Chris Reder have any presence in the state besides a South Dakota Driver’s License at this point? Because if he doesn’t, then why isn’t he resigning?

Food for thought.

The infamous State Representative, Phil Jensen, earned the only “F” grade handed out this year on the scorecard issued by the South Dakotans for Criminal Justice group for the 2025 session:

Jensen earned his “F” grade for voting against bills and subjects such as providing victim services, prohibiting contraband from being brought in the prison, and other measures.

Some of Phil‘s fellow Freedom Caucus members didn’t score so well either, receiving D’s on the scorecard, such as Rep’s Aaron Aylward,  Tina Mulally, and Dylan Jordan. Also getting a D from the group were Kayley Nolz, Liz May & Spencer Gosch.

You can read the entire Facebook post with the scorecard here.