Tag: South Dakota

Voters Decide Future of Ranked Choice Voting

The Daily Signal

Voters in Western states and the District of Columbia voted on some form of ranked choice voting or “jungle primaries” that includes ranking the final candidates in the general election.

Voters in Nevada, a battleground state in the presidential race, rejected Question 3, according to Ballotpedia. This was a ballot measure that would have moved the state to a “top five” primary if approved. That means up to five at-large primary candidates would compete in a ranked choice voting general election.

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Pro-Life Group Sues to Strip Abortion Amendment Off South Dakota Ballot

Minnesota Sun Staff
Pro-Choice Supporter

A pro-life group in South Dakota filed a lawsuit to block an amendment enshrining abortion in the state constitution from appearing on the November ballot, alleging the initiative contained fraudulent signatures, the Associated Press reported.

South Dakota Secretary of State Monae Johnson approved the measure in May after it received over the required number of signatures from supporters. Life Defense Fund filed a complaint on Thursday alleging a number of issues, including that Dakotans for Health, which sponsored the amendment, did not file an affidavit confirming petition circulators’ residency and that petitioners misled supporters about what they were signing, according to the AP.

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House Committee Examines Threats to U.S. Food Security from Chinese Ownership of Land, Facilities

Just the News
Combine in field

The House Agriculture Committee took a close look Wednesday at the influence of China on America’s food supply.

The committee also heard testimony concerning Chinese companies activities in the U.S., allegedly stealing intellectual property and purchasing supply chain assets that American farmers depend on to produce crops.

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Commentary: Pro-Life Leaders Must Engage in Battle Against Abortion Ballot Measures Now

Minnesota Sun Staff
Pro-Life Rally

Thanks to the Dobbs decision and pro-life leaders, 24 states have laws protecting unborn children at 12 weeks or sooner. Through ballot measures, abortion activists are trying to reverse that progress so anyone can get an abortion anytime, anywhere. These activists are targeting ten pro-life states which have laws that protect 30,000 babies in the womb annually.

The proposed constitutional amendments go far beyond Roe to establish unlimited abortion, eviscerate parental rights, and remove health and safety requirements for women. Though some of the measures include the word “viability,” the broad exceptions in the law ultimately allow elective abortion in all nine months. Ohio Democrats have introduced legislation that does this following the vote on Issue 1 laying bare the policy agenda they are pursuing but denied during the amendment campaign.

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Nearly Half of U.S. States Now Have Measures Limiting Transgender Surgery for Minors, but Lawsuits Abound

Admin

At least 20 states have either restricted or banned transgender procedures for minors, with many of them facing lawsuits and temporary blocks by courts as a result, while future litigation is possible in states considering adopting such laws. 

The states that have enacted legislation against such procedures are: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and West Virginia – essentially all conservative-leaning.

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Former Abortionist: Media’s ‘Blatant Lie’ That Doctors Feel ‘Trapped’ by Abortion State Trigger Laws

Susan Berry, PhD

A former abortionist-turned pro-life advocate wrote at Conservative Review Monday that, even in South Dakota, media are pushing the leftist narrative that state laws restricting abortion are harming women in difficult pregnancies.

Patti Giebink, M.D., author of Unexpected Choice and a former Planned Parenthood abortionist, took to task a South Dakota Searchlight reporter who claimed “physicians feel ‘trapped’” by the state’s abortion trigger law by noting the media’s “dishonesty” about several key facts.

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States See Chinese Purchase of Farmland as a Threat to National Security

The Center Square

Several states have already banned or are considering banning foreign ownership of farmland from U.S. adversaries such as China, a trend that has its recent roots in North Dakota.

Chinese food manufacturer Fufeng Group purchased 370 acres of land for a corn milling plant in Grand Forks in November 2021.

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South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem Signs Bill Banning Transgender Hormones, Surgeries for Minors

Susan Berry, PhD

Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD) signed legislation Monday that protects minor children and teens from experimental puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and mutilating irreversible surgeries for the treatment of gender confusion.

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Chinese Nationals Have Bought Thousands of Acres of Strategically Located U.S. Farmland

Admin

Ownership of U.S. farmland by Chinese nationals has risen significantly in the last decade and amounted to 338,000 acres as of 2020, according to U.S. Agriculture Department data.

