Unofficial-Congressional hopeful Neal Tapio is on Hub City Radio today noting he’s still planning on announcing for office after the first of the year. And he’s convinced that his micro-targeting techniques will serve him better than attending Republican events such as Lincoln Day Dinners:
Tapio says that, rather than spending large amounts on thirty second ads, he’ll instead take a direct one-on-one approach with South Dakota Republican voters to gain an appreciation of his positions. He’s confident that, when educated, those voters will follow with financial support.
Of the Republicans who vote in primaries Tapio says very few go to Lincoln Day Dinners and very few are involved in the Republican Party.
and…
What will help him over the top is his solid support of Donald Trump, says Tapio.
Tapio has never been as proud of a President as he is of Donald Trump and that, despite the President’s legal troubles, he’s convinced Trump has exceeded all expectations. Tapio says his campaign will use micro-targeting techniques that can be done on the cheap and that has pinpoint accuracy with prospective Republican voters.
Read, and listen to Tapio’s interview here.
Neal’s point about a minority of Republicans attending the yearly meals may be factually correct, because you can’t fit everyone from a county in a room, but by the same token, you can’t run a campaign by yourself, either. And those that do attend such dinners are typically the ones who make donations, help do literature drops, lick envelopes, walk in parades, organize other Republicans in each county, etcetera and so on.
I don’t think I’d be so quick to infer the loyal and committed foot soldiers of the GOP aren’t important. Because it’s kind of hard to run a race without them.
Has he even met Donald Trump?
What difference does it make. Tapio was one of the few that came out in support of in from the beginning. He didn’t cave either.
“What difference does it make”? Okay, Hillary.
It makes a difference because Tapio plays up a relationship with Trump that pretty much everyone doubts actually exists.
Are you sure about that?
This guy is an amateur.
I’ve liked Dusty since before he was on the PUC. He is a very hard worker. No one will out campaign him. He is a machine.
Tapio’s statements are bizarre. The idea that Dusty, Shantel, Marty, Kristi or anyone else doesn’t campaign beyond Lincoln day dinners is nuts. He sounds like a guy who lives in a bubble. After reading this I asked some friends if they liked Tapio. They didn’t know anything about him.
Any truth to the rumor Trump is sending in surrogates coming for Krebs? I heard that a few days ago and shrugged it off as wishful thinking by her supporters around town.
Dusty is a reasonable person who is in the mold of Thune. You don’t have to worry about him going nuts on you.
An endorsement from Trump? Doubt it.
Maybe Nancy Pelosi after Krebs joined Democrats in opposing the president’s investigation into voter fraud.
Stop… Let’s not get off topic.
Amateur or outsider. We have enough insider professional career politicians, don’t we?
Some times it takes an outsider or amateur to shake things up. Not that it is a bad thing.
You got that right MC.
In answer to Anonymous, Tapio probabiy met Trump due to the fact he was one of the few elected officials to publicly endorse Trump in the elections. He was a leader of South Dakota for Trump. Also, probably met him at the National Republican Convention.
The convention was in July. Tapio wasn’t hired to Trump until August. I just googled it.
The guy is a blowhard and I agree with the person who said he’s probably never met him. In the audio he sells himself as the biggest Trump supporter on social media
Where are the pictures that Trump even knows he exists? Does he have one standing by the plane or anything? I’m told he is never in Watertown. If he doesn’t work hard to meet people in the legislature how does he work hard enough to win Congress? Trump doesn’t even know Tapio exists. Hard to overcome Dusty’s Daugaard support. I can actually prove that daugaard knows who he is and they have met.
I got Tapio beat. lol
Tapio had his primary in June. The convention was in July.
By August, he found out he would be unopposed in the November election which freed up a lot of time and energy to take the job with the Trump campaign. The sequence of events doesn’t prove anything one way or the other.
Tapio wasn’t an elected official at the time.
And you don’t just run into the nominee at the RNC. None of the roles that Tapio held probably led him to meeting Trump. Maybe in some photo-op setting with 50-100 others.
