As we move into election season, one thing I am noticing is that things seem to have settled down in the Secretary of State’s election office. The process of candidate certification seems to be going smoothly, the election office is generally responsive to information requests, and we don’t seem to see any major screw ups. In other words, all things seem like they should be.
Regardless, let’s give credit where credit is due when we can positively highlight the efforts of Secretary of State Monae Johnson and her staff. It’s a good thing.
The President Promises More of the Same BySen. John Thune
After three years of an inflation crisis, a border crisis, and national security challenges around the world, President Biden’s State of the Union address was hardly the course correction our country needs. In fact, the president promised more of the same policies that led to these problems in the first place. Like many Americans, I’m ready to turn the page on the failed policies that have made life more expensive, our country less secure, and our world increasingly unstable.
The inflation crisis the president helped create may be the Biden administration’s defining legacy. Today it costs a typical family $1,000 more per month to maintain the standard of living it enjoyed when President Biden took office. Americans are feeling the pain of higher prices, particularly at the grocery store where prices are up 21 percent in the last three years. The cost of food now takes up a larger share of disposable incomes than it has in more than 30 years. As inflation strains budgets, many Americans are struggling to get ahead, saving less, and taking on more debt. This is the unfortunate reality of life in the Biden economy.
Three years ago, the president also began dismantling the Trump administration’s border security policies. On his first day in office, President Biden stopped construction of the border wall, rescinded the declaration of a national emergency at the border, and paused most deportations. What followed is three years of surging illegal immigration, with no sign of stopping. More than 9 million illegal immigrants have crossed the border under this president, and there is no question this surge is smoothing the way for dangerous individuals to enter the country. It’s a national security, humanitarian, and logistical crisis of the president’s own making.
In the last few years, the world has become increasingly unstable, and the president’s policies have proved ill-suited to this reality. His disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan weakened our standing among our allies. The president’s policy toward Iran, beginning with his attempt to revive the Iran nuclear deal, failed to deter Iran’s malign activity in the Middle East. The Biden administration’s hostility to conventional energy production at home has also undermined our energy security. The president’s Green New Deal vision is jeopardizing the affordable and reliable energy supply we need now and in the future.
I doubt anyone outside the White House looks at this administration’s record in the last three years and sees anything worth repeating. But, in the State of the Union, the president didn’t present a new way forward. Instead, we heard much of the same message we’ve come to expect from the Biden administration.
Reckless tax-and-spending policies, open borders, and weakness on the world stage have come to define the Biden presidency. Many Americans are understandably feeling pessimistic about the state of the country and worried about the future. Unfortunately, the president only made clear in his address that if the American people are looking for relief, they’re not going to find it from him.
Catching wind that there was a lot of gate-crashing that took place at the Amber for State Senate campaign event today in Hot Springs.
Hearing word that several House candidates showed up to see that they could see, including D30 State Rep Trish Ladner, who was actually invited, and a couple who weren’t, such as candidate Mathew Monfore of the annoying camera in faces, and candidate Matt Smith, whom I’m told is no longer on KOTA radio..
But even more interesting, at the event for put on for Amber Hulse by Newport Ranch Enterprises to discuss Ranching and Agriculture issues in District 30, I’m hearing that State Senator Julie Frye-Mueller and her husband crashed the Amber Hulse event, and actually tried to grab attention at her opponent’s event. Which is kind of ironic, given that Frye Mueller has not ever shown much interest in agriculture before.
Although, maybe that’s unfair. Over the course of her entire Senate career, she did introduce ONE bill relating to Agriculture. One. And that would be 1 ag bill over her entire legislative career that she was prime sponsor of. ONE across the entirety of representing a largely rural and ag-related District. And of course it failed. Ironically, she was on the Ag & Natural Resources Committee for her first two years in the Senate, until she got herself kicked off of committees for being freaky with an employee over vaccinations and breast feeding.
