South Dakota War College

Dave Kranz was reporting this week that there are going to be several legislative incumbents term limited out after this coming legislative session: Senate Majority Leader Eric Bogue, R-Faith, Senate Minority Leader Garry Moore, D-Yankton, and House Speaker Matt Michels, R-Yankton, are term-limited after completing their fourth consecutive term and cannot run for re-election. Others in that situation are Reps. Art Fryslie, R-Willow Lake; Cooper Garnos, R- Presho; Tom Hennies, R-Rapid City; Ted Klaudt, R-Walker; Alice McCoy, R-Rapid City; and Lou Sebert, R-Mitchell. Read it all here . I'm not sure I ever liked the idea of term limits, because I'm one of those who liked the stability and decorum of the prior system. I always thought that legislators should be voted out if they aren't doing their job, not removed by government mandate. But that's not my point in writing this. The Senate dynamic is going to change drastically after this next regular session, with Senate ...

It's ironic that just a couple of days after Don Adams (Tennessee Tuxedo, Maxwell Smart, etc) passes away, that a catchphrase of his came to mind. Where he would opine "Missed it by *that* much," holding us his fingers to indicate a narrow gap. Well, that's what came to mind when I got the results of the Brookings Lowe's vote. Aside from the fact that media coverage the evening of this vote was terrible, I found out from my wife the next day that the vote passed by 94 votes . That's the kind of margin that smarts. For the pro-forces, it sure as heck is not a mandate from the people. For the anti-forces, it's going to be anguish , regret and self abuse. "What could we have done differently" is going to haunt their thoughts. And sorry guys, I'm not going to offer you comfort on this one. I thought the anti-forces might have had this one. But their mistakes did them in. What comprised 90 votes worth of mistakes from my vantage point in Pierre?...

First, SD Watch noted that Christmas displays are going up at Lewis and K-Mart in Sioux Falls. Then, I see this little item on the AP wire on Yahoo News: Danish Air Force Compensates Santa The Danish Air Force said Thursday it paid 31,175 kroner ($5,032) in compensation to a part-time Santa Claus whose reindeer died of heart failure when two fighter jets roared over his farm. The animal, named Rudolf, was grazing peacefully at the central Denmark farm of Olavi Nikkanoff, when the screaming F-16 jets passed overhead at low altitude in February. The reindeer collapsed and died, leaving Nikkanoff with the prospect of only one animal pulling his sleigh next Christmas. He complained to the air force, which agreed to compensate him for the cost of the reindeer and veterinary expenses. "We got a letter from Santa complaining about his reindeer's death and looked into it seriously," said air force spokesman, Capt. Morten Jensen. Read the whole thing here (but don't tell the ...

Check out the article in the Rapid City Journal today: Napoli seeks more petition signatures A petition drive to get a property-tax assessment measure on the 2006 ballot has surpassed the minimum number of required signatures, but thousands more are still needed, state Sen. Bill Napoli, R-Rapid City, said Monday. Napoli's group, Stabilize Taxes on Property in South Dakota, or STOP, is circulating petitions to get a constitutional amendment on the 2006 ballot which, if approved by the voters, would cap property-tax assessments. Petitions must be submitted to the South Dakota secretary of state's office a year in advance of the 2006 elections. The deadline is 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 7. Napoli said about 36,000 signatures have been collected. The minimum number required to place a proposed constitutional amendment on the 2006 ballot is 33,456. "I know we are going to get challenges, so we need to get at least 45,000 as a cushion," Napoli said. "Once we walk in the door...

I had a note from SD Straight Talk clarifying and updating what former State GOP ED Bill Protexter is doing now: Pro (Bill Protexter) is no longer with Hagel. He left about Labor Day and has started his own political consulting and public affairs biz. He is in high demand! And yes, that's 100% correct, according to the Lincoln Journal Star .

As I'm hanging around the SD War College's Eastern Branch in Brookings this weekend, just down the street from Congresswoman Herseth's new house, I noticed something that brought up some advice from my past. Next door to me, I have a neighbor who has a yardsign promoting the "vote Yes" campaign for Tuesday's Municipal Election over giving Lowe's major financial concessions to move here, even though I prefer Menards. (Not that anyone asked me). Anyway, regarding that yardsign in my neighbor's front yard - damn , is that a lonely little sign. My street is straight as an arrow, and very flat. You can look all the way up the street to the new Herseth residence, and all the way down the street to where it ends. And you don't see another "vote Yes" sign anywhere. In fact, you see about 7 or 8 coroplast "slow down, children playing" signs. And only one lonely "Yes" sign. If a person was taking a gut check on support for the m...