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I took a few hours off of work this weekend to head down to Sioux Falls with my #1 daughter to check out the 2022 version of Siouxpercon, South Dakota’s own convention of comic enthusiasts and pop culture.  I wanted to go check out and support my local comic book shop in Brookings, who was one of the featured exhibitors, and to see what else might be there.  My oldest has a thing for the funco pop-figures which she collects from time to time, and wanted to check out their selection, so off we went.

According to the Siouxpercon website, “The vision of SiouxperCon is to engage individuals, cultivating  their interest of comics and various popular art forms through workshops, panels, seminars, exhibitions and hosting conventions.”  The event has started to come into it’s own, in comparison to some of the “cons” across the country in terms of it’s level of interest and activity, as the event was anticipated to draw between 6-8000 spectators this weekend for the various forums, autograph signings and events.

While parking could be a bit of a challenge, as it shared a parking lot with a band competition next door, I found it completely accessible, and quickly got through the ticket line, and was able to head straight into the exhibition hall, to where Brookings Books & Comics was located.  At $15 a ticket, it is inexpensive entertainment which is appropriate for older kids and adults. Especially adults for some of the evening events.

My daughter quickly picked up a Funco pop-figure collectible for my youngest for Christmas (shhh), with her favorite Marvel TV character at the moment.

The entire event hall seemed almost heavier on toys than it was on comics, as I only noted 4-5 booths with what I wanted to pick through. But, in many cases, the selection wasn’t bad.  I was after some mid-value books that I might add to my collection that I was having trouble chasing down on-line, as well as doing a little impulse buying.  Vendors had a good selection, and if you were careful, you could find prices in line with values. My daughter snapped a photo of me figuring out what I had to have..

I did manage to walk away with a couple of those books I was ogling on the wall. No, not the $1400 Batman or $2000 Spider-man comics.   I grabbed a graded one that I keep getting outbid for on at ebay, as well an ungraded one that’s more challenging to find. And a grabbed an inexpensive impulse buy or two that caught my attention.

As I mentioned, in comparison to previous years, the event is starting to come into it’s own. There were a fair degree of outside vendors in attendance, including the staff from Dakota News Now, who had a booth located just at the entrance of the exhibit hall.  But, speaking of sponsors, for every Dakota News Now, Black Hills Federal Credit Union, and Sioux Falls Plumbing you have sponsoring, you have Native Nations Cannabis, and a head shop or two.

While some of those sponsorships are for adult evening events, it does skew things in a more adult direction at times, especially with a few of the costumes and furries that were running around while I was there. Just something to keep in mind when deciding what time to bring the kids over.

The Siouxpercon event runs until 5pm today at the Sioux Falls Convention Center.

The three candidates for Governor met tonight on Dakota News Now, and Kristi Noem took no prisoners, while Jamie Smith seems to have fumbled his one opportunity to sound gubernatorial.

Governor Noem was able to effectively discuss her record and make the case for her re-election, while continuing to define her opponent who seemed to have trouble even grasping some of the important issues.  Smith tried to defend his liberal record, and uncouple himself from Joe Biden, but Kristi drove the point home at every opportunity. It was classic Kristi Noem, where she was poised and unflappable despite Smith trying to answer cogently, while coming at her with attacks that just didn’t work.

Big takeaways? Kristi was Kristi, solid as a rock, and as always continues to be one of the best in the state on the stump. She stayed on target, stuck to her message, and would not be drawn away from it.  Tracey Quint reminded me of James Stockdale in his debate against Al Gore and Dan Quayle. She could have said “Who am I, why am I here.” In between saying “you know” in every sentence. She was happy to be on stage.

Jamie Smith had the most to lose, and while he tried to push his message out, and strike out at Governor Noem, it fell short.  But then he came out with his answer on agriculture which was glaring in it’s…. well, in it’s ignorance about anything coming out of the ag community. They asked about what the candidates would do for farmers and ranchers, and one of the main things that Smith said he wanted to do for farmers was to talk to politicians in other states, and would go to the Western Governor’s Association.

Wait? what? Smith actually thinks that farmers care a fig about who he talks to at the Western Governors Association?  No.

Despite his answer, I don’t think they care about it at all. That’s what politicians may claim they care about, but I don’t think that’s the case.  Kristi quickly owned Smith, and underlined his complete ignorance on agriculture, when one of the first words out of her mouth in reference to ag was markets. She hit the nail on the head, in comparison to Smith swinging at imaginary flies.   This one will come back to haunt him. 

Otherwise, Kristi conducted herself with confidence in the remainder of the debate, while Smith remained spinning his wheels.

Definite win for Governor Noem, showing that there’s a reason she will be elected again on November 8.

