From Twitter.. and from the media.. There are unconfirmed reports of an active shooter near US Senate buildings. Scary stuff. Everything is on lockdown..

NEWS — Hill staff just got this email from Capitol Police. pic.twitter.com/6Vlp8kI5Ts

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) August 2, 2023

Please keep our Senators and their staff in your thoughts.

Update – looks like this was a bad call… but scary.

“A call came in for an active shooter. It appears to be a bad call. No injuries and no shooter were located. MPD is assisting US Capitol Police,” a spokesperson for D.C. Metro police said in an email.

 

Governor Noem Pushes Vanguard for Anti-China Emerging Markets Fund
Advances South Dakota’s Blueprint to Fight Communist China 

PIERRE, S.D. –  Today, Governor Kristi Noem urged Vanguard to finalize creating an emerging markets fund that excludes any investments in China. She did so in a letter to Mortimer Buckley, Chief Executive Officer of Vanguard, which you can read here.

“The largest risk to America’s security is posed by the Chinese Communist Party – including to our financial security,” wrote Governor Noem. “Communist China continues to infiltrate and target my state and others in the United States, making this specific product key in protecting state assets and investment dollars managed by your company.”

This was a follow-up letter to a May letter strongly encouraging Vanguard to offer an emerging market funds that excludes China as soon as possible. China is no longer an “emerging market,” and Vanguard has a duty to help insulate citizens from the risk posed by the Chinese Communist Party. Governor Noem led that letter with three of her fellow Republican governors.

In the letter, Governor Noem stresses that China “can no longer be fairly characterized as an ‘emerging market’” because they are the second largest economy in the world and are posturing themselves as a strategic competitor to the United States.

According to a Reuters article from just a week ago, “Global investors are increasingly choosing to bypass China’s markets in favour of other emerging countries.” And Barron’s reports that “Emerging market funds that exclude China are beating the index,” meaning that they are outperforming funds that do include China.

This letter advances South Dakota’s blueprint to fight communist China. Governor Noem has taken strong action against the Chinese Communist Party, including:

• Respecting Freedom and keeping South Dakota “Open for Business” when China unleased the COVID-19 virus on the world;
• Banning TikTok and Tencent for state government;
• Banning state government form doing business with certain telecommunications companies associated with six evil foreign governments, including China; and,
• Expanding South Dakotas medical cache and urging Congress and the FDA to take action to combat the shortage of prescription drugs in the United States.

South Dakota is continuing to set an example for the rest of the nation as to what state-led foreign policy can look like. This is South Dakota’s blueprint: More Freedom, Less China.

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Thune, Ricketts, Hickenlooper Introduce Bill to Address Seasonal Labor Needs
Senators’ bipartisan legislation would enable governors to secure supplemental H2-B nonimmigrant workers

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), and John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) recently introduced the State Executive Authority for Seasonal Occupations Needing Additional Labor (SEASONAL) Act, bipartisan legislation that would permit governors to petition the federal government for supplemental H-2B visas beyond the national cap of 66,000. Eligibility to seek additional H-2B visas would only be granted to states that have had an unemployment rate at or below 3.5 percent for at least nine of 12 months prior to their request.

“Federal inaction shouldn’t prevent state leaders from doing everything they can to strengthen their economies,” said Thune. “Labor needs plague nearly every sector in South Dakota, which is why I’m proud to introduce this legislation that would empower states to help alleviate workforce shortages while reinforcing protections for South Dakota workers.”

“Nebraska had the highest net employment rate in the country last year, yet many businesses have struggled to find qualified workers,” said Ricketts. “This bill will enable governors from states like mine to utilize more temporary workers to address this critical labor shortage and grow their economies.”

“Colorado companies rely on H-2B workers. But in recent years, our businesses are facing widespread worker shortages because available visas haven’t kept up with demand,” said Hickenlooper. “Our bill gives states more flexibility to advocate for the workers they need.”

The SEASONAL Act would permit governors to petition the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for a specific number of supplemental H-2B visas beyond the national cap of 66,000. DHS would issue such visas, and, if the number of employer applications still exceed a governor’s request, they would then allocate the visas through a lottery system. Governors would have the ability to request that visas only be made available for certain DOL Standard Occupational Classification Groups or employers in specific Economic Development Districts. Unless reauthorized, this authority would sunset four years after enactment.

