Step it Up
By Rep. Dusty Johnson
October 4, 2024

BIG Update

I hosted my third Level Up Youth Conference this week. More than 250 Aberdeen area high school students joined for conversations on civility in politics, teamwork games and challenges, a keynote from Mitch Reed on sharing kindness, and more.

When I was a teenager, attending events liked these helped stoke my passion for public service. I enjoy seeing high school students being civically engaged and working to better their community. It was another successful conference, and I look forward to the next.

Johnson and students at the Level Up Youth Conference

BIG Idea

Central High School’s ATEC Academy equips students with career and technical skills. I enjoyed seeing what the students are working on and congratulating Mr. Konda for being named the 2024 National Speech and Debate Coach of the Year. He led their team to the 8^th consecutive state championship and placed 8^th nationally last fall. I also congratulated Mya Heintzman for being selected as one of 20 students for the Youth Collaboratory, a program that focuses on being civic-minded and helping communities.

Johnson with Central High School students in the ATEC program

BIG News

I shared an update about a potential port strike last week, and on Tuesday, the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) officially went on strike. This strike effectively closed 36 ports on the east and gulf coasts from Maine to Texas. About 45,000 workers walked off the job, demanding higher pay and no use of automation. Thankfully, the strike lasted three days and the dockworkers and employers came to a tentative agreement on Thursday.

A strike of this magnitude could’ve crippled the economy and caused prices to skyrocket. Consumers and businesses large and small rely on these ports for their products and goods. Suddenly not being able to receive parts could force a business to stop production or receive those parts through more expensive means, forcing them to raise prices. Further, American farmers utilize these ports for nearly half of containerized ag exports.

These ports help ensure our food security and national security. We must ensure they remain open and operational to have a functioning supply chain.

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Former State Representative and Assistant House Majority Leader Michael Wagner has a column at South Dakota Searchlight noting why he believes that the Open Primaries measure being proposed as Amendment H should be passed.

Included in his reasoning is one of the points I’m in agreement with – that if an election is paid for by all taxpayers, then all taxpayers should be able to participate:

People, not political parties, should control our elections

Political parties do not appear in the U.S. Constitution. They are not part of our government or our democracy. Political parties are special interest groups – just like a labor union, a political action committee, or a professional association. Forcing voters to join a political party in order to vote in an election is more like Russia or China than a democracy. We are a “right to work” state – we don’t have to join a union to work. We should be a “right to vote” state – we shouldn’t have to join a political party to vote. Amendment H allows everyone to vote for any candidate in the primary election regardless of political affiliation. Political party status will not control if you can vote or for whom you can vote.

Tax dollars should not be used for partisan politics

When a political party endorses one person in an election or chooses delegates for its convention, that is political business. Just like a labor union, the chamber of commerce, or private corporations electing their leadership. Tax dollars should not be used to do political work. In South Dakota, the tax-funded primary election is being used by political parties to conduct private business. Amendment H guarantees that all voters will be able to participate equally in our taxpayer-funded primary. No special status for some voters because of their political registration. Political parties can still endorse candidates, campaign, and select convention delegates. But, they’ll have to do it with their own money – not with tax dollars.

You can go read the entire column here.

Cyber Place
By: Gov. Kristi Noem  
October 4, 2024  

South Dakota is a growing state, but we aren’t just growing in our more traditional industries like agriculture, tourism, and financial services. In recent years, South Dakota’s cybersecurity industry has taken off!

Cybersecurity has become South Dakota’s next big industry. In fact, our cybersecurity industry has grown the 2^nd fastest of any state over the last decade. The jobs of the future are right here in South Dakota. Our kids and grandkids don’t have to move out-of-state to chase the career of their dreams anymore. 

We’ve grown to more than 9,000 cybersecurity jobs with 900 jobs openings – this highlights the ongoing demand for skilled workers. If you know someone who wants to earn a living in this high-demand field in South Dakota, send them to FreedomWorksHere.com! These jobs are incredibly well-paying. Most cybersecurity positions pay more than $85,000 on average, and information security analysts earn an average of more than $100,000!

This growth is possible because South Dakota has one of the top universities in America for cybersecurity and emerging technology: Dakota State University. DSU has received designations in cyber operations, cyber defense, and cyber research from the NSA and Homeland Security – that’s something only ten schools in the entire country can say!

We are also training South Dakota kids even before they get to college. The Governor’s Cyber Academy provides training opportunities high school students. They can attend the academy to get dual-credit training during the summer. They learn skills and earn digital badges that will help them earn high-demand jobs.

These opportunities encourage our kids to stay in South Dakota to earn their college degree. They also attract students from across America to choose South Dakota for their education.

This momentum is showing no signs of slowing down! This last legislative session, we also funded a Center for Quantum Information Science and Technology. I signed the bill in a celebration at Mad Labs at Dakota State University. South Dakota is already a leader in emerging technology. This center will take us to the next level by combining numerous fields to make tremendous advancements in cybersecurity, agriculture, healthcare, and more.

