Noem Gets NRCC "Young Gun" Kiss of Death

Alas, poor Kristi Noem. First she hires Curd's losing campaign manager, now she gets one of Curd's big losing endorsements.

In his continuing series of Republican press release repostings, Pat Powers trumpets propaganda from the National Republican Congressional Committee as news. As he celebrates the NRCC's inclusion of South Dakota's GOP House candidate Kristi Noem in their "Young Guns" marketing campaign, the Dakota War College author misses the real story. The NRCC originally picked R. Blake Curd as its fresh young gun, only to see Curd place last among South Dakota primary voters.

The NRCC's Young Guns have fired blanks across the country. The NRCC's Democratic counterpart cites ten other NRCC-backed candidates who have lost this year.

Hmm... sounds like a kiss of death to me!

Noem Wins, Replaces Manager with Last-Place Chief

I think Stephanie Herseth Sandlin's November total just ticked up five points.

"Noem and Curd Congressional Campaigns Come Together," toots Dakota War College. That's about as accurate as saying the U.S. Army and Saddam's Republican Guard have come together. There is no Curd campaign. Noem kicked its butt. All that's happening is that Joshua Shields, Curd's newly unemployed campaign manager (and the kind of career political operative Curd was reviling as he attacked Chris Nelson's honorable public service), has landed the next best available job for his skills... managing Kristi Noem's campaign.

Now usually, I don't pay attention to the campaign staff news. But this job move has me wondering....

Suppose you win a statewide primary. You don't just win it; you score an upset. You beat a popular and decent Secretary of State and a wealthy and smart doctor. You have momentum (let's call it Noementum!). Everyone's excited. What do you do to keep your edge?

My first ten answers do not include, "Replace your successful campaign manager with the guy who used twice as much campaign money to put his guy in a bowling shirt and engineer a 23% last-place finish."

Maybe Noem's previous manager, Lee Brown, had to leave. Maybe other obligations or some unforeseen circumstance came up. That's fine. And at least Noem is making the change early so the new guy can be up to speed when Denny and everyone else get back from the lake.

Now let's be clear: I know neither Brown nor Shields (heck, I haven't even met Noem yet—just can't bring myself to sit through another 9-12 Project meeting). I write this not to contradict the nice commenters at Dakota War College who assert that Josh is a nice guy. I have no reason to doubt that he is a nice guy. This is nothing personal.

But the primary election and Lee Brown's résumé give me reasons to think the Noem campaign just lost an asset with deep experience in South Dakota politics and replaced it with a discernibly less valuable asset.

South Dakota Primary Prediction 2: Nelson 42%

Yesterday I commented on the striking opposition between the portraits South Dakota's two largest newspapers painted of Secretary of State Chris Nelson. I mentioned that Nelson would win today's GOP House primary 45–28–27. Like almost everyone else, I'm much less certain about this race than the gov's race, so I hereby exercise my right to change my mind... just a little:

1. Chris Nelson 42%
2. Kristi Noem 31%
3. R. Blake Curd 27%

A bunch of Republicans are going to walk into the voting booth tomorrow knowing the U.S. House race is their chance to really kick the Dems in the teeth. Winning the governor's office for the ninth straight time is no big deal. Beating Stephanie Herseth Sandlin is Kool and the Gang cranked. Republicans have their best shot at beating SHS since before Janklow went to prison. They don't want to screw it up.

So the Republicans will look at that ballot and pick the person they know is best equipped to win that race. They won't pick the rich Sioux Falls doctor (who didn't move to South Dakota until this decade) any more than they'll pick the rich Sioux Falls lawyer for governor. They won't pick the Castlewood ranch gal who brings a better narrative but started late and is still a newcomer to the big show. They'll pick the guy they know. They'll pick Chris Nelson, the guy who's won two statewide elections, who's been to their Lincoln Day dinners for years, and who's primed to neutralize SHS's biggest advantage aside from incumbency: the nice factor.

Now there may be Republican chess players who grumble that Nelson hasn't worked hard enough to win this primary and to show he's serious. But those chess players also know Nelson isn't stupid. He's like Obama against Clinton in 2008: Obama knew he didn't need to win every state; he just needed a few more delegates than Clinton. Nelson knows he could spend a whole whack of money to beat Noem and Curd hard. But why make the primary unnecessarily bloody when he can save his strength, win on points against the Republican upstarts, and save his big donor haymakers for the main event against Queen Dem?

Still doubt Nelson will get serious about fundraising against SHS? Check a small clue in Nelson's word choice:

"Understand, I'm a fiscal conservative. That's not just a word for me. It's how I operate. That's how we're operating the campaign," Nelson said. "We're going to spend less money than the other two campaigns, no question about it" [emphasis mine; Chet Brokaw, "Chris Nelson Aims to Win GOP House Race on the Cheap," AP via Rapid City Journal, 2010.05.17].