Nothing in the bill would prohibit a state legislature from imposing limitations on a governor concerning the program, including the number of visas requested, the DOL classification group for which H-2B visas could be requested, or the Economic Development Districts where the visas could be used. Additionally, any supplemental workers provided under this bill would be subject to any existing or future DOL requirements. The bill would also require an annual report on the program’s utilization and outcomes, including worker displacement, wages, and economic growth and productivity.

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) is also a cosponsor of the SEASONAL Act.

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The Sioux Falls based Republican Roundtable group which has been meeting regularly for the last year or so is having a big public event, as the local group hosts a Debate Watch Party, with social hour on August 23rd at the Minnehaha County Country Club.

There will be a social hour with appetizers & desert, featuring national economic leaders, followed by the debate watch party with debate bingo, and a straw poll to determine who is the most popular among attendees.  Get your tickets today via eventbrite.

Chairman Wiik Announces Monumental Leaders Rally Sold Out

PIERRE, SOUTH DAKOTA – Today, South Dakota Republican Party Chairman John Wiik announced The Monumental Leaders Rally featuring President Donald J. Trump and special guest Governor Kristi Noem have sold out in less than a week of ticket sales, with over 6,000 tickets sold.

“The people of South Dakota have spoken and we look forward to hosting a record shattering event for the South Dakota GOP” said Chairman Wiik “ I am proud to welcome President Donald J. Trump to the Mt. Rushmore state on Friday, September 8th.”

The rally will be hosted at The Monument in Rapid City, SD on Friday, September 8th. Sponsorships to the event are available for purchase, please contact the state party team for more information. Visit www.SDGOP.com to join the ticket waitlist today and you will be notified if more tickets become available.

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Yesterday’s Reporters
by Sen. John Wiik
Chairman, South Dakota Republican Party

I love history. Learning how things were and imagining life in decades past is a neat way to attempt to relate to life in days gone by. I couldn’t help but see the retirees at SD News Watch have the same hobbies as I have, only instead of the pioneers and the cowboys, they’re imagining 1980s journalism is still relevant in this world.

I got my start in radio news in 1986. I understand the old ways of journalism. If a state agency, city, or county government needed to get the word out about something going on, there was usually a smoke filled room full of polyester clad men ready to tell their story. In fact, they usually had contacts inside of those agencies, and these reporters would actually look through a rolodex, manually dial a number, take notes with a pen and paper, and compose a story to fill the spaces in their radio newscasts and local newspapers. Sometimes, a FAX even showed up with a press release to follow up on.

Forty years ago, that was the reality. It was pretty easy to fill up your local paper and newscasts because there was no other way to get the word out about the happenings of daily life. Then one by one, these small smoke filled newsrooms started to fade away. 5 radio stations might share one news person. The local paper probably sold its building and is printed in another state. Something had to fill that gap, and the internet and social media took over. All of those agencies can connect directly to those most interested and affected by their happenings. The middle man left, and the news moved to direct distribution. The state’s website contains more information now than those old reporters ever imagined. Open.sd.gov has the state’s checkbook on display for the world to see. The Governor and all of her department heads can reach out directly to the public any time they wish. Governor Noem and her team excel at this—she has hundreds of thousands of social media followers, and they engage with her regularly.

That can leave the Rolodex and Fax Machine crowd with a bitter taste in their mouth. How dare the Governor talk to people without them sliding their biases and slants into the stories? So once they realize no one’s calling them or even calling them back anymore, they attempt to regain relevance by attacking the Governor for not asking their permission to run the state her way. That will wake up the reporters in New York and Washington to start looking at South Dakota again for a minute.

So if SD News Watch is really wondering, there is plenty of paper left in your FAX machine—there’s just nothing left on the other end of that line.

South Dakota likes our Republican US Senators.

The website Morning Consult has issued it’s rankings of how popular every US Senator in the country is, and as expected, South Dakota Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds are both in the top ten.

With 63% of South Dakotans liking him, and only 26% contrarians, US Senator John Thune is #4 in the country… with only Bernie Sanders between he and Senator Mike Rounds #6 standing.

You can see the chart and Morning Consult’s entire story here.

Thune, Cardin Urge IRS to Prevent Organizations From Obtaining Tax Write-Offs for NIL Contributions

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Taxation and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Oversight, and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), a member of the Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight, today requested that the IRS and the U.S. Department of the Treasury strengthen their recent general legal advice memorandum (GLAM) on the tax-exempt status of many name, image, and likeness (NIL) collectives by providing formal guidance such as a revenue ruling. This letter coincides with the senators’ bipartisan legislation, the Athlete Opportunity and Taxpayer Integrity Act, that would prohibit individuals and organizations from using the charitable tax deduction for specific contributions that compensate college or incoming college student athletes for the use of their NIL.

