No recall needed, School Board president to be bounced under state law upon conviction.

From my Mailbox:

Platte Man Pleads to Grand Theft by Law Enforcement

PIERRE, S.D. Attorney General Marty Jackley and Brule County States Attorney David Natvig confirm that Brian William Biehl, 48, Platte, has pled guilty to one count of grand theft by law enforcement of seized property, class 4 felony, punishable by up to 10 years in the state penitentiary and/or $20,000 fine.

Charges stem from money taken while employed as a law enforcement officer with the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

Sentencing is scheduled for March 24, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. (CST) in Chamberlain.

Aside from being very unfortunate, one thing not mentioned in Attorney General Marty Jackley’s release is that the gentleman who has pled guilty is also the president of the Platte-Geddes School District.  As noted on KELOland:

Biehl is also school board president of the Platte Geddes School District.

Sources tell KELOLAND News that he continues to hold that position today.

Platte-Geddes Superintendent Joel Bailey says he cannot comment on Biehl’s status on the school board, calling it a personnel matter.

Biehl will be sentenced in March in Chamberlain.

Read that here.

I was curious and started looking into the need for recall, as according to Ballotpedia, the right of recall is fairly limited in South Dakota, and to my knowledge doesn’t include school board members:

In South Dakota, the right of recall extends to “the mayor, any commissioner, any alderman, or any member of the board of trustees” in municipal jurisdictions. It does not extend to members of the South Dakota State Legislature, representatives from South Dakota to the U.S. Congress or to statewide constitutional officers such as the Governor of South Dakota.

Read that here.

However, in this instance, it appears that there is an automatic disqualifier in South Dakota law which triggers a vacancy for “infamous crimes” or any offense involving a violation of the member’s official oath:

13-8-23.   Events creating vacancy on school board. A vacancy on the school board occurs if any of the following events happen before the expiration of the term of a school board member. If the member:
             (1)      Dies;
             (2)      Is removed from the board;
             (3)      Fails to qualify as a board member as provided by law;
             (4)      Ceases to be a resident of the school district or representation area where elected;
             (5)      Is convicted of any infamous crime or of any offense involving a violation of the member’s official oath;
             (6)      Has a judgment obtained against the member for breach of the member’s official bond;
             (7)      Is incapacitated and is unable to attend to the duties of the position;
             (8)      Assumes the duties of an office incompatible with the duties of a school board member;
             (9)      Resigns.

I suspect one becoming a felon, and ceasing to be a registered voter would affect this as well.

Millions from out-of-state dark money donor for campaign? Putting the campaign chair on the board of elections is not right approach.

A year end campaign finance filing has been made in the last couple of days for the Yes on V committee, which is one of the groups being targeted for taking dark money in from out of state. You remember this campaign, whose campaign co-chair is the newest appointment to the Board of Elections, Rick Knobe:

YES on V Sdcfdisclosure by Pat Powers on Scribd

Please note that according to the most recent filing, Knobe’s group rang up another $248,000 in dark money being brought in from the out of State group “Open Primaries.”   And curiously, a companion filing was made alongside this one noting where Open Primaries got it’s money.

As per 12-27-19, which notes in part:

Before contributing more than ten thousand dollars in the aggregate to a ballot question committee pursuant to § 12-27-18, an organization shall provide to the ballot question committee a sworn written statement made by the president and treasurer of the organization declaring and affirming, under the penalty of perjury, the following:
             (1)      The name and street address of every person who owns ten percent or more of the organization, has provided ten percent or more of the organization’s gross receipts, including capital contributions, in the current or preceding year, or has provided ten percent or more of the funds being contributed to the ballot question committee

Read it here.

And, they did file, but the filing only raised more questions….

Open Primaries Inc by Pat Powers on Scribd

Open Primaries, which has put over 1.1 million into upending South Dakota’s system of elections, apparently is wholly owned by “The Action Now Initiative.”  And what do we know about them?

What do we know? Darn near nothing.

And as a 501 (c)(4), we won’t know where they received the money they dumped into the 2016 South Dakota Election for at least the next year to 18 months.  We won’t know how much they put into South Dakota’s Amendment V Ballot Measure until the next election cycle is well underway, and this last one is forgotten.

We do have their 2014 IRS Filing, however.

2014 Action Now Initiative 990 by Pat Powers on Scribd

According to their 2014 IRS form (under which they put $880,000 into Open Primaries in 2014)  they are required to file a schedule of their contributors…. which is not attached.

So, Yes on V took 1.1 Million in mostly dark money from Open Primaries, who is owned in turn by the Action Now Initiative.

Do we have any idea where their money is coming from?  Sort of, if Ballotpedia is correct.

The Action Now Initiative is a 501(c)(4) advocacy organization started by billionaires John and Laura Arnold. The group works in conjunction with the Laura and John Arnold Foundation to advocate for policy changes to state pensions, education, and anti-obesity measures.

Read that here.

Yes, that would be the same John Arnold who has previously been mentioned as one of the top backers of Open Primaries, Inc.  So, he put millions into Open Primaries Inc. directly, and put more of his money to it through the Action Now Initiative.

It’s like taking a million from his left hand and putting it in his right, but filtering it so it’s not going to be attributed so directly to one person.

There could be others who put money into it, but we won’t know for well over a year. And so these massive chunks of cash find their way to the Yes on V Ballot Measure, as ran by Rick Knobe, the co-chair of the Yes on V Ballot Committee.

What a political campaign finance reporting mess. And a dark and hidden one, at that.

So, what’s the responsible thing for the State Legislature to do in the face of trying to resolve the abuse of inadequate disclosure laws?

