Yesterday, I was writing about the Vice Chair at the Minnehaha County Republican Party going off her rocker and recruiting petition carriers for an Indy candidate, in violation of the SDGOP’s Code of Conduct for GOP County Party officials.
Unfortunately, last night, it came to light that she’s not the only one who needs to be removed from her position in the County Party and on the State Republican Central Committee.
Last night, Deuel County Republicans held their annual Lincoln Day Dinner. Except, they weren’t just featuring Republicans.. they were featuring the people that Republicans are running against. And helping them.
I about fell off of my desk chair last night when I got this message about what was going on at the Deuel County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner:
In over 35 years of being involved with the South Dakota Republican Party, I can honestly say that I have never seen a County Republican Party give stage time to a candidate from a competing party when there is a Republican candidate running for that office.
Not sure what’s next for the Deuel County Republican group event. Perhaps they’re going to feature the Democrat running for Congress next? Since they don’t seem to grasp the mission of being a county organization whose sole purpose of existing is to elect Republican candidates.
Pardon the inferred language, but honestly, WTF?
The State Republican Party Executive Board needs to act, and act promptly in stripping these cancers out of the county Republican organizations which these people are directly acting to destroy while they can.
Because at this rate, there isn’t going to be a Republican party left for the next election.
Link to the South Dakota GOP Code of Conduct for GOP county officials –
The envelope, please!
Posted it yesterday.
It’s pretty rare for someone to overtly take a picture like this. If they tried, 1) they certainly would have been kicked out (which would’ve been a story all by itself!) and 2) they wouldn’t have gotten such a good, still picture. I’m willing to bet there was no one around when this person took this photo. In that case, then those petition signatures are invalid and if the petition gatherer tries to turn them in, they then can be found guilty of committing a crime.
The chair is kind of mean. The central committee needs to ask her to leave also.
In 2008, Bert M. Tollefson tried to run as a Republican for US Senate but didn’t get the signatures to be on the primary ballot. He then showed up to the Minnehaha Lincoln Day wanting to speak as an independent candidate for US Senate. The good chair Drake Olson told him no. Bert kept telling him he was a life long Republican and was only running as an I because he fell short as a Republican candidate but Drake Olson continued to remind him this was a Republican dinner and he wasn’t in the business of offering a platform to independent candidates.
Bert stayed for the dinner but did not speak.
Deuel County should have the same class.
Announcement: The Duel County GOP month of May Lincoln Day Dinner will host a very special guest speaker Cheryl Johnson running for Congress a former Republican who is running as a Democrat.
Upon entering please use our code “Helter Skelter” to confirm you are with the Dump Dusty Coalition.
I’m wondering when they’re going to feature Joe Biden, since they’re bringing people from all the other parties up to speak.
Better make sure it doesn’t happen in Brookings or Watertown; there are two LDDs coming up before the April 30th deadline!
how many independents attended the Deuel County LLD?
These bastages must be smote down. Let us call on Mr. Wiik to do so.
I did. Told him the SDGOP should be viewed like the NFL ; they can suspend anybody they want to.
WWRGD?
It’s the local counties problem. They should do something about it.
These people started out talking about “owning the Libs”…they apparently found running against and defeating Democrats to be tiring and not as much fun as they thought it would be. Now they’ve decided to “own the Republican Party” and are doing it with very little cash donated on their part. their strategy is “be so obnoxious, nobody with a sound mind will show up, then stage a surreptitious election.” We must cut out this cancer.
While there is no excuse for letting an Indy have stage time or a table to gather signatures, there is a reason this happened. And the reason is Mr. Wiik didn’t do his job. The Deuel County GOP has been practically nonexistant since 2006. There’s been no Republican activity for many years. There new Repubican County Chair put the LDD together with no help, oversight or instruction from Wiik, who by the way lives just one county to the north and is the senator for Deuel Co.
So yea, it was really dumb to give an Indy time, but I think we give the Chair and the county organizaiton a little grace, a little instruction, and maybe a little help, so Republicans from Deuel County don’t have to wait another 18 years for the next LDD.
Might be going out on a limb, but don’t think the state chair has a responsibility to hold their hand, and tell the County REPUBLICAN party not to feature Democrats or Independents at their events.
Pleading stupidity is not really an excuse.
Did they ask for help?? Did they attend LDD’s in other counties to see how they are planned and executed?
anon at 8:26 PM, your comment prompted me to read the Chairman’s job description.
He is supposed to communicate “goals” and “strategy,” and there isn’t anything in there about tactics.
