I am pleased that The Dakota Scout is hanging in there strong on this topic. Joe and Jonathan do excellent work, and this is merely an additional and important example. Our State is surely better for their journalism.
Here's a novel idea: Why not simply use the PAC money to pay back the state for all of these "over the top" expenses? Today's story is yet another example in a long history of events where Noem and her team misjudge the situation and extend the life of a negative news beyond its natural lifetime. A typical "mean girl" move from high school where somehow she needs to get in the last word. Cricket Lives, Baby!!!
In the run up to the 2024 election, when confronted with the blatant lie that Haitian immigrants, here legally, were “eating the cats and dogs”, VP candidate Vance admitted that it was a lie and said it didn’t matter. He was going to keep lying as long as it supported his point of view. A few people expressed shock at the statement, but most shrugged and opined that everyone lied.
Until we have strict term limits, campaign finance reform that doesn’t allow the rich to influence people’s opinions under the cover of darkness, and a return to the days when lying is disqualifying and behavior is disqualifying, we’re going to continue to struggle to agree on facts and hold civil and reasonable debates about policy. I applaud the Scout for shining a light on these tactics and for not buckling to threats, legal and otherwise. A free press that upholds the right to free speech is essential do democracy.
As Teddy Roosevelt said: "Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president or any other public official, save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country. In either event, it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth, whether about the president or anyone else."
Whether Noem should have spent so much time chasing around the country and beyond while collecting a paycheck from SD taxpayers is a question for another day. Either way, she was obliged at the very least to not stick taxpayers with the expenses of activity primarily intended to benefit herself. The Dakota Scout did a public service in letting the public see what her administration tried hard so hard to keep secret. Now, when she can't honestly deny the message, she tries to kill the messenger. So much for the "pillar of transparency" she promised in campaign ads would be one column of her administration. Why didn't she just use PAC money to pay for all that personal promotion and primping in the first place? Instead, the PAC -- surely funded with lots of the "out-of-state money" Republicans in the Legislature supposedly can't stand (see Rep. Hughes' guest column here of February 27) -- is now used to assault the free press.
Putting the Noem issue aside, NOW you have a problem with out of state $$ funding a SD PAC and try to tag it as an “R” thing? Bwahaha. Don’t tell Weiland. I guess Noem could have shoved it all under “consultant fees”. 😉
As one who was involved, I do want to comment on Dakota Scout's overly polite semantics in describing how its lawsuit in pursuit of the governor's office credit card expenditure records was resolved. To be blunt, there was no real "negotiation" in the sense that DS sacrificed anything of consequence. Essentially, the auditor's office capitulated. In cleaning up/closing out the litigation, I didn't ask the auditor's office counsel to explain the agency's change of heart. However, I think the auditor appreciated that DS was right and the governor's office—from which the real legal resistance came—was on thin, thin ice with its "security risk" defense.
"Politics is a small world for the cadre of professionals who often bounce from one campaign to another, climbing the ladder to government positions with successful candidates. They tend to work with people and companies with a proven track record for what they need..."
Public service has morphed into self-service -- spawning a multitude of dark-money paid specialists whose job is to guarantee the fix is in...
With respect to Noem's cease & desist letter, her "personal" D.C. attorneys, Baker and Hostetler, sent the letter—dated March 6—to Fox on March 6, allowing Fox to post one of its "news" stories before B&H bothered to send Dakota Scout the same letter—although now dated March 7 on page one. Channeling Noem's supposedly private "legal" business through the media is a curious approach for her and her lawyers to take.
But let us not get bogged down in sketchy procedure. It's the substance that really concerns us. And while possible extravagance is a component, the crux of the matter is whether South Dakota taxpayers were footing the credit card bills for anything other than official state business. If so, I think taxpayers have a legitimate grievance. Even if all but $2,000 of Noem's travel, lodging, food and incidentals were paid by her, her PAC or others, the $700,000+ balance are expenses that derive from and engendered by her decision to travel for reasons other than state business. (It bears noting that were she on state business, there would have been no need to have others foot her personal bills.)