Yet, with that time hearing ag bill after ag bill… she only came to the table with one failed bill of her own?
And failure is her track record, because Julie Frye Mueller has never been able to pass a bill of her own in her entire Senate Career. In 2021 – 0/5. 2022 – 0/4, 2023 – 0/6. And this year, in 2024, JFM was 0/5. Julie Frye Mueller is ZERO out of 20 for her Senate Bills (0%) over 4 years of serving in that body. Across all the years she went to Pierre since 2017, she’s only ever passed 3 measures. 2 bills on abortion in 2019, and a bill on how often we swap out license plates in 2020.
I put that at 3 out of 47 bills (6%) passage on measures she came up with and was the prime sponsor on over the course of 8 years. Abortion and License plates when in the House, and nothing over her time in the Senate over the last 4 years.
No wonder she went to her opponent’s event to learn about Agriculture. Because over eight years, there just hasn’t been any real effort to do much for that industry. Or any industry.
She’s probably going to be trying to crash other forums her opponent does, because she has never been able to get any traction on her own.
Nice video clip, and even better interview with Senate President Pro Tempore Lee Schoenbeck with regards to his confidence in the next generation of South Dakota’s young leaders:
Sen. Lee Schoenbeck gives advice to the next generation of South Dakota Legislators.
District 8 State Senate Candidate and underwear wedgie come to life, Rick Weible certainly seems quite full of himself on Frank TV, attacking Governor Kristi Noem and several legislators such as Rep’s Conzet & Rehfeldt, and goes so far to lash out at Representative Reimer, calling her “disgusting.” Not to mention he fully lashes out at South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem:
Starting at about 10:22:
(Weible) “Those of you in the grass roots and the activists, you need to understand how these mason rules of order work. Throughout your legislators out there, and you need to hold your legislators accountable. This nasty little bill was kind of put on by a new appointment that comes into the representatives.. Representative Conzet, one of the last Noem appointees.. this is her claim to fame, that she’s going to ram this bill through to destroy our constitutional rights within the state of South Dakota, and she was only appointed by Noem on February 10th, so this isn’t that long ago, and she ends up kind of.. trying to run through this thing, and listening to her speech on the floor is absolutely disgusting, and Noem is sitting upstairs in the chamber watching all of this play out.”
“So I want to warn the rest of the country, you’d better be careful who your VP pick is going to be. I’m calling it out right now. And then also Representative Darreld(?), shame on you, Representative Rehfeldt, shame on you. Representative Reimer, the prime sponsor of this? You are disgusting. I want to make sure and call out every one of those, that they need to be primaried, immediately.”
and..
“And these two attorney’s – Sara Frankenstein, how dare you represent the laws..in South Dakota.. and not be there for the people? And then a special.. special one.. Austin Hoffman, how dare you go to your county commissioners and sit there and quote statutes that are actually repealed and try to use that as an excuse to dee-reel.. derail the petition process in your county and the decisions making of your county. I would implore those county commissioners to start an investigation to find out what other lies that he’s told them.”
and..
(Blonde gal) “It sounds to me like Kristi Noem has appointed someone to kind to be her ‘shut this all down person.’ Is that what you’re alluding to?”
(Weible) “Umm… I’m stating it. I will be held accountable for it. So, I want to be clear. I don’t want to mince words. The second test for you is going to be Senate Bill 201. If she signs that thing to destroy our property rights in this state, that should put the nail in the coffin that everyone in the country should walk away from Kristi Noem.”
This should be interesting to watch play out, as Weible attacks a couple of pretty good attorneys, especially going after Sara Frankenstein, who is one of the top lawyers in the state when it comes to election law. Oh, and attacking the literal figurehead of the State Republican party, Governor of the State of South Dakota, and very possibly the next Vice President. I’m sure that’s going to end well for him.
