Zesto’s > Ben and Jerry’s pic.twitter.com/QeCPgCgA72

— Kristi Noem (@KristiNoem) July 6, 2023

Way the heck better…

Gov. Noem Establishes the America 250^th South Dakota Commission 

PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Noem signed Executive Order 2023-11 to establish the America 250^th South Dakota Commission. The purpose of this commission is to prepare for the celebration of the 250^th anniversary of the United States of America in 2026.

“Our United States of America is the greatest nation to ever exist in the history of the world. In less than three years, we’re turning 250. This momentous occasion deserves a year-long celebration worthy of our great country,” said Governor Noem. “I am looking forward to working with the America 250^th South Dakota Commission to commemorate our history. Together, we will cherish our founding principles and celebrate our Freedoms.”

The America 250^th South Dakota Commission will plan, encourage, develop, coordinate, and promote observances and activities to be held in South Dakota in honor of the 250^th anniversary of our nation’s beginning.

Governor Noem may appoint as many members as she deems necessary to carry out the directives of the commission. This will include:

• Cabinet Secretaries, or their designee;
• Director of the State Historical Society, serving as chairperson;
• The State Librarian;
• Representative(s) form the Board of Regents;
• Representative(s) of the Historical Society Foundation;
• Members appointed by the governor representing the geographic and cultural diversity of the state;
• Representative(s) and senator(s) of the state legislature;
• Representative(s) of local history organizations; and,
• Any other interested representative(s) deemed necessary by the governor.

The America 250^th South Dakota Commission will complete its work and be dissolved and repealed on March 31, 2027, with a prior report to the governor that will be maintained in the State Archives for a potential tricentennial commission to use in preparation for its work in 2076.

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An Eye-Opening Trip to the Border
Majority Leader Sen. Casey Crabtree (R-Madison)
Majority Leader Rep. Will Mortenson (R-Pierre)
Representative Tony Venhuizen (R-Sioux Falls)

Anyone who has watched any cable news understands that the southern border is a hot topic. Talking heads blame and rage over America’s border policy (or lack thereof). Given the hot-button politics, we thought it was important to gather facts, whether they supported our position or not, and to get a first-hand look at the situation on our southern border.

Along with business and community leaders from across the state, we traveled to McAllen, Texas to tour the border. We heard from a landowner whose land abuts the Rio Grande River. He showed us the trails used by migrants leading to the river. He told us terrifying accounts of run-ins with the cartels and the daily traffic across his property.

We visited a section of the recently-constructed border wall. There was a 60-yard gap in it. When the Biden Administration began, they halted all construction, full stop. Now, there is an inexplicable and embarrassing patch where the wall simply does not exist. It is apparent leaving this gap had a lot more to do with politics than anything approaching effectiveness or common sense.

Next, we talked with a Border Patrol chief, who oversaw one of the 9 border sections until last year, when he retired after more than 25 years patrolling the border. He broke out the 30,000 Border Patrol encounters from last week, from got-aways (seen, not arrested), to deported (20%) to released into the community (40%). 109 pounds of fentanyl was seized last week from these folks, enough to kill every South Dakotan twenty-seven times. He detailed the dramatic increase – of more than fifty times – in encounters from fall 2020 to spring 2022 in his section. The border had been stabilized and is now anything but.

The most important thing he relayed to us is the importance of a secure border between ports of entry. The got-aways and undetected migrants are the drug runners and human traffickers. Ordinary folks seeking asylum will just use the port of entry, or cross and seek a Border Patrol agent to begin their asylum claim process. Leaving the border between ports of entry unsecured means the Border Patrol is distracted from its mission to protect us from ‘bad hombres’ and instead has to focus on immigrants, which is supposed to be the job of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE). In short – there is no humanitarian argument for an unsecure border. We need to finish the wall, and add monitoring infrastructure to get control of our border.

Our final stop was at Catholic Charities, who host a humanitarian respite center. Families traveling with children can stay there for 24-48 hours, to get their bus tickets, plane tickets, or other logistics in order to meet their American sponsor. At the center, we saw hundreds of children with their parents. Having young kids of our own, the experience was an emotional one.

We learned that these folks, who were finger-printed and logged before their release, could not apply for a work permit for four months and that the application takes two or three months to process. So, we are leaving these folks in America with a sponsor and no ability to legally make any money for at least six months. Our goal should be to get these folks working and self-sufficient as quickly as possible. If they aren’t self-sufficient, they’ll either break the law or be dependent on the cartels or the government. Those are all the worst outcomes. This is another area that is completely inexplicable and should be fixed.

