Governor Kristi Noem Announces Largest Tax Cut in South Dakota History

RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA – Today, Governor Kristi Noem promised South Dakota families the largest tax cut in South Dakota history: eliminating the sales tax on groceries. She made the announcement at Dakota Butcher in Rapid City, surrounded by parents and their children.

“I have seen families across South Dakota struggling to make ends meet with rising inflation because of President Biden’s policies. His failed liberal agenda has caused the cost of food to skyrocket, and family budgets are being stretched thin,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “This permanent tax cut will put hundreds of dollars in the pockets of the average South Dakota family.”

Eliminating the grocery sales tax reduces the tax burden on South Dakotans by $100 million.

“South Dakotans work hard. They get up every day and provide for their families, but the Biden Administration’s policies are destroying their ability to feed their children. Senior citizens, working parents, and single moms are all struggling with rising food and gas prices. South Dakota will continue to do the right thing and protect our people from a disastrous White House,” continued Governor Noem.

Prices have skyrocketed at grocery stores. Since President Joe Biden took office, the price of a pound of ground beef has increased 25%. The price of a gallon of milk has increased 20%. The price of a dozen eggs has increased a whopping 113%. These data points are according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

Because of Governor Noem’s approach, South Dakota has the strongest economy in the country, and tax revenues have been the strongest in the state’s history. South Dakotans’ incomes have grown by 21% in the past 3 years, the highest in the nation. South Dakota’s budget surplus for the 2022 budget year was $115.5 million. Sales taxes grew by 12%. The state’s rainy-day fund grew to $422.6 million, 20.5% of the state’s budget.

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Hadn’t heard that term used in South Dakota until now, but locally, District 7 Democrat Legislative candidate Cole Sartell is injecting some views on gender that we don’t usually hear expressed in South Dakota State Legislative contest.

Candidate Sartell was instructing a legislative forum audience last night in reference to a discussion on the debate over abortion that “we don’t deserve the right to make a decision for an individual who can get pregnant.”  Which you can watch starting at about 28:00 minutes into the video here.

He follows his comment by mentioning in favor of his position on abortion that we didn’t go to medical school.

I suppose if he’s referring to women as individuals who can get pregnant, as if someone who isn’t a woman can get pregnant, that much is obvious.

I’m sure law enforcement will get out and check Chris Nelson sign disclaimers for Jeff Barth as soon as they get done catching all the murderers and rapists.

Chris Nelson says his signs comply. “I’ll agree with Jeff on one point, the signs are from my campaign – and I’m proud of the work my volunteers put in to create them and help put them up and appreciate my wife making the required disclaimers which are attached to each sign.” https://t.co/vTYYjxRTHE pic.twitter.com/M0Q1LsTkuI

— Joe Sneve (@DakotaScoutJoe) September 27, 2022

Seriously? Did Jeff just not get out of his car?

Kristi for Governor Launches New Ad: “Extreme Jamie Smith: Endangering Families”

PIERRE, SOUTH DAKOTA – Today, the Kristi for Governor campaign launched a multi-week, six-figure ad buy for a new ad, “Extreme Jamie Smith: Endangering Families.”

“Extreme Jamie Smith wants complete government control over your family,” the ad begins. The ad highlights Smith’s support for mask and vaccine mandates; his support for Black Lives Matter and President Biden’s open border policies, which have led to higher crime and drug trafficking; and his support for policies that infringe on the 2^nd Amendment. Each of these policies endanger South Dakota families.

“Jamie Smith is too extreme for South Dakota,” said Ian Fury, Communications Director at Kristi for Governor. “He continues to lie about his position on COVID mandates and his position on the 2^nd Amendment, so this ad will bring the facts to the people of South Dakota.”

To learn more about Rep. Jamie Smith’s support for President Joe Biden and radical liberal policies, visit JamieandJoe.com.

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State Treasurer Josh Haeder Elected President of National Association of State Treasurers (NAST)

Pierre, SD: South Dakota State Treasurer Josh Haeder was unanimously selected to serve as the 2023 President of the National Association of State Treasurers during the organization’s annual conference last week.

“It’s an honor to be selected by Treasurers from around the nation to serve as the next President of the National Association of State Treasurers,” Haeder said.

“NAST serves as the nation’s foremost authority for responsible state treasury programs and related financial practices, policies, and education. South Dakota has a balanced budget, we have one of the best public retirement systems in the nation, we focus on protecting money from fraud, and are now on the cutting edge of technology implementation. South Dakota has been a leader in returning unclaimed property to citizens, reaching thousands of South Dakotans through our marketing campaigns. As the NAST President-elect, I’m excited to collaborate with my colleagues, continue to grow our organization, and share South Dakota’s successes with Treasurers across the nation.”

Haeder’s term as president begins in January 2023. He is the first South Dakota President of NAST since Treasurer Dave Volk was elected to serve as president of NAST in 1976-77

Haeder is currently serving as the 2022 Senior Vice President of NAST.