While the big news yesterday was Governor Kristi Noem pledging to support a repeal of the sales tax on food, it doesn’t sounds as if the municipal sales tax on food is going to join the State Sales tax in going away, as it is the lifeblood of many communities:

Though both Gov. Kristi Noem and Rep. Jamie Smith – her challenger in the November election – say they want lawmakers to exempt milk, bread and other food items from the list of goods the state now taxes at a 4.5 percent rate, both stop short of a full repeal of food sales tax in South Dakota.

Noem’s campaign said Wednesday after announcing her plan to bring a food sales tax repeal bill to the Legislature during the next session that her proposal – if re-elected – would not apply to a 2 percent sales tax rate that cities across the state are entitled to.

And the Sioux Falls Democrat, who for years has called for an end to state taxation on food, also prefers leaving municipal sales tax alone.

Read the entire story here. (Subscription required)

Interestingly, I had this very conversation yesterday with a State Legislator who voiced the concern that for many small towns, the sales tax on food is their main source of tax revenue. South Dakota Municipalities are likely to line up against cutting a source of revenue where everyone, property owner and renter alike have some skin in the game in funding city services. Especially in communities where they just don’t have that much. Because the alternative would be higher property taxes, or new forms of revenue.

It was another busy week out in DC! My schedule was packed with committee hearings, floor votes and meetings with South Dakotans. Although we have long days filled with work, we had fun moments throughout this week, including presenting some special awards and receiving some pretty cool awards, too. Here’s my Weekly Round[s] Up: 

South Dakota groups I visited with: Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, Xcel Energy, SDN Communications, KBR Contracting, Associated General Contractors of South Dakota, South Dakota Native Homeowner Coalition, South Dakota leadership class and superintendents and principals from schools in South Dakota who utilize impact aid. I attended the Out of the Darkness walk in Sioux Falls organized by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

I also had the opportunity to meet with John and Beth Hughes, my nominees for this year’s Angels in Adoption Award. John and Beth have helped with over 500 adoptions in 45 states during their 31 years of practice. It was great to see them out in DC and recognize them for all of their hard work.

Other meetings this week: Jane Fraser, CEO of Citi Bank; Admiral Richard, Commander of U.S. Strategic Command; John Garrison, the CEO of Terex; Electronic Transactions Association’s Fintech policy forum; and Dr. Shereef Elnahal, VA Undersecretary for Health.

We also had our weekly Senate Bible Study (1 Corinthians 13:1 was our verse this week) and our Senate Prayer Breakfast (Senator Hagerty from Tennessee was our speaker).

Met with South Dakotans from: Aberdeen, Bonesteel, Box Elder, Canton, Chamberlain, Custer, Dupree, Eagle Butte, Fort Pierre, Martin, McIntosh, McLaughlin, Mission, Mobridge, Pierre, Pine Ridge, Presho, Rapid City, Renner, Sioux Falls, Timber Lake, Wagner, Wall, Webster and Winner.

I was able to meet with Robbie Willard, a Vietnam veteran from Renner, and award him a Vietnam Veteran Lapel Pin to thank him for his service.

Topics discussed: The reveal of the B-21 Raider bomber coming this December, the upcoming continuing resolution to keep the government funded for a few more months, and the need for increased mental health services.

Votes taken: 9 – Most of these votes were on nominees. We also voted on the ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, a treaty concerning the environment that could increase costs for South Dakotans. I voted no.

Hearings: There were two hearings in the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee again this week. The first one was focused on US sanctions on Russia. In the second hearing, we heard from the CEOs of America’s seven largest banks. I was also ranking member had a Housing subcommittee hearing on the Department of Agriculture’s rural housing service. There was an Armed Services committee hearing on US nuclear policy. We also had a Veterans Affairs committee hearing, where we heard from VA Secretary McDonough on timely care at the VA facilities and the Care in the Community program. I appreciated the opportunity to follow up with Secretary McDonough about the long wait times at the Sioux Falls VA facilities.

Classified briefings: We had a briefing on the ongoing situation in Ukraine.

My staff in South Dakota visited: Burke, Chamberlain, Kimball, Mount Vernon, Pierre and Sioux Falls.

Staff happenings: Some of my DC staff came out to Nationals Park after work on Wednesday to support me and my colleague, Senator Jon Tester from Montana, in Anheuser-Busch’s Congressional Brewing Competition. We made a beer called the 17 Finger Select using barley from Jon’s farm in Montana. We took home both trophies – the People’s Choice Award and the Brew Democracy Cup, which was voted on by a panel of judges.

Steps taken this week: 52,880 (or 24.8 miles)

The battle for Republican Leadership is less of a battle at this point, as much as nudging and elbowing as people position themselves in line.  Who are the names that you should keep an eye on as we roll past November 8, and Republican legislators plan to get together amongst themselves to decide who will be leading the Class of 2023?

