In case you missed it, the Gubernatorial Debate that our friends at AFP ran this week is available to watch on facebook:

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FACT CHECK: Noem Attacks Jackley’s Proven Pro-Life Record

PIERRE, SD: Marty Jackley has consistently enforced and successfully defended South Dakota’s pro-life legislation.

• Marty Jackley became attorney general on September 4, 2009. By September 17, he announced an appeal against a court decision that hurt South Dakota’s pro-life legislation.
• Marty Jackley vigorously defended the 72-hour waiting period and succeeded in implementing the law through the course of litigation.
• After the SD legislature passed HB 1217 in 2011 to require a 72-hour waiting period before an abortion can be performed, Planned Parenthood sued Marty Jackley and the state. Implementation of the 72-hour-waiting period was accomplished through his litigation.
• To best protect the unborn, Jackley chose to litigate. In fact, the Alpha Center and Black Hills Crisis Pregnancy Centers joined him in that successful litigation. If the state would have appealed the case instead of litigating, the injunction would have remained in place during the appeal—which is typically an 18 month process. Moreover, there is no guarantee the state would have won the appeal.
• At no time has the attorney general ever refused a request by the South Dakota Department of Health to bring an enforcement action.
• Jackley successfully defeated Planned Parenthood when they sued him to challenge legislation that established procedures to ensure abortion decisions are voluntary and uncoerced.
• Jackley won a 2012 ruling by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals which also brought an end to the battle commenced by Planned Parenthood over South Dakota’s legislation that required disclosure that the fetus is a human being.
• At the 2017 South Dakota Right to Life Convention, Jackley told the audience, “You have the power to be the voice for the unborn.” Jackley has been that voice his entire career.

“South Dakota knows that Marty Jackley’s heart is firecely pro-life because they have seen him lead the pro-life fight every day,” said Marty Jackley for Governor campaign manager Jason Glodt. “These baseless attacks intended to score cheap political points are unfortunate, but they won’t distract Marty from doing what he has always done, which is respect, protect, and defend innocent life from the moment of conception.”

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From my mailbox, Republican Congressional Candidate Dusty Johnson is having a meet & greet event in Pierre on May 10th:

Attorney General Explanation Released for Proposed Constitutional Amendment X to Appear on November Ballot 

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announced today that an Attorney General Explanation for a proposed constitutional amendment has been filed with the Secretary of State.

During the 2018 legislative session the Legislature passed Senate Joint Resolution 1, a proposed constitutional amendment that will appear on the November 2018 general election ballot as Constitutional Amendment X. The explanation is entitled “An amendment to the South Dakota Constitution increasing the number of votes needed to approve a constitutional amendment.”

Under South Dakota law, the Attorney General is responsible for preparing explanations for proposed initiated measures, referred laws, and South Dakota Constitutional Amendments. Specifically, the explanations include a title, an objective, clear and simple summary of the purpose and effect of the proposed amendment and a description of the legal consequences, as well as a recitation of the effect of a “yes” and “no” vote. Attorney General Explanations are not statements either for or against the proposed amendments.

AG Statement for Constitutional Amendment X 5.04.2018 by Pat Powers on Scribd

It looks like the robot-bee essayist & Chairwoman of the state Constitution Party is starting to get into a tiff with the South Dakota Libertarian candidate for Governor who claims “it’s an extreme risk to hire a woman”

Constitution State Party Chair Lori Stacey and Libertarian Candidate CJ Abernathey are apparently starting a facebook slappy-fight because Abernathey is poking at one of their candidates, and Lori Stacey fired off a note instructing Abernathey that “3rd parties don’t attack each other.”

Someone get the popcorn. (But, no flag-burning. And you can leave the robot bees at home.)

America’s Growing Economy: Adds 164,000 Jobs in April and Unemployment at 3.9 Percent

“Today’s jobs report is more evidence that our economy is growing again.” 

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement regarding the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ announcement that the economy added 164,000 jobs in April and unemployment fell to its lowest rate since 2000:

“Today’s jobs report is more evidence that our economy is growing again,” said Thune. “In April, unemployment fell to an 18-year low, and wages are up steadily over the past year. A few months ago, Congress passed historic tax reform, and since then nearly 800,000 jobs have been created, and more than 500 companies have announced pay raises, bonuses, 401(k) match increases, and cuts to utility rates as a result. Employers across the country are experiencing the economic environment they need to grow their businesses and provide more jobs and higher wages. This is good news for hardworking Americans.”

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FACT CHECK: Despite Claims, Jackley Inaction Allowed Planned Parenthood to Break SD Law

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – During a gubernatorial candidate forum this week, Marty Jackley claimed to “fight every day against Planned Parenthood…” However, Jackley has refused to hold the abortion provider accountable for two critical aspects of South Dakota’s landmark pro-life laws: (1) the immediate implementation of a 72-hour waiting period before an abortion is performed and (2) that a mother be told abortion “will terminate the life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being.”

While the 72-hour waiting period may have been able to go into effect immediately, Jackley refused to appeal a pro-Planned Parenthood ruling on the issue. Planned Parenthood “praised Jackley’s decision.”

Moreover, even after learning Planned Parenthood has been breaking the law by not clearly explaining to pregnant mothers that abortion will terminate a human life, Jackley has failed to enforce our laws and file a case against the abortion provider. As a result of Jackley’s failure to act, the South Dakota state legislature had to intervene in 2018 and pass legislation to ensure pregnant mothers are given this critical information.