NAST’s membership is comprised of all state treasurers or state finance officials with comparable responsibilities from the United States, its commonwealths, territories, and the District of Columbia, along with employees of these agencies.

Before being elected South Dakota’s 33rd state Treasurer, Josh Haeder was the managing partner of Haeder Organization, LLC based in Huron, SD. Haeder Organization is a property management company that focuses on affordable housing and lodging.

Treasurer Haeder has been married to his wife Amanda for ten years and they have two young daughters.

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This one made made laugh out loud this AM. The Democrat Blog SD Standard makes a wacky claim this morning that a path to victory exists for Democrat US Senate candidate Brian Bengs on the basis of a push poll from a Democrat Polling firm.  (No, really).

“After testing four frames giving the respondents additional information — one positive Bengs frame, one negative, one positive Thune frame and one negative — Bengs ultimately led Thune 45% to 38%,” according to the release.

Read that here.

So after trashing Senator John Thune on the phone, they managed to get some people to move their opinion? Well, they buried the lede about the problem that the Bengs has.

Name identification is a major hurdle for Bengs even as the campaign approaches the final month. The poll indicates he is largely unknown to voters, with 81% having no opinion or never having heard of him. That includes 75% of registered Democrats who were polled, who either did not know who he was or had no opinion of him.

and..

The release said the poll indicates the pathway to victory for Bengs is introducing him to voters by “using the recommended message simulating equal spending” in the race.

That is far from the case, with Thune having raised more than $11 million this cycle and having more than $16.9 million in cash on hand as of June 30. Bengs had raised almost $151,000 and had $31,307 on hand on the same date.

Read that here.

So, Brian Bengs has a name ID among South Dakotans hovering around 19% going into absentee voting and the last 45 days of the election…  but ridiculously claims that he has a path to victory?  Ha ha ha. That’s pretty darned funny.

Good gosh. I don’t know of any candidate in South Dakota with name I.D. less than 20%, who could seriously think they have a way to win.

I mean, how do I frame how bad that is?  Let’s look back to an earlier time and an earlier poll…

According to our KELO TV scientific poll, if the election were held today, Thune would defeat Democrat Jay Williams by a wide margin, 65% to 27%, 8% are still undecided.

Only Williams doesn’t see it that way.

“Maybe the polls are trending, because I just saw a poll yesterday where it had 58% to 38%, I had virtually the same numbers as Secretary Clinton had, which I hope is the case,” Williams said.

and..

If you recall, when it comes to name recognition only 2% of the voters didn’t recognize Thune, but 52% don’t recognize Williams’ name at all.

Read that here.

In the recent past, when Democrats could find a candidate, one of the mediocre offerings was Jay Williams. Even he managed to achieve name id of 48%.  Yet Bengs isn’t even half of a Jay Williams yet as he struggles to get past 19%.

In that 2016 race, Senator Thune beat Jay 72-28%.

I don’t anticipate it’s going to be much different 6 years later.

There is an undeniable crisis at our southern border. So far this fiscal year, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has encountered more than 2 million illegal immigrants, far exceeding the Biden administration’s previous record, which it set last fiscal year. This doesn’t include known “gotaways,” immigrants who evaded apprehension after crossing the border – more than 1.1 million combined in the previous two fiscal years alone.

President Biden recently claimed he’s put a process in place to manage migrants and that he is working to make it safe, orderly, and humane. Conditions at the border contradict the president’s claim, as well as his vice president and appointed border czar’s recent assertion that the border is secure. Border Patrol is overwhelmed, local police departments are stretched thin, and border facilities and private shelters are beyond capacity. One Texas sheriff worries illegal immigrants may be released into communities with minimal or no screening because Border Patrol is so strained. This is especially concerning as convicted criminals, large shipments of drugs, and  individuals on the terrorist watch list are known to be crossing the border.

Deaths at the southern border have surged under the Biden administration. The Department of Homeland Security reports 748 migrants have died crossing the border in fiscal year 2022, surpassing last year’s record. The number of CBP search and rescue missions have substantially increased as well. These conditions have resulted in the United Nations International Organization for Migration declaring the U.S.-Mexico border “the deadliest land crossing in the world.”

The situation at the border is neither safe, orderly, nor humane. It is also clear the border is not secure. An illegal immigrant recently told a reporter, “Everybody believes that the border is open.” This is the message that President Biden’s immigration policies have conveyed since he first took office more than 20 months ago. The longer this inaction continues, the more individuals will be encouraged to attempt the dangerous journey across the southern border.

For months, as this crisis raged, Democrats have downplayed and outright ignored it. Democrats recently shoved their massive spending package through the Senate, containing hundreds of billions of dollars for Green New Deal priorities, but zero resources for addressing the border crisis. Republicans offered multiple proposals to provide resources to secure the border, but Democrats unanimously rejected all of them.

