Dusty Johnson had a good 4th quarter in 2017 according to his FEC Report:

Dusty Johnson 4q 2017 FEC Report by Pat Powers on Scribd

Johnson, one of the three Republican candidates for the party’s Congressional nomination posted his latest campaign finance report noting $116,715 raised, expenditures of only $43,131, leaving him $424,277 cash on hand to start 2018 campaigning in earnest.

South Dakota Republicans have full slate in District 34 with Partridge, Diedrich, & Olson;
going into 2018 with an abundance of candidates across South Dakota

South Dakota Republican Party Chairman Dan Lederman announced today that Republicans in State Legislative District 34 have a full slate of candidates already off and running to represent Rapid City in the coming election.  The South Dakota GOP has a filled slate of candidates in with Senator Jeff Partridge planning to run for his current seat this next election. Partridge will be joined in the election by State Representative Mike Diedrich, and newly announced House candidate Jessica Olson, C.E.O. of WellFully Adolescent Care Center in Rapid City.

“Republicans are bringing some great candidates in this upcoming election, especially in District 34,” Lederman said. “In District 34, we’ve lost both Representative Dan Dryden and Representative Craig Tieszen. I served with these gentlemen in the legislature, and I know how much they cared about their constituents. To honor their work, making sure we have good candidates to represent the party as they did is important to me.”

“Representative Mike Diedrich has hit the ground running this session and has his petitions out to continue his service as State Representative. While I wish we could talk Representative Lust into continuing, I know that Jessica Olson will do the party proud as she runs for his seat.”

Lederman also had high praise for Senator Jeff Partridge. “Jeff has been working closely with the GOP on party projects and has been great to work with as we tell the story of Republican Leadership in South Dakota. I know his constituents appreciate him, and it’s good for the GOP to be associated with Senators of his caliber.”

Lederman continued, “While Democrats are happy to announce when they have “a” candidate, we’re starting to prepare for primaries to emerge because of people’s interest in running under the GOP’s banner. It’s the strength of the party.”

“As I look at our candidate notes, with new and returning candidates we’re conservatively estimating we’re starting 2018 with 25 out of 35 Legislative Districts with filled legislative slates in both the House and Senate,” Lederman noted.  “We anticipate we’ll be identifying candidates for the few remaining districts within the coming weeks.”

The biggest question Lederman had regarding his opposition in the Democrat Party? “As they’re announcing their candidates one at a time, the question is how many candidates are Democrats going get to run as placeholders who eventually withdraw from the ballot?” he asked.  “We’re already hearing reports of placeholders being recruited to run.  If Democrats have to run people to give themselves more time to find someone, that might be an indicator that they should try conservative values, instead of trying to bring the values of Nancy Pelosi to South Dakota.”

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From my e-mail box, Attorney General and Gubernatorial Candidate Marty Jackley this morning noted the similarities between President Trump, and Ronald Reagan:

It’s morning again in America!

Watching President Trump’s State of the Union address reminded me of President Reagan’s “Morning Again in America” ad from his 1984 re-election campaign. The ad talked about how more men and women will go to work than ever before in our country’s history, how more families can buy new homes, and how people can look forward with confidence to the future. The ad ended with the statement “Under the leadership of President Reagan, our country is brighter, and stronger, and better. Why would we ever want to return to where we were just four short years ago?” Those words ring true yet today.

The American spirit has been revived over the past year and our country is moving in the right direction again. As President Trump stated in his address- we have created 2.4 million new jobs and unemployment rates have hit a 45 year low. Small business confidence is at an all-time high and the stock market has smashed records.

President Trump outlined so much we can be proud of and gave us hope for the future. I applaud his commitment to investing in infrastructure, defend our borders, lower prescription drug costs, and rebuild our military. I also appreciate the President’s dedication to fighting the national opioid and drug epidemic. I am pleased to see his support to get tougher on drug dealers while providing treatment for those in need.

The State of our Union is strong and the President is right- “it is the people who are making America great again!”

Sincerely,

Marty Jackley

From Facebook:

From Facebook:

Rounds Statement on President Trump’s State of the Union Address 

WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) issued the following statement on President Trump’s State of the Union Address:

“Tonight, President Trump laid out a long-term vision for our country,” said Rounds. “Last year during his address to Congress, the president discussed his ideas for what we want our country to look like in the year 2026, America’s 250th birthday. I, too, have shared my vision for our country in 2026, and I am pleased tonight’s speech continued to build on a long-term vision. We all want a freer, more united country in which government is less intrusive and the American dream is possible for everyone. We’ve made strides in the past year by enacting historic tax cuts, reducing burdensome regulations and restoring balance to the courts by confirming fair-minded judges who adhere to the Constitution as it was written. I am proud to be a part of that effort.”

“While we have much progress to be proud of, we also have much work to do, and it will take hard work from both parties in both chambers and the White House to accomplish our goals. I look forward to continue working with the president and my colleagues as we address the most pressing issues before us, including national security, growing our economy so Americans have greater economic security, our growing national debt and failed appropriations process, immigration reform which includes border security, and so many other issues important to South Dakotans. With just eight years until America’s 250th birthday, we must not let up on our efforts as we continue to make progress on our vision for America in which we are freer, safer and more prosperous for generations to come.”

# # #

Noem Previews President Trump’s State of the Union Address

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Kristi Noem today issued the following video statement in advance of President Trump’s first State of the Union address.

“Tonight, we will hear from President Trump in his first State of the Union address, and I’m hopeful he will report that the State of our Union is strong, safe and proud,” says Noem in the video. “To me, his first year in office will be remembered as the year in which the American people gained control again.”

Noem continues:

“I think it’s easy to forget how bad things were, how many businesses were failing because of overreaching regulations, how few people had received raises because taxes were just too high, how many illegal immigrants were crossing our borders, and how little respect our law enforcement officers were given. In one year, we’ve turned a lot of that around. 

“More than 1,600 regulations have been repealed. We repealed Obamacare’s individual mandate. There’s been a crackdown on border security. And we got tax reform signed into law, cutting people’s taxes, leading to pay increases for millions, and sparking excitement in our economy that we haven’t seen in a decade.

“There is still more to do, and I expect President Trump to talk about that tonight too – especially when it comes to his infrastructure plan and some of the national security challenges we face. But momentum is building. We’re moving in the right direction. And I’m extremely honored to be part of it all.”

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Democrat for Congress Tim Bjorkman made his 4th Quarter Campaign Finance filing today:

Bjorkman 2017 q4 FEC Campaign Finance Filing by Pat Powers on Scribd

What does the report say? 56K in contributions, roughly 36K in expenses, leaving him $116k Cash on hand. Meaning he only added about $20k to his bottom line from the previous period.

Thune: More Good News for the American Economy

“As the benefits of tax reform continue to sink in, we can expect to see more growth, more jobs, and more opportunities for American workers, and we can expect to see the kind of economy that will provide security and prosperity for Americans for the long term.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), a member of the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee and a key voice during the tax reform debate, today discussed the positive effects the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has had on the American economy. Thune explained that by lowering tax rates for owners of small and medium-sized businesses, expanding business owners’ ability to recover investments they make in their businesses, lowering our nation’s massive corporate tax rate (up until January 1, 2018, the United States had the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world), and updating to a modernized territorial tax system, the economy is seeing immediate positive results.

According to the Federal Elections Commission, there’s a new candidate for President from Blackhawk, South Dakota as of today:

The candidate is noted as Mrs Kerry D. Soseeah, and the name of her committee is the US Era Party.

We’ll see how far this one goes