While we train up the next generation, we’re also doing everything we can to secure the personal data of South Dakotans today. I banned TikTok for state government in South Dakota and kicked off a national movement – dozens of states and the federal government followed our lead. Then, we backed it up by banning the Chinese company Tencent and creating a process to ban other dangerous companies controlled by nations that hate us.

October is Cybersecurity Month in South Dakota. Take the time to remind yourself how to protect your own data. Be careful about what you share online, keep your computer up-to-date, create unique passwords (and change them regularly), install antivirus programs and firewalls, and use common sense when connecting to the internet. These are just a few steps that you and your family can take to secure your data today.

And as our cybersecurity industry continues to grow and thrive, we will guarantee a safer tomorrow.

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Was doing some candidate research tonight on candidates out west, and good gosh. One of the indy candidates running isn’t just a run of the mill crackpot, but a drive the crazy-car off the cliff one.

Shana McVickers, an independent candidate running in District 31, where I anticipate I’ll be living in the next couple of years, is a member of the new class of candidates running who seems to have gleaned everything she knows from the internet… and mainly the bad parts.  With a mix of philosophies from the left, right, and whatever Elon Musk is tweeting about at the moment, I’m not sure where she stands. What have I found about this Indy candidate’s stances on the issues from perusing social media?

• Pro-IM29 advocate
• Pro-choice on abortion
• Election machine conspiracist
• Claims the government is poisoning our air, water, and food
• Says Pharmaceuticals are “poison”
• Alludes to claim that Hurricane Helene was “engineered” via High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program waves.
• Says lead paint was stopped because it “blocks radio frequency,”  because RF waves are useful to control people.…?

Wait.. what? It’s like the farther you go back on her social media the loonier things get.

And then there’s one item which really got me going.  Same thing that convinced me that Lee Qualm is unfit to be elected to a darn thing ever again (no, besides his family’s lawsuit against him helping himself) :

Shaina McVickers is part of the nutball crowd trying to claim that vaccines cause autism. Ugh. They didn’t before the sole falsified study that claimed it, and no study since has been able to prove a connection, no matter how much life the internet gives the claim.

As a parent of a child.. well now a young lady with autism, it’s just damned offensive, and does a disservice to the science that’s kept people safe from childhood diseases like polio, measles, whooping cough, diphtheria, etcetera that have killed hundreds of thousands, and unfortunately, are making a comeback because of crackpots like Shana McVickers.

When you see people with views like these? They are just unfit for any office, whether they are running as a Republican, Democrat, or in this case, an Independent.  We need reasonable candidates with life experience to serve the people of their communities in office. We don’t need people who spend too much time on their phones reading meme’s, crackpot theories, and other crazy sh*t and regurgitating it like some mentally defective sheep.

Keep the crackpots out of Pierre. We have too much trouble in getting things done as it is.

South Dakota State Senator Erin Tobin and Governor Kristi Noem are encouraging people to vote YES on Amendment E.

The battle lines for the hearts and minds of the South Dakota Republican Party are being drawn for what kind of Republican people want to identify as. Either you believe that Nazi’s are bad like House Majority Leader Will Mortenson, or you throw in with Toby Doeden, the person who built a rally around someone who is said to have described himself as one.

Doeden, who had never voted in a Republican Primary until this last June is claiming that “current state Republican leaders aren’t conservatives,” in connection with last night’s rally featuring alleged “black nazi” and porn site commenter Mark Robinson. And If you read one news story today, make sure that this is it.

South Dakota House Majority Leader Will Mortenson, R-Fort Pierre, condemned the event and called those hosting it non-Republicans.

“I spoke out against Nazis when they came to the Capitol this summer,” Mortenson said in a statement, referencing a June march in Pierre by a neo-Nazi group, “and don’t like them any better when they are in Sioux Falls. When you’re throwing a rally featuring a self-described Nazi, you’re not a Republican. You belong to a different party. There’s no room for Nazi sympathy in our party or in our state.”

Doeden considered but ultimately decided against challenging U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-South Dakota, in the June primary election. Doeden said he organized Tuesday’s event to celebrate the “America First conservatives” who won their June legislative primary elections, and to rally support for their general election campaigns.

Current state Republican leaders “aren’t conservatives,” Doeden alleged.

“They’re liberals that register as Republicans because they can’t get elected as Democrats,” he said. “These people are hacks. They’re clowns. They’re disgusting. I started my PAC to eradicate hacks like that from serving in the Legislature – period.”

and..

About 150 people attended the Sioux Falls event, including some Republican state lawmakers and legislative candidates.

GO Read that here.

Universally condemned by Republicans and Democrats alike, the Doeden PAC event still appeared to have several people there who should know better, but seem to be held in thrall by Doeden’s checkbook and are attempting to suck up. In fact, SD Searchlight captured a bevy of them on a video posted to the story.

I’m immediately picking out State Rep. Brandei Schaefbauer, as well as D1 House Candidates Chris Reder and Logan Manhart in the foreground. It also looks as if Al Novstrup and Carl Perry may be at that table as well.

Is this what some who run under the SDGOP have come to? To cheer on and rally for the worst elements of the far right?