HOUSE

Coming off previous sessions in the House, which many outside observers rate the running of the State House from poor (under Steve Haugaard) to dysfunctional (under Spencer Gosch), at least on the surface, there seems to be an appetite for a change. Now, that’s not a guarantee that the House and Senate are going to get along and agree on everything, but there’s the possibility that a Republican House would spend more time governing than attacking the Republican Governor.

Who are the players to keep an eye on in the various contests for leadership?  Things can develop quickly, and a lot of how races come out will depend on which Republicans are sent to Pierre in the fall.

Speaker of the House:

This is the big contest. In the House, the Speaker has the authority to decide committee assignments, seating, and a host of other official duties. The buck stops with them, for better or worse. And we’ve had a lot of worse over the past couple of years.

The current word in the Speaker race is that several are in the contest. State Representative Hugh Bartels from Watertown is the first name at the top of many lists, followed by State Representatives Greg Jamison of Sioux Falls and Jess Olson of Rapid City.  Current Speaker Pro Tempore Jon Hansen of Dell Rapids is also said to be running, but given that he was the chief lieutenant under Gosch, conventional wisdom is that legislators may step forward and break with tradition.

 

House Speaker Pro Tempore:

This internal caucus race is kind of quiet at the moment, but the name that I hear is Mike Stevens of Yankton. Stevens, an attorney by trade, is an experienced hand in his second run of being in the legislature and would be viewed by most as a respected, steady hand at the wheel.

Republican House Majority Leader:

Here’s where some of the jockeying has been going on recently. Long-time politico and Pierre-area attorney Will Mortenson is said to be leading the chase for Majority Leader after Mike Derby was said to have stepped back from the race, throwing his support to Mortenson. Current Majority Whip Rebecca Reimer of Chamberlain is also said to be campaigning for the spot, as well as Representative Scott Odenbach from Spearfish.

 

Assistant Republican Majority Leader:

This office has had those holding it move on to bigger and better things, such as Kristi Noem, current Governor, former Congresswoman, and former Assistant Majority Leader for the 2009-2010.   And you never know, as Sioux Falls State Representative Taylor Rehfeldt campaigns as hard as the Governor did back in the day.

Rehfeldt is probably the most visible of the names that has popped up for the contest, with State Representatives Randy Gross of Flandreau, and Representative Kirk Chaffee of Whitewood also said to be running for the position among their colleagues.

 

SENATE

The Senate is not thought to be looking wholesale change in the coming term, or at least there are no thoughts of it based on who we anticipate will be elected.

Compared to the House, it might even be said to be a little boring, but boring is good for what has worked over the last two years.

President Pro Tempore:

Senator Lee Schoenbeck of Watertown who has led the Senate through all of the rocky waters over the past 2 years of his tenure, including leading on redistricting, and being the voice of sanity during 2 years of impeachment investigations and proceedings is not facing any challenge at the moment.  During the past few years, Lee has been an effective leader in building coalitions and steering the Senate at a time when the House had been divided and struggled.

Senate Republican Majority Leader:

With Current Majority Leader Senator Gary Cammack termed out, Senator Casey Crabtree of Madison is fully in the driver seat for Senate Majority Leader contest, and has taken a lead on efforts including helping Senators to get re-elected.  He should win this contest handily, and no opponents are out there.

Senate Republican Assistant Majority Leader:

Senator Mike Diedrich of Rapid City is definitively in the contest, but there are rumors that another Senator is looking at a run. We’ll see how they develop, as it’s still early for this chamber. The sense of urgency for the internal Senate caucus campaigns are not as urgent as the House’s, just because of fewer numbers and a less disparate group.

Senate Majority Whips:

I’m told that we can expect Senators Duhamel, Wheeler, Tobin, Schoenfish, Bolin and others will be running for whip positions, with most current whips attempting to return to their positions.

That’s what I know at the end of September, with more fierce campaigning for these internal positions on both sides of the Capitol Building to come after the election on November 8.

Stay tuned!

Governor Kristi Noem Announces Largest Tax Cut in South Dakota History

RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA – Today, Governor Kristi Noem promised South Dakota families the largest tax cut in South Dakota history: eliminating the sales tax on groceries. She made the announcement at Dakota Butcher in Rapid City, surrounded by parents and their children.

“I have seen families across South Dakota struggling to make ends meet with rising inflation because of President Biden’s policies. His failed liberal agenda has caused the cost of food to skyrocket, and family budgets are being stretched thin,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “This permanent tax cut will put hundreds of dollars in the pockets of the average South Dakota family.”

Eliminating the grocery sales tax reduces the tax burden on South Dakotans by $100 million.