Since 2010, Chinese nationals have reportedly purchased an additional 75,000 acres of U.S. farmland, according to U.S. Agriculture Department data obtained by the WSJ. Although amounting to less than 1% of all U.S. agricultural land held by foreign citizens, ownership of U.S. farmland by Chinese nationals has received increased scrutiny in recent years following warnings from U.S. government officials claiming that the Chinese government may seek to use land for military and espionage purposes, according to the WSJ.

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North Carolina, North Dakota, Among States Phasing Out Income Tax

Just the News

Americans in search of economic freedom and opportunity are flocking to Florida, Tennessee and Texas, and at least part of the attraction is that these three states, along with six others (Alaska, Nevada, South Dakota, Washington, Wyoming and New Hampshire), don’t levy an income tax.

Other states may soon follow.

“There are 10 states that are in the process of moving their personal income tax to zero,” President of Americans for Tax Reform Grover Norquist said on the John Solomon Reports podcast.

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Gov. Kristi Noem Demands Answers After Government Publishes Her and Her Family’s Social Security Numbers

Just the News

South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem is demanding answers after her and her family’s social security numbers were published online as part of the House Jan. 6 committee’s records.

Noem’s attorney sent a letter Friday to the White House, the Government Publishing Office, the National Archives and Jan. 6 committee chair Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), asking who was responsible for the leak and what remedies will be taken to protect the governor and her family.

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Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia Among 18 States Banning Social Media App TikTok from State Devices

Admin

Following South Dakota GOP Gov. Kristi Noem’s lead, nearly half of U.S. states have put restrictions on or banned the use of Chinese-based social media app TikTok.

At least 19 states have banned TikTok on government-issued devices – Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Idaho, Iowa, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utha, Virginia and West Virginia.

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South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s Health Department Fires Transgender Group Ahead of ‘Gender Summit’

Admin

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a Republican, directed her state Department of Health to terminate a contract with The Transformation Project, a transgender activist group that is hosting a “Gender Identity Summit” next month, after The Daily Signal drew the governor’s attention to the summit and the group.

“Gov. Kristi Noem is reviewing all Department of Health contracts and immediately terminated a contract with The Transformation Project,” Ian Fury, Noem’s chief of communications, told The Daily Signal on Friday. “The contract was signed without Gov. Noem’s prior knowledge or approval.”

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Minnesota Set to Receive Part of a Nearly $400 Million Settlement from Google over Location-Tracking Probe

Just the News

Google agreed to a $391.5 million settlement with 40 states after an investigation found that the tech giant participated in questionable location-tracking practices, state attorneys general announced Monday.

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong called it a “historic win for consumers.”

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Commentary: With States Hands-Off, Homeschooling Takes Off

RealClearWire

South Dakota epitomizes the rapid growth of homeschooling in America. Guided by the principle that parents, not the government, have the right to determine what and how their kids are taught, homeschooling families have overturned existing rules and batted down attempts over the last decade to impose new ones in many states, including South Dakota. 

What’s left in much of the United States today is essentially an honor system in which parents are expected to do a good job without much input or oversight. The rollback of regulations, coupled with the  ill effects of remote learning during the pandemic, have boosted the number of families opting out of public schools in favor of educating their kids at home.  

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New Study Shows Red States Handled COVID-19 Better Than Blue States

Minnesota Sun Staff

A new study by the Committee to Unleash Prosperity found that states led by Republicans did a better job than Democrat-led states at managing the coronavirus and keeping their states from slumping into an economic and social recession.

As reported by The Daily Caller, the three states that ranked the worst in mortality, economy, and schooling during the COVID pandemic were New Jersey, New York, and California, all of which had implemented some of the strictest lockdown measures in the nation. By contrast, the states that ranked the highest were Utah, Vermont, and Nebraska.

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New Poll Shows South Dakota Sen. Thune in Deep Trouble with Republican Voters

The Center Square

A new survey of Republican primary voters in South Dakota suggests that Sen. John Thune’s (R-S.D.) reelection chances were severely damaged by his public spat with former President Trump after the 2020 election.

The poll, conducted by pollster Fabrizio, Lee & Associates for the political action committee American Potential Fund, found that Thune, who just announced his reelection campaign on Saturday, would probably lose a primary challenge by Gov. Kristi Noem, or Dusty Johnson, a popular South Dakota U.S. representative. The survey also found that former president Donald Trump remains very popular with GOP primary voters (RPV).

