Category: Uncategorized

A Safer South Dakota
By: Governor Kristi Noem 
April 16, 2021

One of my main responsibilities as Governor is to keep South Dakota safe. It’s something that I take very seriously. After all, I love this state. I love the people who live here. In a small state like ours, we’re all really neighbors. We get to know one another. And we work together to take care of each other.

Part of that responsibility means calling out when other people are making our state less safe. If you look at our nation’s southern border right now, that’s exactly what’s happening. President Biden has undone years of progress securing our border, and it’s led to a massive surge of illegal immigration into our country.

We can’t possibly know who all these people are. In fact, media outlets have reported that Border Patrol has apprehended several individuals on the terrorism watch list coming into our country. The number of illegal drugs like fentanyl crossing the southern border are up by 233% compared to previous years. Border Patrol needs more help, and they aren’t able to catch everything, so we have no idea what else may be getting through.

When President Biden started asking states to take some of these illegal immigrants and house them, I told him “No way” before he asked South Dakota. Those illegal immigrants can call us when they’re an American. I wanted to make sure he got that message loud and clear. We don’t know who these individuals are, so taking them would make South Dakota less safe.

Over the past four years, President Trump took decisive action to make America safer. He worked to secure the border. He built hundreds of miles of border wall. And he improved the vetting of people coming into our country, especially in the refugee resettlement program.

In fact, I took some criticism two years ago for taking in refugees to our state. But I did so because I was confident that President Trump and his administration had vetted these people.  They’d weeded out the bad actors. We had a good idea who these folks were, and having them here would not make our state less safe.

Another part of keeping our state safe is attracting high quality law enforcement officers to protect and serve our communities. Over the past year, law enforcement has been attacked and demeaned in other communities across the country. We responded to these attacks by recruiting more law enforcement officers to move to South Dakota, and we’ve had tremendous success in those efforts.

In the wake of the recent riots in Minneapolis and other places, I am going to be relaunching that campaign to recruit law enforcement officers to move to our state. In South Dakota, we respect them. We won’t defund them. Instead, we’ll work with them to make South Dakota safer.

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Sisters and Conservative folk duo Camille & Haley are apparently big fans of Governor Kristi Noem, and they’re expressing it in song with a version of Country Roads tailored for South Dakota’s Governor:

You can follow Camille and Haley here at their website!

Thune, Hassan Introduce Bills to Bolster the United States’ Leadership in Quantum Information Science

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) recently introduced two bills that aim to better position the United States to be globally competitive in quantum information science (QIS). The Quantum Network Infrastructure and Workforce Development Act – led by Senator Thune – would strengthen national security by advancing U.S. capabilities in quantum networking and establishing a more comprehensive approach to workforce development. The Quantum for Universal Advancement in Nationwide Technology Use and Modernization (QUANTUM) for National Security Act of 2021 – led by Senator Hassan – wouldbolster the efforts of the Department of Defense (DoD) to engage in QIS by utilizing existing partnerships, scholarships, and research programs within the DoD.

“I’m proud to join Senator Hassan to introduce these two important pieces of legislation, both of which will better enable the United States to maintain its global leadership in quantum information science,” said Thune. “Since the bipartisan passage of the National Quantum Initiative Act (NQIA) in 2018, the United States has continued to make great strides in both fundamental and applied QIS research. These bills build upon the success of the NQIA by supporting existing efforts and accelerating critical growth in the field.”

“Quantum mechanics play a critical role in our national security and economy—and will be at the forefront of innovative defense technologies that will help to maintain our military edge over China,” said Hassan. “I am glad to join Senator Thune in introducing these bipartisan bills that will strengthen Department of Defense and Department of Energy efforts in quantum research and help encourage more young people to get into this critical field so that we can create jobs and keep America safe, secure, and free.”

