My "Vision South Dakota" is still a little fuzzy this morning.

Remember Vision South Dakota? They were one of the central entities at the center of the maelstrom of campaign finance shenanigans this past election. This was the group that had to return a $7000 contribution check from the Sisseton Whapeton Oyate tribe, and listed a $30,000 PAC check from an entity called the Midwest Coalition for Progress. Except that dark and mysterious organization (Midwest) has never filed a thing. Anywhere.

(You can always click on images to enlarge them)

So about a week or two ago, Vision SD filed their year-end PAC report. (You know, the report that was due several months ago.)

If you'll allow me to rehash some of what I've groaned about before, Vision South Dakota's biggest benefactor was the Midwest Coalition PAC, and as I brought up, no one ever really found out where this Midwest Coalition PAC came from, or who they were, much less why they thought it was worth $30,000 to defeat the Governor and elect Democrats.

But as you'll notice on this latest report, the Vision South Dakota PAC which enabled key Democrats to funnel money to their candidates has returned the $30,000 that was previously listed as a PAC donation from the Midwest Coalition, as if it was improper, or if it were some sort of loan.

Despite the fact that on the previous report it was listed as a PAC donation.


I think the thing that's so mysterious about the organization is that they just appeared and started handing out money. Even more curious, the only thing we ever found out about them is that they're somehow related to the entity which funded the latest anti-video lottery crusade in South Dakota as noted here:

And here....

The relation? They both have the same mailing address. Nearly 1/2 a million dollars in campaign funding for this last election was funneled out of an innocent little post office box in Sioux Falls, PO Box 1401.

We know they don't care for Republicans, and they really hate video lottery. And they like secrecy, since no names have ever seen the light of day. We just don't know who is providing the funding for all of this. It's just an informational black hole.

Compare this to the controversy over the Roger Hunt fronted Promising Future Inc. Democrats are screaming for his head over finding a loophole in existing law as it applies to a corporation being set up to conceal the identity of a single donor in this past year's abortion issue. But when it comes to campaign finance shenanigans on their side of the aisle, they're suddenly stuck mute.

I certainly hope the residents of PO Box 1401 are the next target for throwing the veil of secrecy off. Because if South Dakotans deserve it in the Promising Future case, we deserve it no less in this instance.