Republicans Launch Immediate Personal Attacks on Heidepriem; Ugly Campaign Ahead

Words matter. So when Democrat Scott Heidepriem announces his candidacy for South Dakota governor, what are the first words out of the state GOP?

Heidepriem, a millionaire trial lawyer in Sioux Falls best known for suing South Dakota taxpayers to force a tax increase, has been busy implementing his plan to look like a man-of-the-people:

• canceling his country club membership;
• selling his BMW;
• selling his mansion in Sioux Falls;
• hiring man-of-the-people image guru Steve Jarding.

"Heidepriem's phony image-building scheme should not fool anyone," said South Dakota Republican Party Executive Director Lucas Lentsch. "After decades of being a Republican Party spokesman and running for Congress as a Republican, voters should ask if Heidepriem was being more phony then or more phony now. Voters should know that this fast-talking trial lawyer will do or say anything to get elected," Lentsch added.

The GOP is evidently taking its cues from the South Dakota Republican bloggissariat. Not a word about specific policies. Not even a link to substantiate any of their invective. Just more of the tired ad hominem anti-elitism and class warfare that Republicans waged and failed with against Barack Obama last year.

Oh well. When the GOP has no practical solutions and no new ideas for governing South Dakota in the 21st century, we can expect them to try distract us from looking at their actual record with phony peronsal attacks against Democrats.