The crusaders of Because-I-say-so, Steve Hildebrand and Steve Hickey, are on the attack again in the Argus Leader this morning, after what I assume was a crabby e-mail to Jonathan Ellis trying to whip up a controversy among South Dakota ELCA Lutherans because the group had no interest in joining them.

But in South Dakota, where voters this year will decide on a ballot measure that caps interest rates on short-term loans at 36 percent, the ELCA is sitting on the sidelines. Efforts to recruit the church, which is one of the most influential religious organizations in the state, have failed.

Supporters of the cap say they know why: The lawyer who represents the South Dakota Synod of the ELCA in Pierre also represents the payday lending industry.

and..

Two of the sponsors of the 36 percent rate cap, Steve Hickey and Steve Hildebrand, personally lobbied Zellmer for his support on the ballot issue last year. Hickey described Zellmer as a “cold fish” when it came to the issue.

In an interview this month, Zellmer said he heard them out. But he said he has not received direction on the issue from the South Dakota Synod Assembly.

“I don’t work for Steve Hickey. I don’t work for Steve Hildebrand,” Zellmer said.

and..

“I would completely trust that Bishop Zellmer is above board on these kinds of questions,” Sorenson said.

Sorenson added that Lutherans are commanded to make the best construction of what others say or do and not to assume the worst.

“I think we tend to be too suspicious of these kinds of things,” he said.

Read it here.

This fight is mainly a difference of opinion on whether a legal consumer lending product should remain legal. Economists and scholars in favor of free enterprise believe that limiting choices on things like short term loans limits freedom.  The two Steves believe in less freedom, and limits on free enterprise and want to end the availability of those types of lending products.

Beating the drum of “It’s all a conspiracy, and they’re all in cahoots!”,  these opponents of the short term lending industry have regularly been on the attack against anyone who disagrees with them on the issue, and in some cases have been fairly vicious.  The short term lending opponents have attacked the industry and made claims of them being involved with the mafia, and now they’re attacking the integrity of the ELCA’s Lutheran Bishop because he isn’t signing on to their cause.

When I say “I can’t imagine why someone would take a pass on being involved with those guys'”  I’m doing so with a heavy dollop of sarcasm.  With their name calling and strong-arm tactics, at this point, it’s hard to imagine anyone credible wanting to be involved with them.

Especially when their social engineering moves us away from free enterprise, and towards more socialism.

Greatness Resides in Toughness Together
By Sen. John Thune

It comes as no surprise to those who know me that I have an abiding interest in competitive athletics. With a dad who was a basketball star in the Big Ten, it was sort of expected that we would like sports. My mom, who was less than enthusiastic about this perpetual sports mindset, used to lament that all the Thune boys were born with a ball in their hands. To her credit, she saw to it that we balanced our interests by requiring that we all take piano lessons, which I did for six years. I also played tuba in the band and sang in the swing choir – opportunities afforded to kids growing up in small towns. But it was all secondary to sports.

Through the years, as I’ve transitioned from competitor to fan, I have found so many metaphors for life in sports, lessons learned from the heat of competition. That was especially true this year. South Dakota schools, at every level, saw great success across a wide range of sports, but because we have just concluded the basketball season, I thought it was worth reflecting on what was accomplished this year on the court.

Never before in my lifetime have we witnessed the unprecedented success that our college teams, men’s and women’s, experienced this past season. No fewer than 12 South Dakota basketball teams qualified for postseason tournament play. Several made deep runs in those tournaments, and two were crowned national champions, the Augustana University men and the USD women.

I had the good fortune to see many of those schools play this year, and I could not be prouder of our athletes, coaches, and fans. Basketball got played the way it was supposed to be played. Our athletes displayed the kind of work ethic that should make every South Dakotan proud. They played unselfishly and put the team’s success ahead of their own. Their behavior on and off the court was the stuff that restores faith to the most jaded among us that there are role models worthy of our children’s admiration.

As I watched the USD women put the final touches on their historic championship run, I thought of what it takes to achieve that level of success. Being able to sustain that standard of excellence through a nearly 40-game season requires something more than the ordinary. I don’t know if the USD women coined it or not, but the hashtag #GRITT became their creed. It’s short for “Greatness Resides In Toughness Together.” For these young women, it was more than just a slogan. They lived it. You could see it in their play. It defined their season. It inspired an entire state, and now they will forever have “national champions” attached to their resumes.

