Over the past few weeks, I’ve picked up a few new pins here and there, and today, I made a good raid on the local antique mall while on the way to pick up my daughter.   Today, I spread the sum total of my gatherings, as well as what I cleaned out of my truck, out on my desk:

There’s an Alick Kundert Skinny Cat Club Pin from her run for Governor. A great big Clint Roberts pin I hadn’t seen before, and a Nils Boe pin I hadn’t seen, as well as a few others I didn’t have. I’ve been trying to pick up some South Dakota presidential related pins, as they’re typically among the more rare ones

The thing I’m probably the happiest with was finding another three Mundt Morton Elephants for my collection.

There were at least two, maybe three produced for as many South Dakota candidates, and the Mundt elephants are by far the most plentiful.

I’ve got two varieties here (Mundt and Mundt, and GOP and Mundt). They were produced by the Morton Pottery company in the 1950’s, and they made them for primarily GOP candidates, although there were a few Morton Donkeys out there.

Handing out ceramic figurines to campaign supporters apparently went by the wayside in the 1950’s, but they’re still a nifty tchotchke for the campaign memorabilia collector.

 Thune: Child Nutrition Bill a Step Forward for Students in South Dakota

“This committee needs to ensure that common sense is applied regarding nutritional standards and that assistance is provided to those who truly need it.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, today expressed his support for the Improving Child Nutrition Integrity and Access Act of 2016, legislation to improve child nutrition programs, including school lunch. This legislation, which passed the committee by voice vote, would increase flexibility for South Dakota schools to continue to improve nutritional standards, while allowing them the time to make the adjustments needed to meet the standards that have been set for whole grains and sodium. It would also make changes to ensure that free and reduced meals make it into the hands of those who need them the most.

The legislation includes several Thune provisions that would better address the unique needs of Indian Country and its desire to include locally grown and traditionally prepared foods, which have a significant role to play in the education of Native American students. These provisions would bring needed flexibility and clarity for tribal schools.

You might notice that I’ve got a couple of ad spots that have opened up for new advertisers; One I’ve been assured is coming soon from a new advertiser, and another couple of them have been talked about.

If you’re interested in advertising space, on February 20th, aside from a few (as in very few) top level ad positions available, I will be opening up a chunk of advertising real estate where the Newsmax feeds are. These once held some interesting national political items, but they’ve now all become ads for age treatments and reverse mortgages. So I put in my notice that I’m reclaiming that space.

Otherwise, I’m more than pleased our current set of sponsors are going to be hanging around for a while. South Dakota War College continues to be the state’s longest standing and regularly published political website. And we’re not going anywhere for the forseeable future.

Unless I someday win the lottery. And then all bets are off.

Absent a massive financial windfall that would send me into hiding, we’re starting our 11th (wow!) year here at Dakotawarcollege, and we’re entering what should be an interesting election cycle, and the eyes of the politically active and community opinion leaders will all be pointed here in 2016 to this website as we see the elections for the state’s new set of political leaders.

Of course, after 2016, we start moving towards the big Kahuna – the slobberknocker of elections to end all elections (at least until another 8 years go by) – 2018, where our state’s political titans will be battling each other in political primaries.

And we could not do it without you, the reader. Thank you so much for your patronage, and for keeping a close eye on South Dakota Politics.

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About the Editor

Pat Powers is the editor & primary writer of Dakotawarcollege.com, and has been in involved in state Republican politics since 1988. in 2005 he founded the South Dakota War College blog, and since 2009 it has regularly been named by the Washington Post as one of the nation’s top state-based political blogs.  Pat is a veteran of numerous state political campaigns, including 2 gubernatorial contests.

 Rounds’ Easement Disclosure
Provision Included in Sportsmen’s Package

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, today thanked his colleagues for their support after his amendment regarding easements was included in S. 659, the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act. Rounds’ amendment would require documentation that landowners have been fully informed of all of their conservation options—both termed and perpetual—when choosing to place their land in conservation easements. S. 659 passed out of the Senate EPW Committee this morning with Rounds’ support. It now heads to the full Senate for consideration.

“When entering into a conservation easement with the government, South Dakota’s farmers, ranchers and landowners should be made aware of all options available to them,” said Rounds. “Greater optionality for landowners will benefit everyone, and I believe it will result in greater public access to land. Giving landowners the option of entering into a termed, renewable contract for conservation easements will keep the landowners and federal government on equal footing.”

Rounds’ amendment includes language making sure there is documentation showing landowners were made aware they have the option of setting their land aside in an easement for a limited period of time. It will make sure landowners are aware of all their options and are not forced into making a decision that will lock their land into a permanent easement, preventing future generations from accessing it.

Thune Announces Launch of New Senate Website
New Look, Same Commitment to Serving South Dakotans

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today announced his Senate office has launched a new website that will make it easier for South Dakotans who need assistance navigating the federal government and its agencies to access important information and contact his office. The new site, which has a responsive design and is more user- and mobile-friendly, can be located at its previous domain name: www.thune.senate.gov.