“No one is questioning whether Marty Jackley is pro-life, but there is legitimate concern about how aggressively he’ll hold abortion providers like Planned Parenthood accountable” said Justin Brasell, Kristi for Governor Campaign Manager. “When he’s forced to act, he’ll likely respond. But when asked to proactively defend South Dakota’s pro-life laws and values, Jackley has been praised by Planned Parenthood for refusing to do it.”

BACKGROUND

JACKLEY’S CLAIM: “You’ve seen your Attorney General fighting every day against Planned Parenthood in South Dakota court rooms.” (Americans for Prosperity debate, May 1, 2018)

THE FACTS:

March 22, 2005 >> Governor Rounds signs legislation requiring that mothers be told “the abortion will terminate the life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being.”

March 28, 2011 >> Governor Daugaard signs legislation requiring a 72-hour waiting period before an abortion is performed.

July 26, 2011 >> Planned Parenthood “praised” Jackley’s decision to not fight for the 72-hour waiting period to take effect immediately. (“AG: State will not appeal abortion law injunction,” Rapid City Journal)

March 13, 2014 >> Legal documents provided to the Attorney General’s office demonstrate Planned Parenthood was breaking the law, but Jackley doesn’t act. The abortion provider failed to clearly explain that abortion will terminate a human life, as is required by the 2005 South Dakota law. Despite the revelation, Jackley did not file a lawsuit.

February 26, 2018 >> After Jackley refuses to act, the state legislature has to pass a bill to ensure pregnant mothers are told an abortion will terminate a human life. The legislation is signed by Governor Daugaard.

From my mailbox, Bonnie Omdahl asked to submit this Guest Column in support of John Fitzgerald for Attorney General:

In the current political milieu many people seem to lose sight of the fact that our elected officials are our employees.  When you hire an employee, the main goal should be to select the person whose skills and qualifications most closely match the duties and requirements of the job.   I want to urge the SD GOP precinct committee women and men to carefully and logically consider which of the Republican candidates for Attorney General possess the necessary skills and experience.  The Attorney General is South Dakota’s Chief Prosecutor.  When a county prosecutor needs help with a murder case you want the Attorney General to have the knowledge to know how to help and who to send.    If South Dakota needs someone to argue before the Supreme Court, you want someone with years of experience in appellate courts.  When the State of SD needs legal advice on civil matters you want someone who has handled similar questions for his county.

John Fitzgerald has the extensive prosecutorial experience needed.  During his years as a State’s Attorney, he has personally prosecuted hundreds of cases.   His experience with drug cases is particularly important given the opioid and methamphetamine crises.  John Fitzgerald continues to serve Lawrence County as a full time States Attorney with a heavy case load.  He is currently managing that busy office and staff while maintaining his campaign.  He has proven he can do the work.

Equally important, John Fitgerald is running because he genuinely wants the job of Attorney General; he wants to serve the state he loves.  It is not a stepping stone to the next political office.  We are blessed to have other candidates who have served South Dakota in honorable ways.  I appreciate their service, but when we vote we need to consider more than who is our friend and who has best played the political game.  We need to ensure our candidate is not only someone who is principled and who shares our political views but someone who will be the best possible person for the job.  South Dakota deserves an Attorney General who has proven his priority is his dedication to the job he has been elected to do.

Bonnie Omdahl
Sioux Falls

Rounds Honored with U.S. Chamber ‘Spirit of Enterprise’ Award

John Kirchner, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Executive Director for the Midwest Region (left) presents Rounds (right) with the Spirit of Enterprise Award in Sioux Falls on May 3, 2018

SIOUX FALLS – U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) received the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s ‘Spirit of Enterprise’ Award for his support of pro-growth economic policies in the first session of the 115th Congress.

“It’s a good time to be doing business in America, thanks to a slate of legislative accomplishments that laid the groundwork for more economic growth and job creation,” said Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “These efforts to advance commonsense, growth-oriented legislation will help Main Street American businesses thrive. We commend Sen. Rounds for his commitment to promoting and protecting American free enterprise and economic prosperity.”

The Chamber’s prestigious Spirit of Enterprise Award is given annually to members of Congress based on their votes on critical business legislation as outlined in the Chamber’s How They Voted scorecard. Members who supported the Chamber’s position on at least 70 percent of those votes qualify to receive the award. Rounds scored an 86 percent.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.

There’s a recent entrant into the blogosphere that seems to have a particular point of view that we’ve heard before.  Southdakotawatchdog.org, comes from Nick Reid, manager of the Gordon Howie campaign in 2014, and who also served as statewide field organizer for the ill-fated Amendment V, which tried to use a change in the constitution to hide party affiliation on the ballot.

Over the past couple of months, the website has been active featuring trains of thought that we’ve heard before such as how Annette Bosworth was wronged, but is now vindicated, how supposedly the Attorney General “let a pedophile rapist off,” even though the AG actually didn’t prosecute the case, etcetera and so on.

(Did I mention they really don’t like the Attorney General?)

Too much of it seems to be the same silliness that was barfed forth on social media in the lead up to the Bosworth trial.  It seems to be less about being an objective watchdog, and more about being an attack dog.

Stay tuned.