So his qualifications are that he supports Donald Trump? I have noticed that he also seems to get on board pretty quickly with many of Stace Nelson’s antics and agenda. I am guessing he thinks that will be a big vote getter for him too. Does he have any positions on anything, other than he doesn’t think the faithful of the SD Republican party are worth his time? I think “Micro” is a good term for the size of impact he will make in this race. It definitely sums up the amount of votes he is likely to receive in next June’s Republican Primary.
Yes he appears to be a bandwagon guy.
Just the opposite.
Is there any chance Schoenbeck could weigh in on this guys tenure in the legislature representing Watertown? Is he popular there? Is he well known? I dont know who he is or what makes him a harder worker or better candidate than Dusty Johnson or Shantel Krebs. They both are among the more competent of people. Maybe Tapio is also and he talks like he believes he is. What is it that Watertown likes about him? What kind of a track record does he have as a legislator or citizen?
I think I can answer that: he delivers an inspirational speech. Of the three running: Johnson talks about policies, Krebs talks about her work ethic, and Tapio makes you feel like you just went to church.
Anne you are annoying.
Tapio is irrelevant. He should be focused on serving the people of Watertown. He doesn’t focus on them. I don’t believe he will focus on SD as a candidate or federal official. His interest in Congress is purely about his desire for attention and celebrity. It’s really sad how bad he craves the spotlight. That is why most legislators are not super supportive of his causes. It’s not about issues it’s all about headlines and celebrity.
I’m annoying for saying why Tapio appeals to people?
He’s inspiring. He makes the people who listen to him think more about what they can do for their community than about what he can do for them. It’s an impressive talent, so don’t underestimate somebody who can make people feel like they’ve just been to church. People who know absolutely nothing about any of the candidates might well cast their ballots for the candidate who makes them feel good about themselves. It will be interesting to watch this. I don’t care if it annoys you.
LOL (And then retreats behind the curtain for a cold beer) ha
I’m from Watertown. I’ve lived here for nearly 50 years. Tapio is my Senator. I didn’t vote for him when he ran for the state legislature because I never heard of him. I never saw him at any school or community functions. Never saw him at any football or basketball games, plays, chamber events, functions to support LATI, and never at any charity events — nothing. So I didn’t vote for him. I don’t really care if he’s a friend of Trump. As long as he doesn’t care enough to participate in the community, he’s not my guy.
Concerning Tapio’s strategy to win the GOP Congressional nomination, it seems his statement represent more of the same. Maybe he’s afraid to meet people, or maybe he feels his time to too valuable to reach out to people.
I’ve not yet decided if I will vote for Dusty or Shantel, but I’ll definitely not vote for Tapio.
This isn’t a popularity contest. Can he make SD great again?
It actually is a popularity contest. The most popular person vote wise wins.., he’s a good guy, but i don’t think he will be able to surpass Krebs.
Make South Dakota great again? That’s not job.
The job is to make sure South Dakota interests are represented in Washington. To make sure the alphabet soup of agencies don’t overrun the state with excessive rules, regulations, fees and taxes.
So whose job is it to make South Dakota Great? it is ours, yours, mine and everyone else. We have to work together.
Whatever you say MC.
Tapio nice guy. Comes across as pretty normal for the first couple minutes you talk, then goes downhill fast.
Will steal Trumpies from Krebs.
He thinks he is an expert on Islam but I don’t know anyone who really cares about it other than maybe distantly.
This strategy sure worked for Gillespie.
http://dakotafreepress.com/2017/09/06/tapio-aberdeen-chamber-development-corporation-and-mayor-collaborate-with-muslim-brotherhood/
A few comments:
1) This is a open primary. Anyone who believes they have something to say and desire to serve is welcome to run and the voters pass judgement.
2) If Tapio wants to intentionally eschew Lincoln Day Dinners in a Republican primary, its his campaign and the voters pas judgement.
3) If Tapio thinks his most compelling argument is his relationship with Trump, its his campaign and the voters pass judgement.