Living and governing in South Dakota, we’re a long way from the border. But, we are short-sighted and naïve if we think the mass influx of immigrants across our southern border does not affect us. What happens in Texas today will affect South Dakota tomorrow. The added perspective has solidified our belief that the border needs to be secured immediately and that all processes should lead to work and self-sufficiency for anyone we let in. Our eyes are open to the challenges, and opportunities for solutions, at the border.

Corresponding from the national portrait gallery this afternoon.

Learned an interesting fact. Apparently both President Donald and Melania Trump are represented by photographs because artists cannot be secured to paint them.

Similarly, only found one picture of them during their residency while on my White House tour.

Doing a capital tour for my youngest, who has never been here before, and I just missed Belinda Carlisle from The Go-Go’s’s doing a practice song for tomorrow’s 4th of July concert. 

In the summer of 1776, the Revolutionary War was in its second year, and the ragtag Continental Army faced long odds for success against the British. It was under these circumstances that the delegates to the Second Continental Congress not only declared independence from Great Britain, they put forward a bold statement of self-government rooted in their belief in individual freedom. The ideas set forth in the Declaration of Independence would cement the American Revolution as a truly revolutionary moment in history.

In a world in which power was often concentrated in a single person, the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence committed to a very different idea. They said that all men are created equal, that our rights come from God, and that government’s power comes from the people. These ideas are the cornerstone of our country, and they continue to inspire Americans and freedom-loving people around the world more than two centuries later. The signers could hardly have imagined at that time that their new nation would one day stretch from sea to shining sea. As the country grew, the millions of Americans seeking a new life on the frontier gave Jefferson’s words in the Declaration an even greater significance.

Like many Americans, I can trace my roots to people who exemplify the idea of the pursuit of happiness. My grandfather, Nikolai, and his brother, Matthew, lived the American Dream, immigrating from Norway and finding work building the transcontinental railroad across South Dakota. They saved enough money and started a small merchandising company and, later, a hardware store in Mitchell. Like the founding fathers, these men understood that anything was possible in America.

While we celebrate our country and the freedom we enjoy, we should also take a moment to acknowledge that these freedoms have not come without sacrifice. Throughout our history, generations of Americans have left the comforts of home to fight for our country. Freedom has a special meaning to those who know what it takes to defend it. I recently had the privilege of welcoming dozens of South Dakota veterans to Washington, D.C., who were there to visit the memorials that honor their service in Korea and Vietnam. It was humbling to meet these South Dakotans and to be with them as they reflected on their service and what it has meant for our country.

On the Fourth of July, we celebrate the enduring nature of what began in Philadelphia 247 years ago. Our founding principles have been sustained by the patriotism of the American people who have fought for our country, taken risks in pursuit of a better life, and who pass our heritage of freedom on to the next generation. I’m grateful that America continues to be a beacon of hope and a bulwark for freedom.

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During Ronald Reagan’s first inaugural address in 1981, he spoke of the significance of American values. He said, “it is time for us to realize that we’re too great a nation to limit ourselves to small dreams… Let us begin an era of national renewal. Let us renew our determination, our courage, and our strength. And let us renew our faith and our hope. We have every right to dream heroic dreams.”

This Fourth of July marks America’s 247^th birthday. And yet modern politicians too often struggle to rely on our founding values.  They decide that small dreams are good enough – small dreams like simply throwing more government money at challenges that we face. But, as President Reagan said, America is too great a nation for that.

In South Dakota, we do not limit ourselves. We dream heroic dreams. We are the state that carved an entire mountain in dedication to America, our leaders, and our Freedom. And we continue to dream heroic dreams, today.

As Governor, it is my job to make sure that our kids and grandkids have the knowledge they need to continue the legacy of greatness we have in South Dakota. The best way to do this is to make sure we pass down our traditional American values.

South Dakota has embodied the American values of hard work and Freedom for generations. We do not need to renew our determination, courage, and strength because we have never lost it. We held true to that South Dakota grit and grind through a global pandemic, and we came out stronger than ever. We did not settle for the small dream of just surviving through the pandemic, we strived for the heroic dream of thriving through it.

Now, with the lowest unemployment in the history of the nation and open jobs to spare, South Dakota is dreaming big once again. We are showing the rest of America that Freedom Works Here. Keeping our state open worked, allowing folks to exercise personal responsibility worked, and staying true to traditional American values worked.

Since launching our nationwide workforce recruitment campaign just over a week ago, we’ve received more than 1,650 inquiries from folks who want to call South Dakota home. People are seeing South Dakota’s success – and they want to be a part of it.

