Just caught this on facebook in the early hours of this morning, sleepily scrolling.. and it woke me up with a start. A scary tale to begin my day with.
The South Dakota Republican Party has formed a new platform committee in preparation for the next convention. And to say it’s markedly different that the last, is an understatement. Because it’s not your typical platform committee.
It’s like Rod Serling dropped in to narrate what’s happening. Just to inform us that in the Twilight Zone, they’ve convened the ‘Republican Party’s platform committee.’ A platform committee of the damned.
Boasting 4 members from Pennington County, Tonchi Weaver, Dale Bartscher, Phil Jensen and Tony Randolph, clearly Jim Eschenbaum, the former 32-year Democrat who passes for the Party Chair asked himself who are some of the most divisive people in the Republican Party? So he could include them on the committee.
Rep. Phil Jensen, who is such a horse’s hindquarters that even the Jon Hansen/Scott Odenbach faction of the party kicked him out of the House GOP caucus, in addition to stripping him of committees and positions in this and the last sessions? Tony Randolph, who at one time voted to keep rapists in high school classrooms, and is the prime sponsor this year of HB 1212, to place women who have abortions under arrest and charged with murder? Tonchi Weaver who was attacking Governor Kristi Noem for not being conservative enough in the last election?
Of course, we can’t leave out Minnehaha County’s contribution of former State Rep. Steve Haugaard. The lead counsel trying to defend Julie Frye-Mueller in suckle-gate. His views were rejected by the Republican Party as a group in the Republican Party in 2022 on a basis of 76.4% to 23.6% after he challenged Governor Noem in that race – for again, not being conservative enough. They also did it again at the convention that year, when Haugaard sought to push out now Governor Larry Rhoden as Lt. Governor on the ticket.
Now Eschenbaum wants to have Haugaard help write the standards via the party platform planks that the Republicanism of Governor Larry Rhoden would be judged by? I’m guessing no one consulted the Governor on that appointment.
There’s others of varying degrees of obnoxiousness on the platform committee. But suffice it to say that I have no doubt that we’ll hear more about the Republican Party Platform Committee of the Damned – especially their end product – in South Dakota’s media this year.
In the Media.. and in the Twilight zone.
Unfortunately I am convinced they will almost certainly remove economic development. From the party platform. 🙁
Sounds unrealistic but with this crew, definitely plausible.
Sneaky, underhanded Tom Brunner as chair? Overly dramatic mean girl Jana Hunt? This list is seriously the worst of the GOP. No sane person would pick these mouth breathers to be policy makers.
Yes, school funding expert Jana Hunt who did not attend public schools and does not property taxes.
Haysoos H Christu
Eschenbaum was really sent to complete the destruction.
Thank you Pat for your invaluable public service in separating the wheat from the chaff for us regular, normal, everyday people.
Our state is simply a reflection of the national shitshow that has boiled and bubbled for the past ten years.
The worst of the worst.
Has the SDGOP entered the APOCALYPSE CULT stage now since it is no longer a political party but an extremist movement. There have been a few movies about this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pioPkqbMXfg
It is very difficult to make a man see the truth when his entire existence depends on denying it.
Remember, the platform committee can only propose changes to the platform. It’s up to the delegates whether to accept them. I hope Dusty’s team succeeds in flooding the convention with reasonable delegates. It would be so fun to watch them vote down the extreme platform proposals these crazies come up with.
Assuming they have the infrastructure to do so.
Do the delegates vote on the policy changes or is it just the central committee (made up of the county executive boards). Because if it’s just the central committee, it won’t matter how many sane delegates are there.
Delegates to the state convention vote, not the central committee. But, if i remember, Central Committee members CAN run for delegates to the state convention; which would defeat the purpose of actually having a state convention.
The whole delegation has to vote on platform changes.
This signals the coming death of the State Party.
Phil was on the 2020 Resolution Committee (we didn’t have a platform committee that year) and proposed a resolution that our Congressional delegation be required to appear before a joint session of the legislature to give a state of the union speech.
When asked “if you want them to come talk to you, why don’t you just invite them?” Phil said he didn’t see anything wrong with making such an appearance mandatory. He seemed to think the committee would be in favor of it.
He made a motion to adopt this but nobody seconded it. Awkward!
His contributions to a Platform Committee are sure to be Epic .
Mr. Haugaard is the prince of the insanest of them all, since the backshadowing of Mr. Howie, the king. Mr. Howie still casts tendrils and drying leafs and seed pods of his evils through his supporting of the Wingnuts in Rapid City. Having Mr. Haugaard, despite is generally swell ‘stache, write the rules is like letting Caligula develop your kindergarten curriculum.
The quote of the day winner is…. GRUDZ!
Grudz certainly wins the prize for most needed callback to the wingnut roots by weaving The Singing Gov Candidate into the conversation. He’s the first of them all to QUIT being a Republican and calling everyone RINOs. He put together a series of great 5-600 person TEA party rallies in 2009, and then announced for Governor and took attendance down to a dozen or so regulars almost overnight. It was truly amazing to watch the drop in numbers all over the country as angry Birchers tried to leap into the TEA party drivers seat. It took no less than TRUMP to relight a populist movement nationally, which has no room for any leader but Trump. Sorry Toby.
Let’s be honest. There is some silver lining here. This committee and convention is going to be bad, and extreme. But, after this platform committee turns the platform into a 100 page document, it’s going to be easier for the adults to blow it up in 2-4 years why and make it what it really should be. 1 page long.
I agree: if all the fundamental tenets of Christianity can be stated in the Nicene Creed, it is ridiculous that the party platform should be any longer than 220 words.
The Apostles Creed that others of us use, is only 112 words, so it might be a more useful alternative.
I would be satisfied with a mission statement about exploring new ideas, seeking out new voters, and solutions, and boldly going where no Republican has gone before.
Indeed.
Delegates to the state convention vote, not the central committee. But, if i remember, Central Committee members CAN run for delegates to the state convention; which would defeat the purpose of actually having a state convention.
Twilight zone. Spot on. Oh boy.
The year Steve Haugaard was Platform Committee chairman, and Dale Bartscher was on the committee as well, Stace Nelson was out in the hallways complaining about how it wasn’t conservative enough, called it a Republican Lite platform. Very loudly. He posted a lot of shit on facebook about it, too, said we took the acknowledgement of Judeo-Christian values out of it when the truth we put that line in. His fans actually believed him.
Nothing is conservative enough for this crowd.
Is Stace still living in Thailand with his new lady friend? There are beautiful Buddhist Temples there.
What we need is a barbed wire tattooed right arm along with spiked bracelets on Dale Bartscher pounding fear and sense into this committee. Even better a few shock collars on a couple folks at the table Dale could zap when they start talking stupid. That picture won’t leave your mind….