Nelson was talking about winning on the cheap in the primary. Tomorrow morning, contented Republican donors will wake to the pleasant buzz of GOP-dominated headlines, followed by the ringing of their phones. It will be Chris Nelson, saying, "Good morning, friend! It's time to write that check."

I could be wrong. Just like my Republican friends, I recognize they have their best shot since 2004 at the House seat. Deep down, I may be convincing myself Nelson is the least-bad Republican and thus convincing myself he's going to win the primary and spare us South Dakota's own Michele Bachmann or Ron Paul.

Am I seeing what is, or just what I want to see? Let's run the experiment and find out. Republicans, feel free to surprise me.

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We Dems do enjoy reading our neighbors' tea leaves. Badlands Blue picks Nelson, too, 40–30–30.

R. Blake Curd Ad Chock Full o' Bull

Dakota War College touts R. Blake Curd's latest ad as possibly the best Congressional campaign ad yet. I sleep off the headache Dr. Curd causes, then break out the B.S. flags. Let's go to the screen caps:

"Only Blake Curd opposed a state budget that counted on Obama's stimulus bill."

Funny. R. Blake did cast an easy symbolic vote against the 2010 budget... right along with liberal Democrats like my Catholic socialist neighbor Gerald Lange. However, this year he happily voted for SB 49, which amended the 2010 budget to include even more federal money. More importantly, he voted for this year's budget, SB 196, which relies on stimulus money just like last year's.

"Only Blake Curd signed the 'Repeal It!' pledge to get rid of Obamacare."

Wait: does he mean this Repeal It! pledge sponsored by the Club for Growth? I check the RepealIt.org list and can't find R. Blake's name anywhere. Maybe he printed a copy, signed it, and put it in his file cabinet.

By the way, did R. Blake not get the memo from Mark Critz in Pennsylvania pointing out that running against Obama instead of on local issues isn't a winning strategy? Did he also ignore the polling data that says health care obstructionism is losing steam as a campaign issue?

But sure, R. Blake, go ahead, make yourself sound more like Gordon Howie and Michele Bachmann. See how far that gets you.

"...and he's pledged to oppose higher taxes."

Oops! R. Blake's spokeslady forgot to say only! Chris Nelson and Kristi Noem say the same old tropes about high taxes as R. Blake. And that tax pledge the ad flashes on the screen? R. Blake doesn't even understand what the document he signed really says.

And our phony closing image: R. Blake standing in his freshly purchased Carhartts in front of a grain elevator, since he's such a down-on-the-farm, working-class guy.

If Mark Twain were alive, he'd tell us there are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and R. Blake Curd campaign ads.

Campaign Finance: Curd Arrogant, Kirby and Kurtenbach Conflicted, Noem Broke

Dr. R. Blake Curd is pouring $42,000 of his own money into his U.S. House campaign fund. Of course, it's not just any old money; it's his "hard-earned money," says campaign mouthpiece Joshua Shields. Really, do we really have to engage in this "I worked harder than you for my money" contest? Doesn't everyone work hard?

Curd is also cloaking his big self-donation in noble language about children (hey, I thought that was only a liberal Dem tactic!):

It's important that people understand that I'm serious about this election.... I can't think of any better thing to invest your money in than my children and the children of South Dakota, and that's exactly why I've invested some of my own personal money in our children's future [R. Blake Curd, in Ledyard King, "In Money Race, Curd Piles up Lead," that Sioux Falls paper, 2010.05.28].

Give me a break, R. Blake. You're not investing in our children. You're buying more dorky bowling ads and billboards and paying consultants to craft propaganda so you can win a political job, just like the other candidates. And I find it a little offensive (as I suspect does Chris Nelson, whom you are not-so-subtly poking here for his campaign-on-the-cheap) that you believe people are only serious about issues if they spend money. That's the free-market fundamentalist mindset run rampant. The fact that you are richer than Chris Nelson doesn't make you more serious about policy or about helping South Dakota.

Curd's cash-in gets me reviewing the campaign finance records. Some notes of interest:

• Among R. Blake's backers are a whole bunch of doctors... and fellow wealthy South Dakota Republican Steve Kirby. Kirby and his wife Suzie maxed out for Curd right around Christmas. Ho ho ho.
• Kristi Noem has Wall Drug power: Ted Hustead is her treasurer.
  
• The Kirbys also kicked in $1500 each for Noem when she announced in February.
• Daktronics mastermind Al Kurtenbach gave both Nelson and Curd $250.
• Also conflicted: South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley. Jackley PAC has given $500 to Curd and $500 to Nelson. Marty apparently can't figure out which candidate he backs any more clearly than he can figure out which argument to run in court.
  
• As of last week, the Noem campaign was broke: $43,152 cash on hand, but $48,537 in debt. Maybe next time she'll hire Team Munsterman to shoot her ads locally instead of jetting to Texas.
  