Since the goal is to get Republicans elected, the tactics include raising money. If you don’t know how to do that, you should ask. If you have never been to a Lincoln Day Dinner, you should go to a few before you try to hold one. If you became the chair of a county party without understanding the job, that’s on you.
Had the Chairman been telling the counties they should not be showcasing candidates or causes that have not been endorsed by the Republican party, (and getting petition signatures from a sufficient number of Republicans is one form of endorsement, failing to get them shows a lack of support) most of us would have laughed and said “thank you, Captain Obvious!”
After this week, it’s apparent the central committee members need this explained to them.
Some of us also think it should be obvious that if a candidate can’t get enough signatures to get on the primary ballot, he doesn’t have the support he needs to win an election, no matter what his friends are telling him. Does the Chairman have to explain that, too?
States sent Delegates to a Continental Congress in 2009 to adopt a national declaration and a list of Resolves. Those policies have driven policy since. The America First movement is strong.
Blaming the state chair for Deuel County hosting an Independent is ridiculous.
Why even form a county GOP? Must be the same people that thought girls’ should be allowed in the Boy Scouts.
IF IT’S IN THE NAME, US YOUR BRAIN.
Many people are saying Lindsay Graham was right when he said “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed … and we will deserve it”
Look at it this way. The party let the crazies in. Was it McCain’s biggest regret by choosing Sara Palin as his VP pick? We ended up on this path which resulted in MAGA QAnon Land with Trump?
Who knows? Would it be that bad to see at monthly party county unit lunches to include guest speakers for Republican’s for Biden maybe Sarah Longwell from the Bulwark? Charlie Sykes? Liz Cheney? Senator Romney? Arnold Schwarzenegger? Bill Kristol? Adam Kinzinger? Cassidy Hutchinson? James Mattis?
If they let the crazies and independent candidates speak why not have those mentioned above as guest speakers? South Dakota Democratic Congressional candidate Cheryl Johnson(former Republican) at these SDGOP events is looking to have a very busy schedule and it would help down ticket candidates too.
Cats and dogs living together, Republicans believe in free speech. Mass Hysteria! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9NMt42il4Q
anonymous at 12:18 McCain didnt want to win that election. Maybe you were not paying attention all those years ago. No sooner than he had secured the nomination, than he announced his work in the Senate was more important than running for the office of the Presidency, and he dropped off the campaign trail.
His campaign gave Sarah Palin a lot of idiotic talking points, all of which had the word “maverick” in them somewhere, and sent her out to do the whole thing herself. Meeting a man who worked on that campaign, I learned it was the worst campaign he’d ever been involved in, the basic problem being the candidate didnt want to win. McCain left the convention, ran back to the Senate office building, and hid under his desk.
Nobody should blame Palin for that mess, other than maybe, once she realized what she was involved in, she could have quit.
First time I’ve seen someone paint Palin as the hero in the McCain campaign. Did NOT have that on my bingo card.
That is all new to me also. As Pat Posted things are all upside down and I’d add a healthy dose of revisionist history.
Has there ever been another presidential election campaign in which so much press was focused on the VP candidate? It was weird.
Where was the presidential candidate?
Campaigning and governing? Is this a trick question?
Useful idiots are no longer useful and are now dangerous to the party. Except now, they are aggressive idiots whose currency seems to be making the most outlandish claims possible. Pretty sweet.
Not that surprising. Senate pro temp was kicked out of his own caucus in the day, dought for the largest tax increase in state history, is a darling of the vile education lobbies, and has fought any and all inference of a tax cut. The party has been weakened from within for years, not from outside today. Give an inch and give a mile.
Stace? You posting from Thailand?
Funny! Anyone bother to ask the Senate leader where he stands on the Jungle Primary? He supports it!
Mr. Nelson, he of the Thailand persuasion, is likely hiding in a restroom in Bangkok out of cowardice. Come forward, former Marine, and face your failures against the Republican Party in the County named Davison.
Your history of talking walks to hide in the restroom is burned into the legislative annals.
There are way too many Mavericks in the Republican Party and not enough loyal soldiers plodding in the ranks.
Mr. McNeal is a registered Republican who is choosing to run as an Independent. As such, he should be allowed to speak and gather signatures at any Republican sponsored event. Many of the problems in the SD GOP stem from the blatant endorsements at pervious Lincoln Day and Reagan Day events. If everyone had been treated fairly, this would not be an issue, now or in the future.
Running against a Republican candidate as an opposing party? Nah he can go gather signatures elsewhere.