“A fundamental requirement for tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) is that an organization must operate exclusively for a public benefit, such as a religious, charitable, scientific, or educational purpose,” wrote the senators. “The GLAM concludes that ‘many organizations that develop paid NIL opportunities for student athletes are not tax-exempt as described in section 501(c)(3) because the private benefits they provide to student athletes are not incidental both qualitatively and quantitatively to any exempt purpose furthered by that activity.’ We agree with this conclusion that many NIL collectives should not be granted tax exempt status.”

Since the recent adoption of the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s NIL rules, certain organizations, like NIL collectives, have established models that facilitate payment to current and incoming college student athletes, while claiming tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. In response to this development, on June 9, 2023, the IRS Office of Chief Counsel published a GLAM concluding that many tax-exempt NIL collectives’ activities are not fulfilling a tax-exempt purpose.

Full letter below:

Dear Commissioner Werfel and Assistant Secretary Batchelder:

On June 9, 2023, we were pleased to see the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Office of Chief Counsel release general legal advice memorandum (GLAM) AM 2023-004, which concludes that certain organizations that make payments to college or incoming college student athletes for rights to their name, image, and likeness (NIL) are, in many cases, not eligible to have tax-exempt status. We appreciate the IRS’s attention to this important issue through the GLAM and urge your agencies to take the next step by adapting the GLAM’s conclusions into more formal guidance, such as a revenue ruling.

As you know, individuals and organizations can make certain contributions to college or incoming college student athletes for the use of their NIL. According to the GLAM, several of these organizations, commonly known as NIL collectives, claim tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. A fundamental requirement for tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) is that an organization must operate exclusively for a public benefit, such as a religious, charitable, scientific, or educational purpose.

The GLAM concludes that “many organizations that develop paid NIL opportunities for student athletes are not tax-exempt as described in section 501(c)(3) because the private benefits they provide to student athletes are not incidental both qualitatively and quantitatively to any exempt purpose furthered by that activity.” We agree with this conclusion that many NIL collectives should not be granted tax exempt status.

Related to these points, earlier this year we introduced the Athlete Opportunity and Taxpayer Integrity Act to protect student athletes, uphold the integrity of college athletics, and prevent the abuse of the tax code. This bill would achieve these objectives by denying charitable deductions for donations used to compensate college or incoming college student athletes for the use of their NIL, which would include donations to NIL collectives.

The GLAM is an encouraging step forward and more should be done. We respectfully request that your agencies take the next step by adapting the GLAM’s conclusions into more formal guidance, such as a revenue ruling.

Sincerely,

Still No Explanation for Leak of Gov. Noem’s Social Security Number

PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Kristi Noem issued a statement on the lack of response or action from the Biden Administration or Democrats in Congress regarding the leak of her Social Security number.

“More than 6 months later, Democrats in Washington have still not addressed how they will rectify the situation where they leaked my family’s personal information, including our Social Security numbers. Attorney General Garland has not responded to our request for an investigation into this unlawful action,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “DC bureaucrats callously mishandled sensitive information, all while accusing others of the same misstep.”

Because of this leak, Governor Noem and her family have experienced hardships where nefarious actors have used their personal information illegally.

The leak was a violation of the Privacy Act of 1974. Governor Noem was notified of the leak by the Washington Post, rather than by the agencies responsible for the unlawful leak. According to that media report, the leak was a result of a document dump as the former House January 6^th Select Committee wrapped up its work.

The Government Publishing Office (GPO) was the entity that published the file containing the leaked Social Security numbers. They acknowledged the leak but did not take admit fault. Their remedy was merely to offer identify theft services. They appeared to shift the blame back to the January 6^th Select Committee, which “directed GPO to publish the materials referenced in their report.”

No response has been received from the January 6^th Select Committee.

The National Archives stated that the leak was not their fault.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, former Trump Administration Secretary Housing and Urban Development Dr. Ben Carson, and former Trump Administration Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar also had their Social Security numbers leaked.

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South Dakota GOP announces President Trump coming to South Dakota for major event on July 19..

 

Minnehaha County Republican Party facebook, July 20 forward…

Is it me, or is the Minnehaha County GOP’s leadership actively avoiding any mention to Minnehaha County Republicans the fact that former President and front-running Republican candidate Donald Trump is coming to South Dakota on September 8?

(They must be busy planning the next rummage sale.)