One approach comes in the form of House Bill 1200, as introduced by Mark Mickelson is an effort to provide fuller disclosures for dark money groups like this, requiring them to provide far deeper disclosures than current laws provide. It might not be perfect, or the only approach, but it’s one step that the legislature could take.  And there might be others.

But somehow, I didn’t imagine that appointing Rick Knobe, who had a direct hand in causing the need for these laws to be written, to the State Board of Elections would be one.  Isn’t his ballot campaign why they’re passing these laws in the first place?

Before they move forward, that’s probably a mistake they need to correct.

Thune Meets With Secretary of Agriculture Nominee Sonny Perdue

Thune Meets With Secretary of Agriculture Nominee Sonny Perdue

Former Gov. Sonny Perdue and Sen. John Thune (video below) 

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) this week met with former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue, President Trump’s nominee for secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

“He is somebody who has a lot of experience, obviously, not only in government, but in agriculture,” said Thune. “He’s a veterinarian. He’s had a working farm. He raises corn, soybeans, wheat – all the things that are important in South Dakota … He seemed to be somebody that gets it, and I think grasps the importance of making sure that we have a balanced approach to agriculture and to the management of our resources.”

###

SDGOP loses one of it’s most loyal and hardest workers to the party eternal. Joanie Johnson passes away.

Dusty Johnson made reference to it in a Facebook post yesterday, and it came as a bit of a surprise. His grandmother, Joanie Johnson, a long time Pierre resident, and volunteer for the South Dakota Republican Party passed away yesterday on February 7th, 2017.

I remember meeting Joanie after I was hired by the South Dakota GOP as their legislative campaign coordinator way, way back in 1988. As State Party Treasurer, she would come through and sign checks while going to and from the Pierre Flower Shop where she worked.  She was funny, engaging, and glad to put forth the effort towards carrying water for the elephant –  for the sake of the organization, not for personal gain.

I know her friends and family can share chapter and verse of her work for the party. I’m sure it was her and her husband’s involvement and love of the South Dakota Republican Party which inspired their grandson’s interest in government and love for politics; which led Dusty to run for office, and which might lead this congressional candidate to Washington in two years hence.

Today, let’s celebrate Joanie’s spirit of volunteerism and love of the Republican party, and thank her for her hard work. Today, we stand a little taller on the shoulders she provided for us.

Big SDGOP Election on Saturday. Be there (or send your proxy)

Greetings Central Committee Members,

We are looking forward to the South Dakota Republican State Central Committee Meeting this Saturday, February 11th at 1pm in Pierre.

On behalf of the SDGOP, I would like to cordially invite you to a small reception on Saturday morning at Red Rossa, from 11am-12:15pm, prior to the State Central Committee Meeting. From there, Committee Members can go directly to the Central Committee Meeting where we’ll have check-in set up for credentialing.

Below is the Agenda for the Meeting:
Pierre Chamber of Commerce, Community Room
I. Call to Order
II. Roll Call of Counties
III. Reports
Chairman
Treasurer
Report on State Convention
Report on National Convention
Report on General Election
Legislative Races
Ballot Measures
Amendment V
Report on County Work
IV. Officer Elections
a. Chairman (nominating speech – Two mins, seconding speech – One min, and personal speech – 5 mins)
b. Vice Chairman
c. Secretary
d. Treasurer
V. Break for Regional Caucuses
VI. Regional Director Elections
VII. National Committeeman & National Committeewoman Reports
VIII. Auxiliary Reports
IX. Report on GOP Data Center
X. Reports/Discussion/Suggestions from County Parties
XI. 2017 Leadership Institute Training for Candidates and Parties Update

Here is the link to the Proxy Form

If you haven’t already, please let me know if you plan to join Saturday.

Please contact me with any questions.

Thanks.

Ryan Budmayr
Executive Director
South Dakota Republican Party
[email protected]
www.southdakotagop.com

Thune Meets With Supreme Court Nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch

Thune Meets With Supreme Court Nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch 

From left to right: Judge Neil Gorsuch, Sen. John Thune, former Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.)

WASHINGTON — Today U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) met with Judge Neil Gorsuch, President Trump’s nominee to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. Judge Gorsuch currently serves on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals and was unanimously confirmed by the Senate in 2006.

“[Americans] want judges who call balls and strikes,” said Thune. “They don’t want judges who are trying to make up the rules of the game as they go … [T]his is someone who will be very much in the great tradition and role of Antonin Scalia. Somebody who sees the role of the judge as a great respect for the rule of law, great respect for the Constitution, and somebody who will apply the Constitution and the laws in an even-handed and impartial way.”

Looking for campaign materials for a Municipal or School Election?

Once again, with Municipal and School Board elections coming up in April and June, it’s shameless plug time!  At the bottom of the right hand column, I have an ad for my printing and campaign material business – dakotacampaignstore.com, where you can get some of the best quality supplies the industry has to offer, at some of the cheapest prices you’ll find.

Check out my website, or click here, and browse the latest catalog on-line!

2016 Dakota Campaign Store Catalog by Pat Powers on Scribd

Remember, the early bird gets the worm!

Rounds Statement on Confirmation of Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education

Rounds Statement on Confirmation of
Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement on the confirmation of Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education:

“I support Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education because she understands the need to keep education decisions at the local level: with parents, teachers, school boards and students. Further, I believe she will be successful in implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which was signed into law last Congress and repealed Common Core and other one-size-fits-all approaches, giving local units more flexibility in developing a curriculum that best fits the needs of South Dakota students. The South Dakota Department of Education and our individual school boards are more than capable of making decisions best suited for our students; they will be further empowered to do so under Ms. DeVos’s leadership.”

##