From the Argus Leader today, among a flurry of Mayoral news blips, one of the hotter fights is among the campaigns for Governor.

An article at the Argus Leader had the Jackley campaign taking aim against the Noem campaign on Noem having comments cited in the Supreme Court internet tax case, and the Noem campaign coming back at the Jackley camp criticism:

Rep. Kristi Noem undermined South Dakota’s effort to overturn a U.S. Supreme Court case that bars states from taxing out-of-state internet purchases, potentially hurting the state’s chances at a favorable ruling, a spokesman for Attorney General Marty Jackley said Tuesday.

and…

During oral arguments in last week’s hearing, George S. Isaacson, a lawyer representing Wayfair and other internet companies that opposed South Dakota, quoted a press release that Noem’s office issued earlier this year when the court agreed to hear the case. In that release, Noem said that a victory for South  Dakota could force small businesses in South Dakota to comply with 1,000 different tax structures nationwide – an argument online retailers have made for why they shouldn’t be forced to collect taxes in other states.

“That’s from a high official representing the state of South Dakota,” Isaacson said during the hearing.

Joe Schartz, a spokesman for Jackley’s campaign for governor, said it was “shocking” to hear Noem’s words used against the state. Noem and Jackley face each other in the June 5 GOP primary for governor.

and…

Justin Brasell, Noem’s campaign manager, said Tuesday that Noem supported the case, but the press release referenced by the Jackley campaign called on Congress to enact changes that would simplify tax systems and make it easier for out-of-state businesses to remit taxes to states where they don’t have a physical presence. Noem is the sponsor of a bill that would do that.

“It’s not that she opposed the court case,” Brasell said. “It’s so that Congress would act.”

Brasell said Noem approaches the issue as a small business owner “and someone with common sense, not as a lawyer.”

Read the entire story here.

From my mailbox, from Ohio polling firm Clout Research:

POLL: SOUTH DAKOTA GOPERS FAVOR NOEM FOR GOVERNOR

APRIL 25, 2018 – A new survey of likely GOP Primary voters statewide in South Dakota shows that in the race for Governor, Congresswoman Kristi Noem is on track to win her party’s nomination on June 5^th.

An initial ballot reveals the Congresswoman outperforms Marty Jackley with a four-point lead on the ballot (41%/37%) with 22% still undecided.  But when likely voters who are “soft supporters”, or “leaners”, were added to the ballot test, Ms. Noem’s margin grew substantially to a 12-point advantage, leading Mr. Jackley, 49% to 37%. It is notable that 32% say they are firm in their support for Noem, compared to only 27% who are firm for Jackley.

The primary electorate in South Dakota is very familiar with both Congresswoman Noem, and state Attorney General Marty Jackley. Both candidates are seen with largely favorable eyes by GOP voters, with 77% favorable toward Mr. Jackley, and 73% favorable toward Cong. Noem. Ms. Noem’s favs are slightly stronger, however, as nearly 47% said they had a “very favorable” opinion of the Congresswoman.

Despite Mr. Jackley’s positive image, the ballot strongly leans toward Cong. Noem, suggesting that it will take a great deal in the way of Jackley resources to overcome the deficit in the final stretches of the campaign.

One especially notable number is voter perception of the job performance of President Trump among South Dakota Republicans. The President has an extremely positive job performance rating of 75% overall, with 9% saying they give him “only fair” marks, and just under 15% saying he’s done a “poor” job thus far.  Significantly, nearly 50% award the President with “excellent” marks for his first year and a half in office.

During what is sure to be the most intense period of paid media for this campaign, candidates who are seen by voters to be aligned with the President will have much to gain.

Among those voters who give President Trump “excellent” marks for his job performance thus far, 56% favor Ms. Noem in the race for governor. Mr. Jackley wins just 30% support among that group. She leads by a similar margin among those voters who give Trump the slightly lower job performance rating of “good”.

Among undecided voters in the race for governor, 74% give Trump positive marks on his leadership of the nation, another indication they may well fall in with Ms. Noem when they eventually decide whom to support in the race for governor.

One other point of interest is where voters are lining up on the Second Amendment, in the aftermath of the tragic Florida school shooting. Among “Strong Second Amendment” voters, Cong. Noem leads Jackley by a wide margin, 46% to 32%. Whereas Mr. Jackley has found a following among those who favor repeal of the Second Amendment, with 53% of that very small demographic group supporting his candidacy. Among leaners, the gap is more pronounced, with 18% of those who lean toward Ms. Noem identifying as strong Second Amendment voters, compared with only 6.7% of those same voters leaning toward Mr. Jackley.

It’s worth noting that fully 65% of those voters identifying as “undecided” also identify as “strong Second Amendment” voters. If past is prologue, these voters will likely fall into Ms. Noem’s camp by a double-digit advantage.