Curd and Noem Say More Online Than Nelson

I found a surprise when I reviewed the "Issues" pages of South Dakota's GOP candidates for U.S. House. From at least a couple perspectives, Chris Nelson comes across as the emptiest head on the block. Kristi Noem and R. Blake Curd both address more issues and advocate more specific policies. Below is a numerical comparison (with SHS's "Issues" page data thrown in for the enjoyment of the lucky winner on June 8) :

	Curd	Nelson	Noem	Herseth
issues	7	6	10	9
words	1724	240	471	753
words/issue	246	40	47	84
specific policies	5	1	7	12
words/policy	345	240	67	63

Note that Curd's numbers include the "Read More" pages linked to each issue (nice! give the Web reader links to click, make 'em feel like they're doing something).

Note also that my "specific policy" count is open to interpretation (I'm looking for actionable policy, not just guiding principles or slogans). I welcome your own readings and codings of the content, dear readers....

This is a very snapshotty (some might simply say shoddy) glance at campaign content. But so is the seemingly tireless jibber-jabber over campaign TV ads. This snapshot shows what each candidate wants to lay out for the motivated voter who is actively seeking information.

There's also no inherent value in word count alone. Noem manages to lay out more specific policies than Curd with just 27% of Curd's verbiage. Both men in the race are worse on this count... and surprisingly, looking just at the Issues pages, Noem barks out a policy bite at about the same rate as the incumbent Congresswoman she hopes to unseat.

Much to the discredit of all three GOP candidates: still bupkis on Native Americans. Only SHS takes time to address on her main issues page the rights and concerns of South Dakota's biggest minority group. Gubernatorial candidate Dennis Daugaard has picked up the slack on this issue since my January criticism of our candidates' awkward silence on Native American issues; the GOP House candidates had better do the same.

Nelson Bigger Birther than Curd and Noem?

I thought I knew Chris Nelson. I thought I could count on him to be the rational Republican who could challenge Stephanie Herseth Sandlin on practical policy issues and tamp down the red-meat right-wing nuttiness.

Instead, Chris Nelson appears to be campaigning for BFF to Michele Bachmann and Orly Taitz.

Kevin Woster cracks my perecption of reality by asking our U.S. House candidates a simple question: Do you think President Obama was born in Hawaii or someplace else?

The answers, in descending order of rationality:

Kristi Noem: “South Dakotans have many other important issues they are concerned with, such as jobs, energy, and the economy.”

R. Blake Curd: “Hawaii’s own Republican Governor has said President Obama was born there. That’s good enough for me. What concerns me is the direction he and the Democrat-led Congress are taking our country. That’s what I’m focused on. Conservatives should harness their energy towards electing fiscally responsible leaders who will fight reckless spending, our growing debt and higher taxes.”

Chris Nelson: “Yes, meeting the constitutional qualifications to be President is a very important issue. If President Obama isn’t constitutionally qualified, it would be the biggest scam ever perpetuated [sic] on the American people. MANY people contacted me as Secretary of State prior to and after the election asking how Obama could be on our ballot given this controversy. Absent a court finding that he isn’t a natural born citizen, we have to take the certification from the National Democratic Convention at face value.”

If, Chris? IF?!?!

Noem gives the right answer, shrugging off the nuttery with one sentence. R. Blake gets windy but at least says he takes the President at his word. It's Chris Nelson who piles on all the weasel words he can, invoking invisible masses to validate the controversy and fears of the biggest scam ever. In Nelson's world, President Obama's status as a native-born American is merely a matter of opinion of the National Democratic Convention.

Ugh, Chris. Ugh ugh ugh! When you make Noem and Curd sound like the reasonable Republicans in the room, your campaign is really, really in trouble.

Teabaggers Rejoice! No Bailout for Flooded Homes!

The South Dakota Office of Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have determined that "flood damage to homes in South Dakota is not severe enough to warrant federal aid for individual property owners."

Hooray for limited government! Who needs that government money sapping our souls "under the guise of assistance and compassion" ... right, R. Blake? right?

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Update 09:19 CDT: R. Blake, see Michael Woodring for your articulate response.

Poll: Noem Narrows Nelson Numbers, Curd Creamed

The latest Madville Times poll finds Chris Nelson leading in public opinion... but not by as much as I might have expected!

The poll asked, "Which Republican is best qualified to represent South Dakota in Congress?" 190 respondents clicked as follows:

• Chris Nelson: 90 (47%)
• Kristi Noem: 83 (44%)
• R. Blake Curd: 17 (9%)

The numbers were fun to watch over the week. For the first three days, Nelson was creaming the competition, capturing about 70% of the votes as of Thursday. But starting Friday after lunch, Noem supporters came on strong, posting about 70% of the votes in the last 36 hours of the poll, which ended Saturday night.