Dakota Scout, no doubt, will continue to pore over the 4,000 pages and report its fact-findings. And, thanks to the Scout's efforts, the public can, too. But if Kristi Noem really wants to convince us that our money was reasonably spent, she should stop posturing and cut to the chase. She and her former staff should have no trouble putting together a tidy spreadsheet that lists the trips taken, the purpose of each trip, and the "who, what, why, when, where and how much." If, for instance, Noem isn't the one staying at the pricey Naples Bay Resort & Marina in Naples, Florida—and somebody was on numerous occasions—for whom were we paying to stay there and why?
Finally, as for the attempted cease & desist intimidation, I would refer Noem to 18 U.S.C. §241 and suggest she, her lawyers and Fox tread lightly.
She’s not able to accept the consequences of her actions. Legal bullying is the Trump technique and she is copying it. She has no American values and fits into Washington; fortunately she’s no longer here.
No surprise here! You know this is how this political party works beginning in the Oval Office. “Get hit—hit back harder”. So what are you going to do Dakota Scout? Roll over or do your job
This has nothing to do with Republican/Democrat. I’m a Conservative Republican and I didn’t vote for Noem. I abhor what she has done to this state and how she used South Dakota as a spring board for her political aspirations. I think South Dakota has a lot of dirty politicians that need to be dealt with.
Most people who work for companies or state agencies have a set budget they can spend daily for traveling. For my job, it has to be under $300/night for hotel and $75/ food. I can spend more if I want, but it's my dime. Same with flights. The fact that this state doesn't appear to have, or chooses not to enforce this for her is ridiculous. She should be held to the same standards as the other government workers and should be required to pay back the overage.....but the legislature here is too busy trying to stop South Dakotans from putting things on the ballot, or trying to defend Huron school district.
I am pleased that The Dakota Scout is hanging in there strong on this topic. Joe and Jonathan do excellent work, and this is merely an additional and important example. Our State is surely better for their journalism.
Here's a novel idea: Why not simply use the PAC money to pay back the state for all of these "over the top" expenses? Today's story is yet another example in a long history of events where Noem and her team misjudge the situation and extend the life of a negative news beyond its natural lifetime. A typical "mean girl" move from high school where somehow she needs to get in the last word. Cricket Lives, Baby!!!
In the run up to the 2024 election, when confronted with the blatant lie that Haitian immigrants, here legally, were “eating the cats and dogs”, VP candidate Vance admitted that it was a lie and said it didn’t matter. He was going to keep lying as long as it supported his point of view. A few people expressed shock at the statement, but most shrugged and opined that everyone lied.
Until we have strict term limits, campaign finance reform that doesn’t allow the rich to influence people’s opinions under the cover of darkness, and a return to the days when lying is disqualifying and behavior is disqualifying, we’re going to continue to struggle to agree on facts and hold civil and reasonable debates about policy. I applaud the Scout for shining a light on these tactics and for not buckling to threats, legal and otherwise. A free press that upholds the right to free speech is essential do democracy.
As Teddy Roosevelt said: "Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president or any other public official, save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country. In either event, it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth, whether about the president or anyone else."
Whether Noem should have spent so much time chasing around the country and beyond while collecting a paycheck from SD taxpayers is a question for another day. Either way, she was obliged at the very least to not stick taxpayers with the expenses of activity primarily intended to benefit herself. The Dakota Scout did a public service in letting the public see what her administration tried hard so hard to keep secret. Now, when she can't honestly deny the message, she tries to kill the messenger. So much for the "pillar of transparency" she promised in campaign ads would be one column of her administration. Why didn't she just use PAC money to pay for all that personal promotion and primping in the first place? Instead, the PAC -- surely funded with lots of the "out-of-state money" Republicans in the Legislature supposedly can't stand (see Rep. Hughes' guest column here of February 27) -- is now used to assault the free press.
Putting the Noem issue aside, NOW you have a problem with out of state $$ funding a SD PAC and try to tag it as an “R” thing? Bwahaha. Don’t tell Weiland. I guess Noem could have shoved it all under “consultant fees”. 😉
You didn't read very carefully, sir. It's not me complaining about out-of-state funding. I am not a Republican in the Legislature.