Specifically, the Quantum Network Infrastructure and Workforce Development Act would:

• Focus federal research efforts and bolster interagency coordination on the advancement of quantum networking and communications technology
• Integrate the principles of quantum mechanics and QIS into K-12 and higher education curricula
• Establish a more comprehensive approach to QIS workforce development while prioritizing rural, tribal, and other traditionally underrepresented schools

Specifically, the QUANTUM for National Security Act of 2021 would:                                                                                      

• Improve workforce development in quantum-related fields
• Increase the pipeline of students graduating with quantum-related degrees
• Recognize the importance of prioritizing funding for quantum research in light of the economic and national security threats posed by China’s own quantum technology research investments
• Build on the National Quantum Initiative program by incorporating Defense Department research efforts within the broader program, which works to strengthen quantum science activities across government, academia, and the business community

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Johnson’s “Keep the Nine” Constitutional Amendment Gains 100 House Cosponsors

Washington, D.C. – Today, as House and Senate Democrats unveiled legislation to expand the Supreme Court to thirteen justices, U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-SD) announced that his constitutional amendment to cap the Supreme Court at nine justices reached 100 cosponsors in the House.

“The idea to pack the court is no longer conceptual, it’s a legitimate threat to politicize our nation’s most sacred judicial institution,” said Johnson. “I’m proud that my constitutional amendment to safeguard the Supreme Court from partisan politics reached 100 cosponsors today. We can’t risk compromising the public trust of the highest court in the land.”

Click here to watch Johnson’s full video clip.

H.J. Res. 11 is supported by Freedom Works, Keep the Nine Coalition, the Republican National Committee, Americans for Limited Government (ALEC), National Federation of Republican Women, Americans for Limited Government and cosponsored by Randy K. Weber (TX-14), Troy Balderson (R-OH), Kelly Armstrong (ND-AL), Dan Meuser (PA-09), Debbie Lesko (AZ-08), Jeff Duncan (SC-03), Mike Kelly (PA-16), August Pfluger (TX-11), Fred Keller (PA-12), David Joyce (OH-14), Brian Babin (TX-36), John Katko (NY-24), Jerry Carl (AL-01), Randy Feenstra (IA-4), Rep. Chris Stewart (UT-02), Rep. Bill Posey (FL-08) , John Rutherford (FL-4), John Curtis (R-UT), Jim Baird (IN-04), Ben Cline (VA-06), Ashley Hinson (IA-01), William Timmons (SC-04), Don Bacon (NE-02), Thomas P. Tiffany (WI-07), Ken Calvert (CA-42), Michelle Fischbach (MN-07), Bob Gibbs (OH-07), Tracey Mann (KS-01), Glenn Grothman (WI-06), Rick W. Allen (GA-12), Lisa McClain (MI-10), Tom Rice (SC-07) , Virginia Foxx (NC-05), Joe Wilson (SC-2), David B. McKinley (WV-01), David Rouzer (NC-7), Ralph Norman (SC-5), Jaime Herrera Beutler (WA-03), Pete Stauber (MN-8), Louie Gohmert (TX-01), Jack Bergman (MI-01), Miller-Meeks (IA-02) , Ronny Jackson (TX-13), Pat Fallon (TX-4), Dan Bishop (NC-9), Yvette Herrell (NM-02) , Richard Hudson (NC-08), Andrew Garbarino (NY-02), Robert B. Aderholt (AL-04), Doug LaMalfa (CA-01), Young Kim (CA-39), Jim Banks (IN-3), Barry Moore (AL-02), Lance Gooden (TX-5), Tom Cole (OK-04), Rodney Davis (IL-13), Nancy Mace (SC-1), Adrian Smith (NE-03), Alex X. Mooney (WV-2), Stephanie Bice (OK-05), Burgess Owens (UT-04), Clay Higgins (LA-03), Van Taylor (TX-03), Beth Van Duyne (TX-24), Elise Stefanik (NY-21), Ted Budd (NC-13), Carol Miller (WV-03), Patrick McHenry (NC-10), Greg Murphy (NC-3), Jake LaTurner (KS-02), Buddy Carter (GA-01), Michael Guest (MS-03), Andy Biggs (AZ-05), Kat Cammack (FL-03), Ken Buck (CO-04), Jody Hice (GA-10), Ann Wager (MO-02), David Valadao (CA-21). Lauren Boebert (CO-03), Garret Graves (LA-06), Scott Perry (PA-10), Tom McClintock (CA-4), Mike Johnson (LA-04), Diana Harshbarger (TN-1), Michael Waltz (FL-06), Paul Gosar (AZ-04), Victoria Spartz (IN-5), Gus M. Bilirakis (FL-12), Guy Reschenthaler (PA-14), Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11), Mark Amodei (NV-2), John Joyce (PA-13), Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03), Bob Good (VA-05), Carlos A. Gimenez (FL-26), Claudia Tenney (NY-22), Maria Elvira Salazar (FL-27), Darrell Issa (CA-50), Scott Fitzgerald (WI-05), Fred Upton (MI-6), Austin Scott (GA-08), Jackie Walorski (IN-2), Tim Burchett (TN-02), Jeff Van Drew (NJ-02), and Mary Miller (IL-15).