“South Dakotans work hard. They get up every day and provide for their families, but the Biden Administration’s policies are destroying their ability to feed their children. Senior citizens, working parents, and single moms are all struggling with rising food and gas prices. South Dakota will continue to do the right thing and protect our people from a disastrous White House,” continued Governor Noem.

Prices have skyrocketed at grocery stores. Since President Joe Biden took office, the price of a pound of ground beef has increased 25%. The price of a gallon of milk has increased 20%. The price of a dozen eggs has increased a whopping 113%. These data points are according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

Because of Governor Noem’s approach, South Dakota has the strongest economy in the country, and tax revenues have been the strongest in the state’s history. South Dakotans’ incomes have grown by 21% in the past 3 years, the highest in the nation. South Dakota’s budget surplus for the 2022 budget year was $115.5 million. Sales taxes grew by 12%. The state’s rainy-day fund grew to $422.6 million, 20.5% of the state’s budget.

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Hadn’t heard that term used in South Dakota until now, but locally, District 7 Democrat Legislative candidate Cole Sartell is injecting some views on gender that we don’t usually hear expressed in South Dakota State Legislative contest.

Candidate Sartell was instructing a legislative forum audience last night in reference to a discussion on the debate over abortion that “we don’t deserve the right to make a decision for an individual who can get pregnant.”  Which you can watch starting at about 28:00 minutes into the video here.

He follows his comment by mentioning in favor of his position on abortion that we didn’t go to medical school.

I suppose if he’s referring to women as individuals who can get pregnant, as if someone who isn’t a woman can get pregnant, that much is obvious.

I’m sure law enforcement will get out and check Chris Nelson sign disclaimers for Jeff Barth as soon as they get done catching all the murderers and rapists.

Chris Nelson says his signs comply. “I’ll agree with Jeff on one point, the signs are from my campaign – and I’m proud of the work my volunteers put in to create them and help put them up and appreciate my wife making the required disclaimers which are attached to each sign.” https://t.co/vTYYjxRTHE pic.twitter.com/M0Q1LsTkuI

— Joe Sneve (@DakotaScoutJoe) September 27, 2022

Seriously? Did Jeff just not get out of his car?

Kristi for Governor Launches New Ad: “Extreme Jamie Smith: Endangering Families”

PIERRE, SOUTH DAKOTA – Today, the Kristi for Governor campaign launched a multi-week, six-figure ad buy for a new ad, “Extreme Jamie Smith: Endangering Families.”

“Extreme Jamie Smith wants complete government control over your family,” the ad begins. The ad highlights Smith’s support for mask and vaccine mandates; his support for Black Lives Matter and President Biden’s open border policies, which have led to higher crime and drug trafficking; and his support for policies that infringe on the 2^nd Amendment. Each of these policies endanger South Dakota families.

“Jamie Smith is too extreme for South Dakota,” said Ian Fury, Communications Director at Kristi for Governor. “He continues to lie about his position on COVID mandates and his position on the 2^nd Amendment, so this ad will bring the facts to the people of South Dakota.”

To learn more about Rep. Jamie Smith’s support for President Joe Biden and radical liberal policies, visit JamieandJoe.com.

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State Treasurer Josh Haeder Elected President of National Association of State Treasurers (NAST)

Pierre, SD: South Dakota State Treasurer Josh Haeder was unanimously selected to serve as the 2023 President of the National Association of State Treasurers during the organization’s annual conference last week.

“It’s an honor to be selected by Treasurers from around the nation to serve as the next President of the National Association of State Treasurers,” Haeder said.

“NAST serves as the nation’s foremost authority for responsible state treasury programs and related financial practices, policies, and education. South Dakota has a balanced budget, we have one of the best public retirement systems in the nation, we focus on protecting money from fraud, and are now on the cutting edge of technology implementation. South Dakota has been a leader in returning unclaimed property to citizens, reaching thousands of South Dakotans through our marketing campaigns. As the NAST President-elect, I’m excited to collaborate with my colleagues, continue to grow our organization, and share South Dakota’s successes with Treasurers across the nation.”

Haeder’s term as president begins in January 2023. He is the first South Dakota President of NAST since Treasurer Dave Volk was elected to serve as president of NAST in 1976-77

Haeder is currently serving as the 2022 Senior Vice President of NAST.

NAST’s membership is comprised of all state treasurers or state finance officials with comparable responsibilities from the United States, its commonwealths, territories, and the District of Columbia, along with employees of these agencies.

Before being elected South Dakota’s 33rd state Treasurer, Josh Haeder was the managing partner of Haeder Organization, LLC based in Huron, SD. Haeder Organization is a property management company that focuses on affordable housing and lodging.

Treasurer Haeder has been married to his wife Amanda for ten years and they have two young daughters.

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