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Commentary: The First Step to Rightsizing Education Spending Is Reforming Teacher Pensions

RealClearWire

In the past year, Congress has rushed more than $204 billion in federal emergency funds to states to support K-12 schools. 

But 23 states had fewer incoming students this fall. This declining enrollment is likely in part due to pandemic-related trends but is also a symptom of changing birth rates and families geographically relocating.

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13 States Sue Biden Administration, Demand Ability to Cut Taxes

Minnesota Sun Staff
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey

Thirteen states sued President Joe Biden’s administration over an American Rescue Plan provision prohibiting states from cutting taxes after accepting coronavirus relief funds.

The 13-state coalition argued that the provision included in the Democrats’ $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package preventing states from cutting taxes if they accept relief from the federal government is unconstitutional. The coalition, led by Republican West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, filed the federal lawsuit Wednesday evening in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

“Never before has the federal government attempted such a complete takeover of state finances,” Morrisey said in a Wednesday statement. “We cannot stand for such overreach.”

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Commentary: Governor Kristi Noem Strikes Out

Minnesota Sun Staff
kristi-noem_840x480

“I’m just worried about our perception, said State Senator Reynold Nesiba, a Sioux Falls Democrat, “because I think, generally, South Dakotans are a welcoming people.” 

Nesiba was speaking to reporters about South Dakota House Bill 1217, a measure intended to limit transgender participation in sports. The measure would be uncontroversial in saner times, or at least those during which most people were still aware of the basic physical differences between the sexes. But we no longer live in sane times. 

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21 States Sue Biden Admin for Revoking Keystone XL Permit

Minnesota Sun Staff

A group of red states sued President Biden and members of his administration on Wednesday over his decision to revoke a key permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, The Hill reported.

The lawsuit is led by Montana and Texas, and backed by 19 other states, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

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Bikers Flock to the 80th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally with Few Signs of Pandemic

Minnesota Sun Staff

The coronavirus may be changing the world, but there aren’t many signs of the pandemic at the massive annual motorcycle rally being held this week at a small city along Interstate 90 in western South Dakota.

The scene Saturday at the 80th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally was familiar to veterans of the event, with throngs of maskless bikers packing the streets.

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Lt. Gov. Flanagan Shares Post Calling Mount Rushmore ‘Symbol of White Supremacy’

Anthony Gockowski

Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan shared a post on social media over the Independence Day weekend calling Mount Rushmore a “symbol of white supremacy.”

“Mount Rushmore is a symbol of white supremacy, of structural racism that’s still alive and well in society today. It’s an injustice to actively steal Indigenous people’s land, then carve the white faces of the colonizers who committed genocide,” said the post, which Flanagan shared on her Instagram.

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Commentary: It Was a Magnificent Speech

Minnesota Sun Staff

Donald Trump did not mention Lincoln’s First Inaugural address in his speech commemorating the spirit of American Independence at Mount Rushmore on Friday night. But the president’s speech—perhaps his most forceful and eloquent to date—vibrated with the same energy and existential commitment that fired Lincoln in March 1861. 

Lincoln came to office at a time of crisis. His election had precipitated the secession of seven Southern states. His inaugural address was both a plea for conciliation and unity as well as a warning that violence would be stopped with force. “We are not enemies, but friends,” Lincoln said. 

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As Americans Gather at Rushmore to Hear Trump, Protesters Set Roadblocks

The Associated Press

President Donald Trump planned a fiery Mount Rushmore speech Friday night including denunciations of protesters he says are trying to “tear down” the nation’s history. He’s adding the condemnation of those who pull down statues to a big fireworks show and his more traditional July Fourth praise of America’s past and values.

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As Trump Prepares for Independence Day Visit to Mount Rushmore, Tribal Leaders Say They Want It ‘Removed’

Anthony Gockowski

President Donald Trump will kick off Independence Day weekend with an event at Mount Rushmore, which has prompted some local leaders to call for the removal of one of the nation’s most iconic monuments.

Several groups led by Native American activists are planning protests for Trump’s July 3 visit. The event is slated to include fighter jets thundering over the 79-year-old stone monument in South Dakota’s Black Hills and the first fireworks display at the site since 2009.

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