I think this is more sucked in by a black hole than shooting by us as a rising star.

Today as I sit at my computer in Brookings doing laundry, I had a comment placed under the recent post I did on rising stars in politics noting that we have "a new rising star." And apparently he's so new that no one has ever heard of him:

Charlie Johnson is a grassroots rising star!
Monday, November 20, 2006

Charlie Johnson of the Alliance for Our Future today challenged the governor's Constitutional Commission to themselves collect signatures to put their proposals on the ballot.

"I dare any of the commission members to take any of their predetermined measures and personally stand in front of courthouses and post offices to collect the required amount of signatures rather than having a governor-led legislature put their measure on the ballot for them."

Johnson has co-chaired several statement initiatives and referendums relating to preserving family farming and rural democracy. He accused the Constitutional Commission meeting Monday in Sioux Falls of trying to put up roadblocks to the referendum and initiative.

"One of the recommendations is that before an initiative can be started and circulated, it must be brought before a public hearing. This commission seeks to cover up inaction by a governor-led legislature to tackle important issues for this state by throwing up bigger and bigger hurdles for the initiative and referral process."

"To throw up bigger roadblocks for the referral and initiative process will not prevent well financed out-of-state special interests from getting issues on the ballot. Only grass roots efforts led by average South Dakotans will be the issues that suffer."

"Some say there were too many issues on the ballot last election." Johnson notes that three of the issues were placed on the ballot by the governor-led legislature, two issues were placed by out-of-state interest (Amendment E and cell phone tax), and the abortion ban was a measure passed by the legislature and then referred. Out of 11 issues on the ballot, only 5 were put on the ballot a least in part by South Dakotans. Voting on five South Dakota measures is not
asking too much of the process."

"Any commission member or legislator who thinks the signatures of 5% of the voters is easy to get should try it themselves. We'll gladly hand them all the clipboards they want."

So aside from the fact that Charlie doesn't like a couple of the proposals this bi-partisan commission came up with, somebody fancies Charlie a rising grassroots star? Like I said, I'd never heard of him, and I don't suspect many others had as well. So I did a little research on him and the Alliance for Our Future. And what did I find?

Groups and individuals are invited to join the network if they pledge to support four goals:
(1) The right of local citizens to refer a controversial livestock permit to a vote
(2). to oppose Industrial Agriculture
(3) to protect our natural resources
(4) to promote authentic family farming

Okay, so Charlie is part of the anti-large farm operation movement. And who has he hitched his rising star to?

groups and individuals who have joined

Charlie Johnson (I notice that he put his name first)
Clean Water Action Alliance
South Dakota Resources Coalition
I-29ers for Quality of Life
South Dakota Peace & Justice
Citizens for a Cleaner Lincoln County
Wolf Creek Coalition (Hutchinson County)
Jerry Munson, former mayor of Rapid City
Senator Clarence Kooistra
Senator Frank Kloucek
Representative Gerry Lange
former legislator Bob Weber
former U.S. Senator James Abourezk

You know, looking at the list, with Clarence Kooistra, Gerry Lange, Bob Weber, and the South Dakota Peace and Justice Center, I think it's less that he'd be considered a rising star, as much as being considered an activist about to be sucked into a black hole of mediocrity.