There’s a new Sheriff in town By Rep. Dusty Johnson March 8, 2024
BIG News
I welcomed Butte County Sheriff Fred Lamphere as my guest to the State of the Union. He has seen the how the border crisis impacts communities in South Dakota and is an advocate for stronger border security measures. Sheriff Lamphere did an excellent job of sharing his observations about the border crisis, and what needs to be done to secure our nation.
We were both disappointed the President talked more about “shrinkflation” instead of the border. His attempts to shift the blame to companies are not working. Businesses large and small are facing record inflation (18% since January 2021) caused by Biden’s reckless spending packages. The cost of just about everything is up, and families are paying $11,400 more per year to have the same quality of life they had in January 2021.
America is the greatest country in the world, but we have major challenges we have to address. I’m doing all I can in Congress to stop reckless spending and secure our border. Americans deserve it.
Johnson and Sheriff Fred Lamphere
BIG Idea
TikTok, as it is configured now, is a national security threat. It is owned by ByteDance, who answers to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Essentially, TikTok takes orders from our greatest foreign adversary. Not only that, but the CCP has influence over the minds of our youth and conversations in the public square. I’m sure you’ve seen the effects of their influence—more mental health problems and more support for terrorists and bullies like Hamas and Russia.
I’m supporting a bill that would require TikTok to divest from ByteDance, or the app will be removed from app stores. TikTok is fighting back against this bill—it’s clear they know the risk of losing Americans’ personal data. It’s not a ban. This bill gives TikTok the choice—continue operating in America or continue to operate under control of a foreign adversary. We can’t continue giving the CCP undue influence and access to our data.
The bill passed unanimously out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee recently, and I look forward to voting for it on the House Floor soon.
Congressman Dusty Johnson’s remarks at the Select Committee on China’s Press Conference.
BIG Update
The forestry industry in the Black Hills is facing a lot of uncertainty. Last weekend, I was in Spearfish, South Dakota with a couple members of the House Agriculture Committee who know the importance of maintaining healthy forests. During our tour of the Neiman Mill, we heard how hard it is for them to operate when the Black Hills National Forest (BHNF) doesn’t hit their harvest targets.
After the tour, the Ag Committee members and I hosted a roundtable with members of the U.S. Forest Service and representatives of the local forestry industry. The timber industry has a significant impact on the Black Hills communities. It employs over 1,000 people and makes a big contribution to the local and state economy. The need to hit these targets is dire to prevent losing this industry in the Black Hills.
Rep. Austin Scott, Sonja (Neiman) Merryman, Johnson, Jim Neiman, and Doug LaMalfa at the Neiman Mill.Reps. Johnson, LaMalfa, and Scott hosting the forestry roundtable.
Ensuring the Security of God’s Chosen People By: Governor Kristi Noem March 8, 2024
When I was growing up, my dad would always gather our family together and we would pray for Israel. It was instilled in me from a very young age that the Jews were Gods chosen people, that Israel was the Holy Land, and that we should always pray for them.
I brought those fundamental ideals with me when I was in the State Legislature, when I served in Congress, and now as Governor of South Dakota. Supporting the State of Israel and our Jewish community has always been extremely important to me. It’s important to support Israel for spiritual, historical, and national security reasons. I am continuing to stand with the Jewish people by signing historic legislation to protect them from antisemitism.
I was shocked and devastated to see the horrific terrorist attacks on the State of Israel on October 7th, 2023. And I have continued to be heartbroken to see radical individuals in the United States of America standing with Hamas – standing with terrorists. Ever since October 7th, we have seen a shocking spike in antisemitic acts of hatred around the world. We have even seen isolated incidents right here in South Dakota.
No one should ever feel concerned for their safety when going to school, when going to work, when they are just trying to live their normal lives. But that is the reality for so many Jewish people across America right now. We see antisemitism on college campuses, among high school students, and even as young as middle and elementary school students. That is unacceptable.
I was very proud to sign HB 1076, a very important bill to combat antisemitism. This bill defines antisemitism and makes it easier to prove when discriminatory conduct is motivated by antisemitism. It is an impactful piece of legislation that will ensure the safety of Jewish people and strengthen South Dakota’s anti-discrimination laws.