It was not until recently, when border-state governors began sending some illegal immigrants to places like New York City, Chicago, and Washington, D.C., to alleviate their overstretched communities that there was a sudden and predictable outcry from Democrats who accused these governors of manufacturing a crisis. Washington, D.C., a city of 700,000 people, declared a state of emergency and requested federal resources when they received about 9,400 migrants over five months. New York City, with 8.4 million residents, has not received as many as the nation’s capital. Eagle Pass, Texas – population: 29,000 – sees 10,000 migrants each week. Where is the real crisis?

The situation at our southern border is appalling, but it’s preventable. If the president has any real interest in making it “safe, orderly, and humane,” he would make border security a priority. His record so far suggests it’s more likely we’ll see the scenes of chaos and human suffering continue.

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For the past two years, big government policies in Washington, D.C. have decimated our economy, left the southern border open, and skyrocketed inflation.

Our nation has faced tough times, but there is hope, and I believe our country will soon turn the corner. Today, House Republicans launched the Commitment to America. Ahead of November and a likely Republican-led Congress, House Republicans have identified ways to reverse the damage done by the Biden Administration’s policies. Our plan focuses on issues the American people care about—our economy, safer communities, freedom, and government accountability.

The announcement today revealed four pillars House Republicans are committed to:

• We commit to building an economy that is strong. We’ll support policies to fight inflation and lower the cost of living. We recognize the need to make America energy independent and reduce gas prices, and strengthen our supply chain, ending dependence on China.
• We commit to making America a nation that is safe. A safe nation includes a border that is secure, combatting illegal immigration, reducing crime in our communities, and defending our national security. Supporting our troops, establishing a Select Committee on China, and exercising peace through strength with our allies will counter some of our biggest global threats.
• We commit to ensuring a future that is built on freedom. Ensuring success for every student, achieving healthier and longer lives for our loved ones, and confronting Big Tech’s agenda that doesn’t protect our children online or our sensitive and personal data.
• We commit to being a government that is accountable. From accountability of Members of Congress to our election process to preserving our Constitutional freedoms, Americans should be able to trust their elected officials to uphold the Constitution and make decisions that don’t abuse their power.

Our fellow citizens are concerned about paying the bills, putting food on the table, keeping their children safe, and whether they can trust their government. Our plan addresses concerns held by many from coast to coast, including our friends and families in South Dakota. I and my fellow House Republicans look forward to upholding our Commitment to America.

To learn more about the Commitment to America, you can visit the website here.

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When I first ran for Governor, South Dakota needed new opportunities. For years, our economic growth had not kept up with the nation. Young South Dakotans were too often leaving our state to pursue college or a career. Cities like Sioux Falls were growing, but our rural communities were slowly falling behind.

I grew up in rural South Dakota – I love what our rural communities stand for. I knew that we could turn that trend around, and that’s exactly what we’ve done in the last four years.

Because of the example of Freedom that South Dakota set during the pandemic, millions of Americans visited our state. Thousands chose to make South Dakota their home. But they didn’t only move to Sioux Falls or Rapid City. We have folks moving to small towns, too – even some of our smallest town!

This was possible because we prioritized strengthening our small towns. Folks shouldn’t have to choose between the career of their dreams and our rural way of life, and now they don’t have to. We’ve made several key investments in our rural communities that have made this possible.

When I was first elected, I pledged to connect every corner of South Dakota to high-speed broadband, but it looked like this would take 10 years to accomplish. Because of South Dakota’s tremendous tax revenues, we managed to fully fund our broadband program in just a couple years. We have connected thousands of South Dakotans to high-speed internet. Families in small towns now can get Wi-Fi access right at home. Farmers can get internet to monitor various aspects of their operations.

Rural healthcare is an issue that has also fallen behind over the years, but we addressed that challenge, too. I proposed and signed legislation to extend telehealth flexibilities to South Dakotans. Now, you can talk to your doctor over the internet from wherever you are, making it so much easier to get the healthcare that you need, even from a rural community.

We also improved training and purchased new equipment for our emergency first responders and are investing in regional emergency response services. This will have a particularly strong impact on our rural communities. We want to be sure that every South Dakotan can be taken care of in an emergency, no matter where you live.

Our entire state’s economy depends on agriculture, and this is doubly true in our small towns. Lieutenant Governor Larry Rhoden and I made our living farming and ranching, so we understand the challenges that our farmers face.  I worked to secure favorable trade deals that give our producers new markets to sell their goods. We provided grants to 99 small meat processors across the state to increase competition, which will benefit our ranchers. And we’re investing in opportunities to innovate our agriculture industry and keep it strong for the next generation.

Our rural communities are thriving in South Dakota. For the first time in a long time, our young folks are choosing to stay here. People are moving to our small towns to share our way of life. And we are making investments to build on this momentum and keep rural South Dakota strong for the future.

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This might be one of the best thing I’ve watched today:

🚨 Rep. @RashidaTlaib asked all major bank CEOs to submit to her ESG agenda and stop funding fossil fuels.

Their response?

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon: “Absolutely not and that would be the road to Hell for America.” pic.twitter.com/rGX7EjrVZj

— Consumers’ Research (@ConsumersFirst) September 21, 2022