Which brings me to our present circumstances. One can’t help but observe the tone of our public discourse and feel that it is not worthy of a great nation. Maybe what we need is a little #GRITT. It is important to remember that there are no shortcuts to greatness. The challenges we face in the future will require a collective toughness, the kind of toughness that previous generations of South Dakotans knew all too well. The kind that leads to greatness. Politicians can promise greatness and offer free stuff, but true greatness won’t come from government. It’s found in the toughness of the American people, and we have the USD women to thank for reminding us of that.

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The Health Care Crisis in Indian Country
By Senator Mike Rounds

Since taking office in January 2015, it has become clear to me that Indian Health Service (IHS), specifically in the Great Plains Area—which covers South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa—is plagued with systematic problems affecting Native Americans in South Dakota. Tribal members have been suffering and, in some cases, dying due to inadequate or improper health care provided by IHS. It is time for IHS to get its act together and follow through on its trust responsibility to deliver quality health care to Native Americans.

My office has begun working on an in-depth profile analysis of IHS. We’re working with the Congressional Research Service and analyzing data and reports from the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Health and Human Services to find answers.  What we have found so far says a lot about why IHS is failing so miserably.

We need to understand the organization itself before we can begin to solve problems. We know though, that if we don’t solve the problems at IHS, we will continue to see more examples of hospitals failing to meet basic requirements to provide safe health care, therefore losing essential services like emergency care. The Rosebud hospital’s emergency department has been on diversion—which essentially means it is shut down—for four months, forcing patients to be diverted to facilities 50 or more miles away. The Winnebago and Pine Ridge hospitals have also been cited for serious safety deficiencies. We need to focus on why so many problems continue to occur at IHS, especially in the Great Plains Area, and why they aren’t getting fixed. I plan on finding answers to these questions and working with the tribes on solutions.

Earlier this year, I requested a Senate Indian Affairs Committee hearing to examine a number of reports of negligence at IHS hospitals in the Great Plains Area. We heard horrific stories of dirty or broken medical equipment, poor record-keeping, and in one inexcusable case, a woman gave birth to her baby on a bathroom floor with no nurses or doctors around to help her.

There is absolutely no excuse for hospitals not to reach basic benchmarks for providing proper health care. Tribal members have told my office that some IHS hospitals they visit are still working with outdated, inadequate and sometimes broken medical equipment. Through our research, we have found that IHS allocates less than 0.5 percent of their total $4.8 billion budget to equipment purchases.

The Great Plains Area IHS, which operates 35 of the total 153 IHS facilities, only receives $116 million for direct care, or 2 percent of the IHS total appropriation. We also learned that IHS has more than 15,000 employees, and only 750 are identified as doctors, yet more than 3,700 employees are dedicated to Medicaid billing. It’s hard not to come to the conclusion that the IHS system is more concerned about building and protecting a bureaucracy than taking care of people. IHS has no funding formula, no consistent qualitative reporting measurements, and too many of their “Area Directors” appear to be little more than temporary employees. Lastly, IHS spends less per capita than the Bureau of Prisons spends on each inmate’s health care.  Looking at statistics like these makes it clear that IHS will never be able to function properly unless it undergoes major changes. More taxpayer money won’t solve the dysfunction. Consider this: if the president proposed and Congress supported doubling IHS’s budget, based on IHS’s current template they’d have 1,500 doctors, 7,400 bureaucrats billing Medicaid, and they would have 20,000 administration employees and only 10,700 healthcare providers. That will solve nothing. Both systematic and financial changes need to occur.

The state of IHS and the inability to fix these decades-old problems has resulted in a federal government-initiated crisis in Indian Country. The Great Plains Area ranks second highest in infant mortality rates among all IHS regions. We have the highest diabetes death rates, highest tuberculosis death rates and the highest alcohol-related death rates. Great Plains Area tribal members have the lowest life expectancy rate at 68.1 years, while the U.S. average is almost ten years more at 77.7. These statistics aren’t from a foreign country. These are South Dakotans and our neighbors. Frankly, all of us should expect more.

If we’re going to find a real plan to fix the problems at IHS, we need to fully understand the current organization. We can’t rebuild or repair something until we find out what is and is not working. I will continue working with tribal leadership, IHS administrators, Health and Human Services and others to identify key areas of reform and identify potential solutions to provide better health care to our tribal members. The current situation within IHS is unacceptable.

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The Bucket of Prosperity
By Rep. Kristi Noem

This statement from Winston Churchill is a very appropriate reminder as we approach April 15, Tax Day:  “Can a people tax themselves into prosperity?  Can a man stand in a bucket and lift himself up by the handle?”  The answer is obvious, and yet, year after year, the Obama administration has advocated for economic policies that shift a greater burden onto the shoulders of hardworking taxpayers.  That isn’t the right approach.