In conclusion, as the race for the GOP nomination for Governor in South Dakota enters the final stretch, it seems apparent that Congresswoman Noem is in the strongest position both on the ballot and among those voters who make up the core and backbone of the South Dakota GOP electorate. With the likelihood that spending in this race will increase substantially over the next several weeks, Mr. Jackley will have a lot to overcome to win over undecideds and primary voters whose profile seems to align much more closely with Ms. Noem.

The poll provides an accompanying topline report as well as a survey memorandum.

From the Argus Leader, it doesn’t look like anyone is believing anything the Loetscher campaign is shoveling lately.

Now, they’re doing a fact-check on whether her poop-scooping business is “bio-science” as she claims:

“If what matters most to you is growth, I’ve built companies, including a biotech company,” Loetscher said during a live televised debate on April 2.

and…

Those comments have turned some heads during her campaign, including those in the South Dakota bio-science industry.

“Usually I have a pulse on the bio-science industry, and I have no idea what her business is,” said Joni Johnson, executive director for the South Dakota Biotech Association, which represents about 60 businesses across the state. “She nor her business are members of South Dakota Biotech.”

and…

That business, called DooGooders, is contracted by property managers and homeowners to keep green spaces free of the fecal matter pets leave behind.

That alone, doesn’t make her a player in the bio-science field. However, answering the question of whether she’s involved in the industry got a little more nuanced after DooGooders began working with another company called Poo Prints, a Tennessee-based company that tests DNA in pet fecal samples for tracking and health purposes.

Read it here.

We touched on the topic last week (with gloves on, of course), and came to the same conclusion. That the claim “is nuanced” is a nice way of putting that the claim is largely a pile of poo.

And here Jo goes again. Just another embellishment from the Loetscher campaign. We’re getting pretty used to them by now.

Preliminary Investigation Results Released in Alleged Breach in Sioux Falls Mayoral Race

PIERRE, S.D. – The Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office and the Division of Criminal Investigation today released preliminary investigation results in the alleged breach of a Sioux Falls Mayoral candidate’s internet accounts and social media platforms.

Through the legal process, investigators found no evidence at this time that either a bank account or a website have been compromised. Investigators are still awaiting records from other social media entities.

This investigation is ongoing and is not focused on any specific person or business as a suspect. Investigations of this nature may take longer due to the process of receiving information from IT providers and review of the information received.

Any further updates will continue to be released through the Attorney General’s Office.

-30-

From Facebook:

Oops. Looks like Libertarians are doing more than a Lt. Governor pick in June:

I guess Libertarians happen.

Things keep going from bad to worse for Jolene Loetscher as her negative campaign against Paul TenHaken in the Sioux Falls mayor’s continues to blow up in her face.

Apparently, after several years of selective information releases from Mayor Mike Huether, some of the media does not appreciate it when a candidate for Mayor releases snippets to try to tell the story they want people to hear, versus providing the whole truth:

We’ve asked Loetscher’s permission on multiple occasions to publish the entire voicemail, and she has refused. Loetscher has agreed to release a specific clip of the 64-second-long voicemail, and she’s said on the record that she’s OK with publication of direct quotes from the message or even a full transcript.

That’s not good enough to meet Argus Leader’s standards, and it would be disingenuous for us to publish without the full audio. Context is essential in political discussions. One sentence or one phrase could be framed a dozen different ways, but the intended meaning isn’t fully discernible unless it’s in the appropriate context.

and…

But specifically for a campaign so focused on transparency, I see no reason why Loetscher won’t release this voicemail.

and…

On Monday, TenHaken and Loetscher spoke publicly about the voicemail and the so-called “negative” campaigning during a candidate forum hosted by the Downtown Rotary.

After that forum, Argus Leader asked Loetscher if she would release the full audio. She declined.

On Tuesday, after other media reports shared a clip of the voicemail, Argus Leader again asked Loetscher to release the full voicemail. She again declined.

Read it all here.

The selective releases in her campaign and lack of disclosure on Loetscher’s part is reminiscent of the type of mayoral administration Sioux Falls is just getting out from under with Mayor Mike Huether, as evidenced this past year with the explanation the Mayor’s office gave on the Premier Center siding settlement:

Mayor Mike Huether and top city officials told taxpayers that contractors responsible for warped exterior panels on the Denny Sanford Premier Center agreed to a $1 million settlement with the city.

The settlement funds, they said during a Sept. 18, 2015 press conference, would be deposited into an Events Center Construction Fund and used to pay for “future fan enhancements” and “facility improvements.”

and…

But the details of a once-secret contract negotiated by the parties show that the settlement was more complex than taxpayers were led to believe. The city did not receive $1 million in cash, and in fact, the agreement called for the city to pay out hundreds of thousands of dollars that officials didn’t disclose when the settlement was announced.

The city released the contract one day after the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled that it was a public document under the state’s open record laws. Argus Leader Media filed suit in 2015 to win the release of the document after the city declared it confidential.

Read that all here.

So… Mayor Mike Huether made selective announcements to the press to get the coverage he wanted, and now Jolene Loetscher seems to be doing the same as she wages a negative campaign against her opponent?