We held a beautiful, moving signing ceremony for this bill in the Rotunda of our State Capitol in Pierre. Many prominent Jewish leaders attended, including Elan Carr, the CEO of the Israeli-American Council for Action, nationally renowned Jewish leader and founder of the Jacobson Society Dan Rosen, Rabbi and Director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center Dr. Mark Goldfeder, Rabbi Mendel Alperowitz of the Chabad Jewish Center of South Dakota, Renie Schreiber on behalf of Yinam Cohen, Consul General of Israel to the Midwest, and Jordan Cope from Stand With Us. A few of our special guests said some words about the impact this legislation will have for the Jewish people. You can view footage of the full bill signing ceremony here.
There are a few other people to thank for their efforts in getting this bill passed and signed into law, including Representative Mike Stevens, Representative Rebecca Reimer, Dan Lederman, and Stephen Rosenthal.
The prime sponsors of this bill, Representative Deutsch and Senator Mehlhaff, put in a lot of hard work with my office and with members of the Jewish community to make sure this is the best bill possible to stop antisemitism and hate. This bill puts the gold standard International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism into state law.
I hope that more states across our great nation will follow this example that we are setting here in South Dakota. It is more important now than ever for our nation’s leaders to stand up and fight against antisemitism. We must always work to ensure the security of God’s chosen people.
A few candidates have popped up filing paperwork of some sort to run for office in the last week.
2 new State Senate candidate filings this morning; Democrat Steve Natz filed his petitions to run for District 11 Senate, and in a return to try to capture the District 15 Senate Seat, Brenda Lawrence, who ran in 2022 is going to give the race another go, after her prior loss to Reynold Nesiba.
Big list of returning candidates filing petitions for State House yesterday, Jake Schoenbeck (R) for D2 House, Bethany Soye (R) for D9 House, Jon Hansen for D25 House, Peri Pourier for D27 House, and Scott Odenbach for D31 House. We also had Minnehaha Dem Erik Muckey (D) filing for D15 House.
One Senate Primary got larger with Republican Forrest Foster of Rapid City joining Amber Hulse and the completely awful Julie Frye-Mueller in the D30 Senate primary contest.
Aaron Matson, former Dem statewide candidate filed petitions for D11 House, as did Brook Kaufman, a new Republican who will be running for District 32 House. I’ve heard positive things about her, so always glad to have good people running. The polar opposite of her would be Brad Lindwurm who filed his signatures for District 15 House.
I mentioned earlier this week that Taffy Howard is going to once again inflict herself on us in the campaign for D34 Senate. Her paperwork was dropped at the SOS. We also saw paperwork from several other Republicans who are running for House; Wendi Hogan (D6 House), Scott Moore (D23 House), Becky J Drury (D34 House), Heather Baxter (D34 House) and Tony Randolph (D35 House).
And we’ll keep watching from there. If you want the most up to date list outside of the Secretary of State, check out my 2024 Candidate List page, where I try my best to keep tabs on who has announced, and who has turned in petitions or statements of organization.
PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Kristi Noem signed the following four bills into law:
HB 1185amends provisions regarding entry on private property for examination and survey of a project requiring a siting permit;
HB 1186defines the requirements for granting a carbon pipeline easement;
SB 201provides new statutory requirements for regulating linear transmission facilities, to allow counties to impose a surcharge on certain pipeline companies, and to establish a landowner bill of rights; and,
SB 177 permits the appointment of a circuit court judge or Supreme Court justice as a member of the Public Utilities Commission in place of a disqualified or incapacitated commissioner.
Governor Noem has signed 159 bills into law this legislative session.
State Representative Scott Odenbach is hosting a civic involvement forum on March 14th in Spearfish at 5:30 PM to help explain the process of running for office in Lawrence County to people at the Joy Center in Spearfish.