Today’s tax code is more than 70,000 pages, filled with mandates, loopholes, and policies that pick winners and losers.  It’s complicated!  As a result, the average taxpayer spends about 13 hours a year gathering all the receipts, reading all the rules, and filling out all the forms the IRS requires in order for us to file our taxes – and we need not be reminded that the President’s health care law only added additional paperwork to the pile.  Once everything is gathered, altogether we spend over $160 billion and about 6 billion hours a year trying to get our taxes paid.

After all we go through to comply with an ever-increasingly convoluted tax code, the vast majority of Americans – more than 80 percent – feel as though these pages are rigged against them, benefiting those who can afford lawyers and accountants, rather than the average family.

While wealthy Americans may be doing fine, those families earning middle-class or low-income wages are much less likely to have received a raise in recent years.  Meanwhile, the cost of food and other living expenses has gone up.  Simply put, too many Americans remain on the sidelines.  I believe one of the best things we can do to get folks back in the game is increase their take-home pay, and we can do so by lessening the amount Washington takes out of their pockets each month.  That means tax reform.

Comprehensive tax reform will not be passed under the current administration.  Rather, what we are aiming to do now is put a thoughtful, ready-to-pass proposal in place that can be finalized once a new administration occupies the White House next January.  I currently serve on the committee tasked with simplifying the tax code and making it fairer for all – the House Ways and Means Committee’s Tax Policy Subcommittee.  Our mission statement is straightforward:  “Create jobs, grow the economy, and raise wages by reducing tax rates, removing special interest carve-outs, and making our broken tax code simpler and fairer.”

In principle, this means making the tax code easier to understand, fairer, and flatter.  I’d like to see us reduce the number of pages within the tax code and cut down on the length of tax returns and IRS instructions that become so confusing for families this time of year.  We also should be closing many of the loopholes that make the tax code so unfair.

Additionally, I’d like to remodel the tax code so it is fundamentally built to increase private-sector employment, wages, and your standard of living.  Along these lines, businesses should have access to a fair and competitive tax rate that makes it easier to grow their companies – and their workforce – in our communities.

Finally – and perhaps most importantly – we must not allow the tax system to be used to bail out Washington’s spending problem. We cannot increase the tax burden on any income group – doing so would be like, as Churchill said, asking a man to stand in a bucket and lift himself up by the handle.  It just doesn’t work.

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Low Taxes and Low Spending
A column by Gov. Dennis Daugaard:

In the 2016 session legislators serving on the appropriations committee adopted a new budget process. With the goal of more thoroughly evaluating the state’s budget while improving timeliness, appropriators held budget hearings earlier and adhered to new deadlines.

Their new process worked. Under appropriators’ leadership, South Dakota has once again adopted a balanced budget that continues a tradition of low spending.

As a state government, we manage to get by with relatively little. For Fiscal Year 2016, South Dakota has the second lowest general fund spending in the nation at $1.4 billion. Wyoming, the least populous state, is spending $300 million more this fiscal year than we are. The six other states with the smallest populations are spending more as well. Rhode Island is spending $3.6 billion, Montana, $2.4 billion; Delaware, $3.9 billion; Vermont, $1.5 billion; North Dakota, $3 billion; and Alaska, $5.1 billion.

Even with the half-cent increase passed this legislative session, our 4.5 percent state sales tax is still quite low. Among the other states that have a sales tax but no income tax, South Dakota fares well. Florida has a 6 percent sales tax; Nevada, a 6.85 percent tax; Texas, 6.25 percent; and Washington, 6.5 percent. Only Wyoming’s 4 percent sales tax is lower than South Dakota’s– which probably has something to do with Wyoming’s oil revenues.

We’re not only a low-tax, low-spend state, we’re also a state that consistently balances its budget. It doesn’t cost money to exercise financial responsibility.

In a time when many other states are adopting rosy projections and employing budget gimmicks to justify overspending, South Dakota is acting responsibly. We don’t spend money we don’t have, we keep our budget structurally balanced and we seize opportunities to spend in the short-term where it can lead to savings. Perhaps that’s why last May, Standard & Poor’s credit rating agency upgraded South Dakota’s rating to AAA, the highest rating possible.  Moody’s followed suit, just last February, giving us their highest rating.

This is what South Dakotans expect of their government. They want good stewardship of their hard-earned dollars, minimal taxes and limited spending. Under these principles the state of South Dakota is keeping government small and allowing individuals to prosper.