As one who was involved, I do want to comment on Dakota Scout's overly polite semantics in describing how its lawsuit in pursuit of the governor's office credit card expenditure records was resolved. To be blunt, there was no real "negotiation" in the sense that DS sacrificed anything of consequence. Essentially, the auditor's office capitulated. In cleaning up/closing out the litigation, I didn't ask the auditor's office counsel to explain the agency's change of heart. However, I think the auditor appreciated that DS was right and the governor's office—from which the real legal resistance came—was on thin, thin ice with its "security risk" defense.
Noem the dog killing Nazi skank doing what the does best - be a political low life
"Politics is a small world for the cadre of professionals who often bounce from one campaign to another, climbing the ladder to government positions with successful candidates. They tend to work with people and companies with a proven track record for what they need..."
Public service has morphed into self-service -- spawning a multitude of dark-money paid specialists whose job is to guarantee the fix is in...
With respect to Noem's cease & desist letter, her "personal" D.C. attorneys, Baker and Hostetler, sent the letter—dated March 6—to Fox on March 6, allowing Fox to post one of its "news" stories before B&H bothered to send Dakota Scout the same letter—although now dated March 7 on page one. Channeling Noem's supposedly private "legal" business through the media is a curious approach for her and her lawyers to take.
But let us not get bogged down in sketchy procedure. It's the substance that really concerns us. And while possible extravagance is a component, the crux of the matter is whether South Dakota taxpayers were footing the credit card bills for anything other than official state business. If so, I think taxpayers have a legitimate grievance. Even if all but $2,000 of Noem's travel, lodging, food and incidentals were paid by her, her PAC or others, the $700,000+ balance are expenses that derive from and engendered by her decision to travel for reasons other than state business. (It bears noting that were she on state business, there would have been no need to have others foot her personal bills.)
Dakota Scout, no doubt, will continue to pore over the 4,000 pages and report its fact-findings. And, thanks to the Scout's efforts, the public can, too. But if Kristi Noem really wants to convince us that our money was reasonably spent, she should stop posturing and cut to the chase. She and her former staff should have no trouble putting together a tidy spreadsheet that lists the trips taken, the purpose of each trip, and the "who, what, why, when, where and how much." If, for instance, Noem isn't the one staying at the pricey Naples Bay Resort & Marina in Naples, Florida—and somebody was on numerous occasions—for whom were we paying to stay there and why?
Finally, as for the attempted cease & desist intimidation, I would refer Noem to 18 U.S.C. §241 and suggest she, her lawyers and Fox tread lightly.
She’s not able to accept the consequences of her actions. Legal bullying is the Trump technique and she is copying it. She has no American values and fits into Washington; fortunately she’s no longer here.
Suing the Scout would be as stupid as shooting her dog then bragging about it on a national book tour.
No surprise here! You know this is how this political party works beginning in the Oval Office. “Get hit—hit back harder”. So what are you going to do Dakota Scout? Roll over or do your job
This has nothing to do with Republican/Democrat. I’m a Conservative Republican and I didn’t vote for Noem. I abhor what she has done to this state and how she used South Dakota as a spring board for her political aspirations. I think South Dakota has a lot of dirty politicians that need to be dealt with.
The next day, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem suggested that the FBI leaked the raid information.
“The FBI is so corrupt. We will work with any and every agency to stop leaks and prosecute these crooked deep state agents
She should worry more about Corey leaking his torture sessions with her than the “ corrupt “ G men and women
Most people who work for companies or state agencies have a set budget they can spend daily for traveling. For my job, it has to be under $300/night for hotel and $75/ food. I can spend more if I want, but it's my dime. Same with flights. The fact that this state doesn't appear to have, or chooses not to enforce this for her is ridiculous. She should be held to the same standards as the other government workers and should be required to pay back the overage.....but the legislature here is too busy trying to stop South Dakotans from putting things on the ballot, or trying to defend Huron school district.
GREAT JOB Gentlemen!
You're pissing someone off or, to paraphrase The Old Barb, "Why doth they protest too much"?
Now Elon has to watch what she does now, as DHS head honcho, that she has access to America's ATM!
If someone doesn't keep tabs, she could outdo Zelenskyy at getting taxpayers' money...two-comma figures at a time!
Explore American Resolve PAC's spending for yourselves:
https://projects.propublica.org/527-explorer/orgs/883556572