“As chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, I understand how quickly the Internet is changing and how important it is to embrace that change,” said Thune. “I’m excited to launch this updated website that will simplify the process for constituents to contact my office and see what I’ve been working on in the Senate. We work hard to ensure that our physical Senate offices are welcoming, easy to locate, and provide the information our constituents want and need. The same should be done for our Senate website, and I’m glad we’ve achieved that goal.”

Thune’s website gives constituents an opportunity to email the senator, request help with a federal agency, request tours of the U.S. Capitol, White House, and certain other federal buildings in Washington, D.C., and request flags that have been flown atop the U.S. Capitol. Users who view the website can also read about legislation that Thune has proposed, view his Senate voting record, and connect with him on multiple social media platforms.

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South Dakota’s US Senator John Thune had a column on the National Review website yesterday which pinned down a major problem with what President Obama’s legacy will be. That he really doesn’t have one, because almost none of it was written into law:

Last week, President Obama delivered his final State of the Union address. In the lead-up to the speech, there was a lot of discussion about the nature of the president’s legacy. Less discussed, however, was that most of the president’s so-called legacy may not outlast his presidency, since most of his supposed achievements have never been enacted into law.

Early on in his presidency, it became clear that the president didn’t have much interest in working with Congress in a bipartisan manner, and after losing large majorities in the House and Senate, he made it clear that he did not want to listen to the American people, who had overwhelmingly rejected his far-left agenda. His determination to circumvent Congress and ignore the American people has not only been an affront to the democratic process and an attack on the balance of power our Founding Fathers envisioned, it has also failed as a strategy for securing long-lasting achievements.

As a result of his contempt for Congress and his unwillingness to engage with the legislative process, the vast majority of the items that make up the president’s “legacy” — including the national energy tax, executive amnesty, and the flawed Iran deal — are not actual laws. Instead, the president’s legacy is largely made up of regulations, executive actions, and executive agreements, most of which can be easily overturned by the next administration.

Read the entire article here at National Review!

Now, I have to disagree with Senator Thune a little. (Yes, mark that on your calendar). I think President Obama did manage to secure a somewhat positive legacy for himself.

Why? Because President Obama has managed to improve the historical view of the presidency of Jimmy Carter as the worst president in modern history by bumping Carter up one place from that bottom spot, and inserting himself as the new title holder of the worst president.

You should always look on the bright side.

Rounds Accepting Summer Internship Applications

WASHINGTON– U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today announced that he is currently accepting internship applications for summer 2016. The deadline to apply for internships in his Washington, D.C., Pierre, Rapid City and Sioux Falls offices is February 15, 2016. Summer internships will run from June to mid-August. College credit is available.

Duties in the Washington, D.C., office may include tracking legislation, researching bills, attending committee hearings and briefings, leading tours of the U.S. Capitol, handling constituent phone calls, sorting mail and providing legislative support. Duties in the South Dakota offices include researching constituent inquiries and requests, participation in outreach activities, assisting staff on special projects, handling phone calls and constituent requests and sorting mail. In all offices, students will work closely with constituents and staff, polish their research and writing skills and gain an in-depth understanding of a Senate office.

Interested college students should complete the online internship application and submit a resume no later than February 15, 2016.  Resumes should be submitted to Erin Budmayr, intern coordinator, at [email protected]. Information about the internship program, along with the application, can be found online at www.rounds.senate.gov/internships.

Additional questions can be directed to Erin Budmayr at (605) 224-1450.

If you recall the Redfield school bond election flyer story that you read about here at Dakotawarcollege…

I’m hearing that Redfield residents were treated to a flyer in their mailboxes recently which cajoled them to support the construction of a new school in their community. And while you have the normal divisions that come up in those types of elections, apparently the source of the this recent mailing has some people up in arms.

and…

Take note of the return address printed on the back of the flyer. And yes, you can confirm at the City of Redfield’s web site, that is the actual address of the City’s office of Parks and Recreation.

If you go to it, one thing you might notice about the city web site is that it notes the name of the City’s director of Parks & Rec as Heidi Appel. Why is this important? Because if you go to the web site of the group “Citizens for the Future of Education” a group promoting the construction of a new school in Redfield, it also appears to have the involvement of a Heidi Appel of Redfield.

Read the entire story here at dakotawarcollege.com.

Heidi personally sent me a note yesterday, and wanted to provide her side of the story, which we’re happy to reprint:

I first want to tell you that I often read your blog as I love the inside scoop and learning from every angle.  However, I have never been on this side of one of your blog posts and I am not entirely sure how to handle it.  So I will do the only thing I know how to do, be honest.