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The Argus Leader is featuring South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley in an article this morning where Marty talks extensively about what looms on the horizon for him less than two years from now – an almost certain run for Governor:

Serving as the state’s top law enforcement official allows an attorney general to keep a high profile and foster a reputation for standing tall in the face of tragedy, highlighting why “AG” is sometimes presented as “aspiring governor.”

“It certainly prepares you from an executive experience standpoint of leading people, handling budgets and knowing all aspects of state government,” says Jackley, who has already started fundraising and says there’s a “likelihood” he will run for the top job in 2018.

“It’s like a job interview. People watch how you work, and they’ve always taken care of the attorney general in those governor races when he focused in on doing his job and serving the people.”

and…

He’s done all the right things to position himself to run,” says Watertown attorney and prominent state Republican Lee Schoenbeck, who has served four total terms in the state legislature. “The thing he may lack is that with Janklow, circumstances catapulted him to the office because law and order became a major issue of that era. I’m sure that Marty Jackley doesn’t wish on the state some catastrophe from which he can prove his leadership skills.”

Certainly not. But as he prepares for a 2018 race that will almost certainly include rising Republican force Mark Mickelson and perhaps even U.S. Representative Kristi Noem, Jackley is seizing upon government integrity and public trust as issues that can set him apart.

Go read the entire article here.

As we move through the beginning days of the active 2016 election cycle, it’s more and more apparent how the world is going to abruptly change in South Dakota politics once the dust settles in November.

Unlike his likely opponents, and not having to get through 2016, Marty has the ability to be off and running for Governor now, while Congresswoman Kristi Noem and State Representative Mark Mickelson have to get through another job interview this fall with the voters before they can even consider joining in the hunt for the brass ring in South Dakota politics.

It’s heady stuff, but I don’t think Marty is the type who is going to get too far ahead of himself, as there has always been a practical sense to his approach in the office. When those in the political scene are more often than not prone to go off wild-eyed and half-cocked with demands and pronouncements, Marty’s conduct in the office has always been grounded in practicality, procedure, and in deep recognition of what the law.

Contrary to what Annette Bosworth’s supporters may contend, Marty hasn’t really been one to go off on witch hunts, and has dealt with the matters in front of him based on fact.  And that grounded practicality is a good thing.

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The article today also highlights another HUGE problem that is evident in the Republican party; one that we’re going to have to ultimately come to grips with in June of 2018.

Today, talking about the Argus article on him, the discussion is about Marty. But there are two other heavyweights in the race. Given the field of potential contenders, how do you choose?  Seriously? Attorney General Marty Jackley, State Representative Mark Mickelson, and Congresswoman Kristi Noem are all outstanding candidates in their own right, and it’s easy to see any of them taking up residence in the Governor’s mansion.

All have their high points. All have areas of critique. And I’m sure they’ll all be starting to talk about it over the next 26 months – especially after November.  It will be up to us to assess those discussions, and pick which shining star in the GOP’s sky is our favorite.

Thune Provisions to Enhance Airport Security Added to Bipartisan FAA Legislation

“In addition to defeating ISIS abroad and controlling our borders, we must enact effective measures to secure our homeland. The security measures now included in the FAA bill are a strong step toward that goal.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today applauded the Senate’s adoption of his amendment to S. 2658, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2016, which is currently pending in the Senate. Thune’s amendment, which includes a separate Thune-led and committee-approved bill, would take important steps toward protecting the traveling public and tightening the vetting process for airport workers who have access to secure areas. The amendment passed with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 85-10.

“Events around the world and security lapses at U.S. airports necessitate new protections for the traveling public,” said Thune. “Keeping Americans safe from future attacks is a top priority in this Senate. In addition to defeating ISIS abroad and controlling our borders, we must enact effective measures to secure our homeland. The security measures now included in the FAA bill are a strong step toward that goal.”

The Commerce Committee has jurisdiction over the nation’s transportation system, including security agencies like the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). As chairman of the Commerce Committee, Thune is the lead sponsor and bill manager of S. 2658.

Highlights of the bipartisan Thune amendment to S. 2658:

Addressing the “inside threat” of terrorism – Many experts believe an ISIS attack on a Russian flight leaving Egypt had help from an aviation employee. The amendment includes S. 2361, the Airport Security Enhancement and Oversight Act, which enhances requirements and vetting for airport employees with access to secure areas. It also expands the use of random and physical inspections of airport employees in secure areas and requires a review of perimeter security. Click here for more information about provisions included in the amendment from S. 2361, which was previously approved by the Commerce Committee.