Keep in mind, they are not there to support the candidates and the goals of the Republican Party. They are there to benefit Toby Doeden’s PAC. A Political Action Committee led by a man – whose views might not have appeared on a porn website chatboard like Robinson’s are said to come from – but one whose views seem to mirror Mark Robinson’s:

 While he was publicly considering a challenge to Johnson, reporters called attention to some of Doeden’s social media posts. He encouraged the shooting of immigrants in gangs, used a profane insult to describe President Joe Biden, and labeled statistics about hatred of Jewish Americans as “fake.”

Also read that in the story.

If we can take solace in anything, it would be that there is hope that people’s better angels will ultimately reject this kind of trash rhetoric. As demonstrated by hte fact that Robinson continues to plummet in the polls, as reported yesterday.

A new Washington Post poll now has Stein ahead 54 percent to Robinson’s 38 percent, while a poll from East Carolina University has Stein at 50 percent to Robinson’s 33 percent.

Read that here.

Update

Add Dylan Jordan (d4 candidate) and free-dumb caucus leader Aaron Aylward to the guest list of the event, as Jordan clucks with pride attending the event supporting the attack of Republicans.

And as noted, here’s a previously mentioned group standing with Toby Doeden..

And it looks like Brad “protection order” Lindwurm was proud to be at the black nazi rally, and took a bunch of photos.. Sorry, alleged black nazi rally..

I had heard Taffy was among the attendees..

I don’t know about you, but I had a productive lunch hour.

I was able to do some horse trading with a fellow collector of some duplicate buttons along with a few things I had tucked away, and I walked away very happy with some unique Pierre for Capital ribbons I did not have, including a large one that looks as if it would hang on something rather than be pinned to someone’s clothing.

I just wish I had more things he was interested in, as he had a number of other ribbons I would gladly add to my collection.

Literally, I don’t know if there is anything that interests me as much as the State Capital Fight textiles of the late 1800’s/Early 1900’s, as there’s an incredible variety of them, and they are very, very elusive to find.

My only problem now is that I’m somewhat out of room in my Pierre frame.

I think I’m going to need a bigger case.

Sounds like there will be some protesting tonight at Toby Doeden’s expensive zoom call with his buddy Mark Robinson. And as per our dumpster-fire friend, he needs to have people “come in from out of state to encourage conservative values:”

“If Mark Robinson wasn’t a black, prominent conservative that threatened the deep state in Washington, they wouldn’t be attacking him. Everything that has been reported about Mark, there has been no substantive proof,” said Doeden.

Doeden said Robinson and other speakers, like FBI whistleblower Garrett O’Boyle, need to come in from out of state to encourage conservative values.

“There aren’t a whole lot of true, America-first conservatives that are moving the needle nationally that could speak at an event like this and generate this kind of momentum,” said Doeden.

and..

The NAACP plans to hold a protest outside The District at 5:30 p.m. and invited others to “stand in solidarity with us against hate in South Dakota.”

Read the entire story here.

Toby needs people to come in from out of state to encourage conservative values?

Well, when you take as much free money from Uncle Sam as Toby does, maybe he feels he needs that kind of education on how to be a conservative.

Protest is at 5:30, if you’re so inclined.

From my mailbox, it looks like Dems see a weak link in D34 Senate Candidate Taffy Howard, with former Gubernatorial Candidate Billie Sutton appearing at an event on her opponent’s behalf.

Two Bulls makes bipartisan fundraising bid alongside Sutton, in race against Howard  

Rapid City, SD (Oct. 1, 2024) – Billie and Kelsea Sutton will be special guest speakers at an Arrowhead Country Club fundraiser hosted by a bipartisan group for Kehala Two Bulls’ district 34 South Dakota State Senate race against Taffy Howard.

Two Bulls has served 14 years in the world of nonprofits. For the last 8 years she has led the 7th Circuit CASA Program as the Executive Director, advocating for the needs of children in foster care in Rapid City, SD. In this role, Two Bulls has built a strong track record of collaboration and partnership between public and private industry. 

Kehala Two Bulls’ campaign platform prioritizes public education, child care, workforce development, and local businesses. She will support expansions and opportunities for small businesses in the district. She will protect family values by keeping the government out of healthcare decisions. She will fight for all people in district 34 over outside special interest groups.   

Two Bulls will hold a campaign fundraiser along Billie and Kelsea Sutton from 1-3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6th, at the Arrowhead Country Club at 3675 Sheridan Lake Road in Rapid City.  The media are invited to attend and she will be available to elaborate further on her plans to advance these, and many other critical issues in Pierre. 

According to court records, the long simmering charges from February against Shad Olson for domestic abuse aggravated assault/strangulation will continue to move forward on Friday in a status hearing that was delayed from August.

If you recall the last story in the matter from back in June from KOTA TV:

He is charged with domestic abuse aggravated assault/strangulation, for an incident in February of this year.

and..

The judge granted all motions heard including a motion of discovery for tangible evidence, a motion to disclose witnesses, a motion for expert testimony, and a motion for investigation.

Read the story here on KOTA News

The status hearing is currently scheduled for 8:30 AM on October 4th.