4) If Tapio thinks foregoing traditional campaign techniques such as fundraising, advertising, organizing, etc. and will rely on one-to-one meetings, it is his campaign and the voters will pass judgement.
Troy, you’re so damn boring. Give me some political juice, man!
People that attend Republican dinners and fundraisers are the same ole same ole people. It’s time to get the new Drain the Swamp people to change the the political face of SD.
The same ol same old people who attend fundraisers are the ones helping to pay the bills.
It’s unlikely anybody outside of SD is going to care who wins the Republican primary given that the Democrats are scraping the bottom of the barrel here.
I agree. Outside interests care about keeping the US Senate. There are 435 members in the house. The house isn’t the problem for Trump.
Yea just ask Noem, Rounds, Thune, etc where they raise the majority of their money. It’s not in SD. I think people are sick of who is raising the most money. I believe the best candidates are the ones that can’t be bought.
We might disagree on that. The SPLC funded by CAIR is interested in this state and any candidate NOT watching aggression of CAIR operatives here has “head in sand”. But Tapio is no Islamic expert and the state was lacking campaign materials while he ran it. In fact we got our Trump stuff from Iowa chair. One of most important topics for candidates to address is safety for South DAKOTANS at this time as there are those who mean to flip the state and God knows we DO NOT want to become Minnesotastan.
Tara,
He has a great outsider resume:
He worked as the membership director of Growth Energy, an ethanol trade association. He has volunteered for numerous political campaigns including Senator John Thune and was the campaign manager for Larry Diedrich for Congress. Neal began his career working for Senator Larry Pressler in Washington DC.
Fun.
Establishment Republicans and besmirched Democrats insisting that the traditional rules of politics still apply and will always apply because 2016 didn’t really happen and Donald Trump isn’t really President. Be sure your ruby slippers are tapping properly while repeating the phrase:
“This is why you lost. This is why you lost. This is why you lost.”
And it’s why Neal Tapio has every chance in the world of beating two South Dakota career politicians who continue to play the same games and spout the same pablum that ran the GOP brand into the ground and below, nationally, ever since Ronald Reagan shut off his desk lamp. That, added to the fact that if both Dusty and Shantel stay in the race, it’s elementary demography that their bases are more obviously duplicative than Tapio’s, meaning a split vote to the outsider’s advantage. Sort of like running 15 neocons and Rand Paul against Donald Trump.
Sensing a pattern?
But, yes. Keep debating about whether Mr. Tapio actually ever met Trump. Salient issue and all. Substantive. Insightful.
Remember. Ruby slippers.
There are no conventional rules Shad but the thing to remember is that Tapio is not Donald Trump and Dusty and Shantel are not Blake Curd or Chris Nelson.
I see a lot of arrogance in his statements. That is a big red flag.
Shad,
Has Tapio ever met Trump? No. He is a BS artist. Ask his colleagues in the legislature if he plays the Trump card way too much. Does he crave Trumps attention obsessively? Yes.
Kristi Noem talks less about Trump than Tapio and she works with Ivanka every day. You know why? Because she knows it’s real because there are pictures to prove it and she also has something called confidence. A picture is worth a thousand words. Let the truth do the talking for you.
Dusty has actually met Daugaard. I know this because I saw a picture. That’s all I needed to see.
Where is the picture of Tapio and Trump? If he has any Trump connection he certainly could gave gotten a picture at the inauguration or on the campaign or anytime. Yes?
No?
He says in the interview that he “knows how Trump thinks” that’s creepy and he’s still never met the guy. But they have the same brain wave length.
The guy craves attention. Right now he would do anything to have Trump notice him. It’s quite an obsession.
Who cares about who got their picture taken with who. Hey, remember Joel Arends? He scammed Trump and the military at the same time while getting his picture taken with Trump. Enough with trying to out do each other with name dropping and instagram. Instead, start scheduling some town hall meetings where all candidate can partake. Let’s go LEAD, Rotery, LionsClub, Salvation Army, Senior Citizen Centers, FHA, Indivisible, Churches, Colleges, HS.