Safeguarding passengers in non-secure airport areas – The March 22 ISIS attack on the Brussels airport underscored how concentrations of passengers in areas of airports accessible without screening can be a target for terrorists. The amendment includes H.R. 2843, the TSA PreCheck Enhancement Act, which seeks to reduce crowds waiting for security screening by vetting more passengers before they arrive to get them through checkpoints quickly. Provisions require the TSA to seek private sector partners for marketing the program and processing applications for public enrollment while also ensuring that PreCheck screening lanes are open during high-volume travel times. Both the Commerce Committee and the U.S. House of Representatives approved H.R. 2843.

Securing international flights bound for the U.S. – Some international airports abroad operating non-stop flights to U.S. airports lack the security equipment and expertise of U.S. and other state-of-the-art airports. Taking provisions from H.R. 4698, legislation previously approved by the House Homeland Security Committee, this amendment authorizes TSA to donate unneeded security equipment to foreign airports with direct flights to the U.S., permits increased cooperation between U.S. officials and partner nations to protect routes flown by Americans, and requires a new assessment of foreign cargo security programs.

Full text of the Thune amendment is available here.
For more information about S. 2658, visit www.commerce.senate.gov/faa. 

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Marsy’s Law for South Dakota Announces Kick-Off Event
for National Crime Victims’ Week

Marsy’s Law for South Dakota is sponsoring the lighting of the Falls of the Big Sioux River in Sioux Falls to recognize National Crime Victims’ Rights Week from April 10-16.  A kick-off event will be held at the picnic shelter at Falls Park starting at 5:30pm on Sunday, April 10.  The shelter is located on the west side of the Falls at 131 E. Falls Park Drive. Food and beverages will be provided and the public is invited to attend.

The Falls will be lit a different color each night of the week to show support for different classes of crime victims.  The schedule is as follows:

National Crime Victims’ Rights Week is an annual commemoration that promotes victims’ rights and services.  It was established by Ronald Reagan in 1982 and promoted annually by the Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime in partnership with the National Center for Victims of Crime.  This year’s theme – Serving Victims. Building Trust. Restoring Hope. – underscores the importance of establishing trust with victims.

Marsy’s Law for South Dakota is an organization composed of citizens and victim rights advocates in South Dakota who are leading the effort to pass Initiated Constitutional Amendment S in the November General Election.  Amendment S is a Crime Victim’s Bill of Rights that would guarantee equal rights to crime victims.

In addition to sponsoring the lighting of the Falls, Marsy’s Law for South Dakota will be releasing the first videos in a series featuring South Dakotans who support Marsy’s Law.  The videos primarily feature South Dakota crime victims and new videos will be released throughout the campaign until the November General Election.

“This is an important week for crime victims in South Dakota and we are working hard to give them the equal rights they deserve.” said Jason Glodt, State Director for Marsy’s Law for South Dakota.  “We also thank all of the other groups across the state that are organizing events for National Crime Victims’ Rights Week.”

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Rounds Introduces Iran Cyber Sanctions Act

 WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today introduced the Iran Cyber Sanctions Act, which would require the president to submit a report to Congress detailing significant activities conducted by Iranians to undermine U.S. cybersecurity.

“Some of the most serious threats facing the United States today are cyber-attacks,” said Rounds. “Iran and our other enemies currently use sophisticated technology to carry out cyber-attacks against U.S. businesses and our government. By reporting and sanctioning perpetrators, we can stop additional cyber-attacks before they happen and identify where future threats may come from.”

The bill would also require the president to add any individual included in his report to Congress to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Specially Designated Nationals List. When someone is added to this list, his or her assets within a U.S. jurisdiction are blocked from being accessed and U.S. individuals are prevented from doing business with listed individuals. If the president chooses to exempt an individual from the Specially Designated Nationals List, he must explain to Congress why he or she was not included.

Rounds’ legislation would require the president’s report to Congress to include:

• The identity of individuals who have knowingly engaged in efforts to undermine U.S. cybersecurity.
• A description of the conduct engaged in by each person.
• An assessment of the extent to which Iran or another foreign government has provided material support for significant activities undermining cybersecurity.
• A strategy to counter efforts by Iranian individuals to conduct significant activities undermining cybersecurity.

On March 24, 2016, the U.S. Justice Department indicted 7 Iranian individuals, who were employed by two Iran-based computer companies, involved with a 2013 cyber-attack against the Bowman Avenue Dam in New York and a 2011 Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) campaign against the U.S. financial sector.

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