This does not bode well for what a “Mayor Jolene Loetscher’s administration” would look like.

If “Low Blow Jo” can’t be open as she makes negative accusations against her opponent in a political race, what would she do if elected? Because it looks like she would spin, spin, spin all the time.

And hasn’t Sioux Falls had enough of that by now?

In light of the negative campaign tactics of his opponent Jolene Loetscher, Paul TenHaken sent out a message to his supporters this morning making a commitment to keep it positive in the final days of the run-off election for Mayor in Sioux Falls:

New Ad Campaign Shows Noem Delivers Results for South Dakota

WATERTOWN, S.D. – Kristi Noem today released a new ad campaign, featuring two ads that showcase the results she’s delivered for South Dakota. Most notably, as a member of the House Agriculture Committee, Noem led Congress in passing the last Farm Bill, which included strong crop insurance and livestock disaster programs. While working with President Trump, Noem was also a champion for pro-growth tax reform, delivering historic tax cuts that save the average South Dakota family of four more than $2,400.

“As South Dakota’s lone representative in the 435-member U.S. House, you have to fight harder than most to deliver results for the state,” said Noem. “But that never deterred me. If I had to take on my own party’s leadership to get the Farm Bill done, I didn’t hesitate. If I had to fight liberals from New York and California to deliver historic tax cuts, I wasn’t going to back down. I’m proud of what that must-do attitude has accomplished in the U.S. House. It’s the same approach I’ll take as governor to again yield big results for our state.”

When she first ran for Congress in 2010, Noem pledged to go to work and come home before the decade’s end. She’s kept her promise. Along with historic tax cuts and a five-year Farm Bill, Noem has played a role in repealing Obamacare’s individual mandate; passing the first fully-funded, long-term highway bill in a decade; reversing the Democrats’ big-government spending trend; enacting the most significant human trafficking reforms since the early-2000’s; approving meaningful education reforms that returned control to states and local school districts; repealing or pressuring the federal government to rescind dozens of job-killing regulations; protecting the D.C. Booth Fish Hatchery and Hot Springs VA Hospital from closure; giving Black Hills foresters more tools to combat the pine beetle epidemic; and winning additional support for the Lewis & Clark Rural Water Project, among other things.

Lyndon Larouche Democrat Ron Wieczorek is apparently still alive and running for office, according to KELO News:

Ron Wieczorek filed petitions to run as an Independent candidate today at the Secretary of State’s Office. He gathered over four-thousand signatures and says he’s confident more than enough will be valid to put his name on the November ballot.

Wieczorek, who ran for the state’s U.S. House three times during the 90s, supports the idea of “food for peace.”

and…

He also wants to restore the American credit system, the National Bank and the space program, rebuild America’s railroads and build more water management and fusion nuclear power facilities.

Read it all here.

The 75-year-old Wieczorek also issued a statement about his candidacy via facebook, stating in part:

“I have decided to run for U.S. Congress because I cannot sit idly by while our nation is destroyed. We are sitting on a financial bubble which is about to explode again. Our once productive economy has all but been destroyed by Wall Street’s implementation of a post-industrial society and the casino economy, creating a small class of the super-rich and the rest of us. Our infrastructure is crumbling and every financial scheme to repair it presently proposed involves robbing Peter to pay Paul. Our nation’s elites continue to involve us in purposeless wars and would, presumably, annihilate the human race to save their system. Our schools long ago ceased to emphasize fundamental discovery, science, and engineering. The people of the 1930s sacrificed and boldly innovated to change a collapsing economic system at that time. They gave me a future. I am repaying that debt of sacrifice by running for Congress to give a future to my grandchildren.

“My program is based on Lyndon LaRouche’s Four Laws for Economic Recovery: Restore Glass-Steagall, return to a National Banking and Credit system, like that utilized by Hamilton, Lincoln, and Roosevelt, use this credit for high-productivity- gain investment in infrastructure and manufacturing, and science-drivers, the development of fusion nuclear energy and a revival of our space program.

“To meet these objectives rapidly we should collaborate with China’s Belt and Road Initiative for economic development, a project using the ideas of what used to be called the American System of political economy and reflecting LaRouche’s Four Laws. These ideas are tried and proven. China has pulled millions out of poverty and is dedicated to eradicating it entirely; our nation should undertake a mission to do the same. China’s idea is that the U.S. and China should cooperate in developing the economies of the entire world.

And there you go. Long-time political followers might remember Wieczorek from when he ran for office in 1992… when he didn’t always get along with the staff at the State Democrat Party:

Two men received fine and suspended jail sentences for an altercation at a Democratic Party function in April.

Ron Wieczorek and Hermann Eilers were initially charged with aggravated assault They pleaded guilty to lesser misdemeanor charges.

and..

The altercation began when Healy tried to stop Wieczorek and Eilers from putting up sign at the event. Eilers also wanted to make a statement at the luncheon Healy said that was not allowed because the luncheon was for congressional and gubernatorial candidates.

Not exactly a noble convention moment.