I fully acknowledge the proofreading mistake that I made. However, I can show you the label proof, the invoice and the credit card slip associated with this mailing.  I have not attached them to this email but I am willing to do so if you are truly wanting to inform the public.  This was an honest, I am in a hurry and involved in too many things mistake.  I took this task on as a favor to the group.  I had done many mailings before, and believe it or not, I used to work at QQP.  I have done mailings from the other side.  I surely knew to clarify, clarify, and clarify all details again.

I have apologized to the group in which I was representing.  I will be looking into whether I have broken any south Dakota campaign law.  Just because it was not my intent does not mean that I will not hold myself personally responsible for this error.

A notation of the error was also made on the facebook page of the organization.

Now if the Hartford City Council could be so forthcoming….

Recall yesterday’s Argus Leader article claiming that Senator Soholt was prevaricating on the Blue Ribbon Education plan?

Sen. Deb Soholt, R-Sioux Falls, told reporter Dana Ferguson last week that it was too “premature” to predict her support for a tax increase that would be pivotal to the recommended overhaul of South Dakota’s 20-year-old funding model.

and…

So, when we’re talking about those other school funding what-ifs, what if one of the key authors of Daugaard’s plan is already prevaricating like a politician?

Read that here.

It was noticeable enough that it was worth a mention here yesterday at Dakotawarcollege.com.

But a short time later, I had a note from someone up at the legislature saw that I’d noted the article, but cautioned me that I might want to dig a bit deeper, as they were hearing that what Soholt was quoted as saying was not as it was said, or at least intended. It was out of context, and as portrayed by the media, completely incorrect.  So, I contacted the Senator to get the bottom of the issue.

Q:  I’m hearing through the grapevine that today’s Argus article misquoted you on the ½ cent sales tax statement. Is that correct?

Sen Soholt:  Yes – totally correct as one sentence of an entire conversation that supported solving this problem.  The first question I was asked was “will you support a tax increase” and I did say that it was premature (a bill has not even been filed) – BUT went on to say, because…we need to be very careful with taxpayer $ and make sure that we could not fund the extra $75 million that we need with existing funds.  Also that we have a very serious problem in South Dakota that we need to solve and that it requires ongoing (not just one time)  additional funding at that level to assure that we have great teachers in the classroom.  Said more but the above is the summary of it.

The Blue Ribbon Task Force clearly identified the problem in South Dakota – that we are at a minimum, $8 – 10,000 out of market with respect to our neighbors in average teacher salary.  I’ve spent countless hours this past year providing leadership to this issue and now committed to a real solution.  In hundreds of conversations that have had with SD citizens, the theme is to get something done for education and support our teachers.  If all other options have been exhausted to secure this funding from what we now have, then I would support a tax increase.

The time is now to be bold.

And I think there are a couple of points to be taken from this. Yes, when you ask legislators on whether they’re going to support a bill that hasn’t been created or filed yet, there’s a chance they might not be direct without knowing what’s in it. But, considering her position on the task force, the idea that Soholt would be undecided is something that a reporter should really question!

So, there you have it.

 

Ask and ye shall receive. Not thirty minutes ago, I was noting that if people had tips or hot information, they could pass it my way. And get a load of this executive summary for a poll that a friend in Pierre just passed my way.

The bottom line? I don’t know if I’d want to stand in front of the 1/2 cent of sales tax for education. Because that train might just run you over.

glenbolger_surveyfindings

As noted – Public Opinion Strategies conducted a statewide survey of 500 likely voters in South Dakota. The survey was conducted by landline and cell phone, using live interviewers, December 3-6, 2015. Thirty percent (30%) of interviews were conducted with cell phone respondents. The margin of error for this survey is +4.38% in 95 out of 100 cases.

South Dakota voters overwhelmingly believe teachers in the state deserve a pay raise, and a solid majority favor increasing the state sales tax, with the money going to increase teacher salaries.

A whopping 86% of voters say teachers in South Dakota deserve a pay raise, while just 11% say they do not.

Nearly three-in-four voters (71%) say they favor an increase of a half cent in the state sales tax to increase teacher salaries, including 54% who strongly favor such a proposal. Just 26% oppose it. Among key subgroups:

• Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Republicans, 72% of Independents, and 76% of Democrats favor the proposal.

• Strong majorities back the proposal in both East River (72%) and West River (70%).

• Voters of all ideological stripes back the proposal, including 66% of conservatives, 74% of moderates, and 87% of liberals.

The Bottom Line

South Dakota voters overwhelmingly say teachers in the state deserve a pay raise. And, despite the conservative tilt of the Mount Rushmore State, there is one tax increase that a large majority of voters can support: a half cent sales tax increase to go toward increasing the pay of South Dakota’s teachers.

Bipartisan majorities and voters across the ideological spectrum back the proposal, as do voters across the state.

People can complain about raising taxes all they want, but if this poll from Public Opinion Strategies, one of the top polling firms in the nation, is to be believed, the Governor’s proposal has more than significant public sentiment behind it. It has near universal support across the state.

Read the executive memo for the poll yourself and let us know what you think. As I said, I’m not sure I’d want to be in the way on this one.