Our unique success is because of our unique people. South Dakotans haven’t left tradition on the sidelines. Rather, we’ve embraced tradition and proven that true American values still have a place in modern society.

But what really sets South Dakota apart from the rest of the nation is our faith and our hope for the future. In Matthew 17, Jesus said, “if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Nothing can ever be impossible for South Dakotans because we have a strong faith. Our faith is what gets us through hard times – our faith in God, in people, and in the founding values of this nation. And our faith allows us to have such great hope for the future.

South Dakota will always dream heroic dreams – because America is simply too great a nation for us to offer anything less.

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This week, six proud South Dakotans began military training at their respective service academies. These young men are some of the most motivated and determined I’ve had the honor of nominating to the academies.

A leader in his local MCJROTC program, Jason Lenning of Harrisburg wants to major in Foreign Area Studies and Russian at the Naval Academy and then join the Marine Corps. Approximately thirty percent of Naval Academy graduates commission as Marines.  

While the Kistner Family of North Sioux City was touring the Naval Academy, then-sixth-grader Lake was enthralled with the rich history and creed of the Midshipmen. He told his dad he would one day go to school there. Now he is living out his dream.

Kasey Broers of Pierre will be studying Mechanical Engineering at the Naval Academy and hopes to fly Navy jets. Ethan Fergel of Aberdeen has been preparing for West Point in the gym and is looking forward to basic training and starting his engineering program. 

Dexter James of Sioux Falls and Anders Enga of Mitchell both aspire to study engineering and join the Space Force. Only about ten percent – that’s about 100 people – of Air Force Academy graduates commission into the Space Force. These are not common ambitions for most eighteen-year-olds and are very inspiring.

A special hat tip to Anders for his perseverance. It is not unusual for it to take an additional year or two for students to be selected by an academy, and this was true for Anders. He decided to enroll at SDSU and the AFROTC in the interim, knowing that attending the Air Force Academy was his ultimate goal, even if it took him longer than he originally hoped.

These young men are the elite of the elite. They reaffirm that South Dakota will continue to have strong, smart leaders willing to protect and defend our great nation.

I also want to mention Maya Lee of Dell Rapids because the Air Force Academy has selected her for a prep school. This will be a great opportunity to prepare for the Academy next year.

If you know someone interested in learning more about attending a service academy, direct them to my website at dustyjohnson.house.gov/services/service-academy-nominations. Applications are due at the end of October for the Class of 2028.

Photos of the Service Academy Nominees here.

Thune Statement on Supreme Court Striking Down President Biden’s Student Loan Scheme

“Instead of putting together a real plan to lower the costs of higher education, President Biden put forward an unserious scheme to force 87 percent of Americans who do not have student loan debt to bear the costs of the 13 percent of Americans who do.” 

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s decision in Biden v. Nebraska, which struck down President Biden’s reckless and costly student loan bailout executive order:

“Not only was President Biden’s budget-busting student loan bailout fundamentally unfair, now it has been found unconstitutional,” said Thune. “Instead of putting together a real plan to lower the costs of higher education, President Biden put forward an unserious scheme to force 87 percent of Americans who do not have student loan debt to bear the costs of the 13 percent of Americans who do. Anyone frustrated by today’s decision should direct their complaints to the White House, where they knew this executive order would likely be struck down by the courts but did nothing whatsoever to meaningfully address exorbitant costs in higher education.”

Last week, Thune spoke about this issue at the weekly Senate Republican leadership press conference.

Earlier this month, Thune and Sens. Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) urged U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to abandon the agency’s costly student loan forgiveness efforts and instead focus on preparing borrowers and loan servicers to resume student loan repayments. The senators’ letter also requests information regarding how much staff time and taxpayer dollars have gone toward setting up and carrying out the Biden administration’s student loan agenda.

In February, Thune and Sen. Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.) reintroduced the Stop Reckless Student Loan Actions Act. The legislation would have ended President Biden’s untargeted, budget-busting suspension of repayments on qualifying federal student loans. The bill also would have still allowed the president to temporarily suspend repayment for certain low- and middle-income borrowers, as well as members of the armed forces during a time of war or national emergency. The bill would have also prohibited the president from cancelling outstanding federal student loan obligations due to a national emergency.

Thune has led common-sense measures to address the problem of student debt. In December 2020, Congress passed a five-year version of legislation Thune introduced with Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) to allow employers to help employees repay their loans. Thune and Warner’s Employer Participation in Repayment Act amends the Educational Assistance Program to permit employers to make tax-free payments on their employees’ student loans.

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