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Challengers can read it and weep, because US Senator John Thune has turned in his most recent FEC Report. And it indicates a fairly steep hill to climb for anyone who thinks they can knock him off the mountain.

Sen Joh Thune 1q 2021 FEC Report by Pat Powers on Scribd

In the first quarter of 2021, starting with $13,412,471.42, Senator Thune raised a fairly robust $620,040.90 and had $192,069.72 in expenses. And after the dust has settled, he was left with $13,840,442.60 cash on hand to fend off any wannabe challengers to the US Senate Seat he currently holds.

Johnson’s Kids Success Act Examines Continued School Closure Impact on Vulnerable Students

Only 46% of Middle Schoolers are Back in School In-Person

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) introduced the Kids In-Person Determines School (KIDS) Success Act to assess the impact extended school closures have on students’ academic and emotional wellbeing. According to recent data, only “47 percent of schools serving fourth-graders and 46 percent serving eighth-graders were open for full in-person instruction.”

“While South Dakota schools have been open in-person, there are thousands of children throughout the country that have not been given this same opportunity to learn in a traditional classroom setting,” said Johnson. “The number of children unaccounted for in schools is beyond unsettling and continued school closures risk the futures of our nation’s most vulnerable students. The KIDS Success Act would collect critical data of the effects of school closures on students across the country while the districts continued to receive billions in federal funding.

“The CDC has made it clear: it’s safe for kids to return to the classroom in-person and Congress has provided the resources to make it happen, it’s past time schools reopen.”

Currently, the Department of Education stated there is not enough data to understand the status of school reopening’s and how students have been learning nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic. The KIDS Success would:

• Collect much-needed data about school reopenings and enable a necessary assessment of the effects of school closures on children.
• Require each local educational agency that received funds from the American Rescue Plan to submit to the Secretary of Education information including:
  • an explanation of the reasons unopened schools in their jurisdiction have not opened for full-time, in-person learning in accordance with the CDC’s guidance titled “Strategy for K–12 Schools through Phased Prevention.”
  • the expected date on which students are likely to return to such school for full time, in-person learning
  • the total amount of federal COVID-19 relief funds received in the preceding 12 months.
• Utilizing this information, the Secretary of Education will undertake an assessment of the effects of school closures on students and, within 180 days of the bill’s enactment, submit their findings to Congress.

The KIDS Success Act is cosponsored by Reps. Tracey Mann (R-KS-01), Trent Kelly (R-MS-01),Byron Donalds (R-FL-19), Randy Weber (R-TX-14), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11), Michelle Fischbach (R-MN-07), Brian Babin, D.D.S. (R-TX-36), and Claudia Tenney (R-NY-22).

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Governor Noem posted this video late yesterday explaining her stance that illegal immigrants aren’t welcome in South Dakota.

“As Governor of South Dakota, I trusted President Trump when it came to immigration. He secured our border, fixed the refugee program and kept out bad actors.

President Biden has destroyed all of that progress. He has opened our border, released illegals throughout our country and illegals – including known terrorists – are pouring across our border.

For that reason – If you are trying to enter our country illegally, call me when you’re an American, because South Dakota will not be be taking in refugees from the Biden Administration.”

The gathering of meme-followers on facebook known as “Primary John Thune” took to the social media platform today claiming they’ve got “exciting news” and a “big announcement” next week in their struggle to not be compared to a bag of hammers…

This comes just a few hours after the group’s leader faced her latest challenge –  the existential threat posed to their existence by my rundown of who is running in the next election.

 

While they haven’t done anything in response to that threat, between posts and comments in their group, their followers did post 9-10 memes they copied from other facebook pages.

Why do I have the feeling this group’s “big announcement” is going to be anything but?