So, given the standard online self-selecting polling error about the size of Kristi Noem's farm subsidies, what do we learn from these numbers? Here are some possible interpretations:

1. Nelson's got name.
2. Noem's got buzz.
3. Curd's got money that isn't buying much. (As of March 31, Curd had spent twice as much as Noem and Nelson combined.)
4. Noem's people pay more attention to the Web. Yes, that skews polls... but no more than any good get-out-the-vote push skews election results.
   
5. The conservatives who come to this blog to observe and dissect opposing views aren't flocking to Curd. They see Nelson and Noem as better standard bearers for the fall who can better cut into Stephanie Herseth Sandlin's greatest source of strength, the gentle middle who just want to vote for someone who seems nice enough.
   

Your further analysis of the numbers is welcome!

Curd, Nelson, or Noem: Vote Now! Poll Ends Saturday Night

The choice is clear: one syllable, two syllables... or a syllable and a half?

Just a day and a half left on the latest Madville Times poll, which asks you which GOP candidate has the best chops for Congress? R. Blake Curd, Chris Nelson, or Kristi Noem—vote now in the right sidebar!

You have until the SNL closing credits (repeat tomorrow night; go make out, wait for Betty White on the 8th!) to vote. Click in, speak up, and we'll dissect the numbers on Sunday.

Smartest Elephant in the Room II: Which Republican for House?

New Madville Times poll! After your great enthusiasm for the GOP gubernatorial poll, it's time for a GOP House poll: "Which Republican is best qualified to represent South Dakota in Congress?"

Once again, I'm not asking which one will win in June. I'm also not asking which one you'll vote for in June or November. Even if you're a Herseth or Marking voter, I'd like your assessment of the qualifications of the three Republican candidates for South Dakota's lone House seat. Chris Nelson, Kristi Noem, or R. Blake Curd—which one's best qualified to represent our fair state in Washington?

Vote in the poll in the right sidebar, then leave your comments below. Voting ends Saturday night, so click now!

Hated and Poorly Debated: Nelson, Curd, Noem Blow Smoke on Health Care

Health care reform is hated by all... all three GOP candidates for South Dakota's House seat, that is. They evidently hate it so much, they can't even debate it right. Compare what they say to RCJ's Lynn Taylor Rick with what they were actually thinking.

1. R. Blake Curd: “At this point, we don’t know the extent of the bill and its reaches. It is a significant increase in the governmental intrusion into health care."
   • Translation: we know darn well what's in it, but addressing facts generally works against Republicans. So instead of acknowledging the long list of good things the new law does for South Dakota, I'm going to keep bleating my campaign slogans about big government that let you voters maintain your fantasies that you're fighting Marxist tyranny.
2. Chris Nelson: "Because you exist you must purchase insurance? That particular mechanism is not constitutional."
   • Translation: I don't want to talk about why insuring everyone is a good idea. I don't want to confuse people with policy details. Keep it simple, shout Constitution!, and hope no one asks about all the other things required of people by dint of their existence, like wearing clothes and signing up for Selective Service.
3. R. Blake Curd, on the insurance mandate: "You can’t criminalize any behavior you don’t want to happen because you think it’s a bad idea."
   • Translation: Ignore the fact that I sponsored and voted for the smoking ban and supported all sorts of other legislation to criminalize behavior I don't like. I mean you Democrats can't criminalize behavior you Democrats don't like.
4. Kristi Noem, on banning exclusions for pre-existing conditions: "I haven’t really evaluated it. I don’t like the mandates."
   • Translation: Oh no. That's one of those facts about the law that people like when they cut through my Michele Bachmann impersonation. I can't admit Democrats did a good thing. What do I do? What do I do? Help, R!
5. R. Blake Curd, same topic: "I’m not sure that a blanket federal law is best solution for it."
   • Translation: I don't know, either, Kristi! Um... um... do like Chris and change the topic to the 10th Amendment again!
     
6. Kristi Noem, on why Republicans didn't do something about health care when they held the reins: "Maybe we haven’t had the people in Washington, D.C., with the will to do it. But I don’t think it’s good to pass bad legislation to be able to stand up and say we passed something."
   • Translation: Stop reminding people of the facts! Everyone knows it's easier to say no to Democrats than to create policies of our own. And that's the same do-nothing obstructionism I'll take to Washington!
     
7. Chris Nelson, same topic: "I’m not making excuses for what Republicans did or didn’t do in the past...."
   
   • Translation: Yes, I am making excuses....

This is why I like primaries: the more Republicans talking, the more blog material they provide.

More Federal Help for South Dakota: Send It Back, Right, R. Blake?

Back at the beginning of his campaign for U.S. House, Dr. R. Blake Curd said something about how Uncle Sam is an evil dad and South Dakota needs to be more self-sufficient and send that nasty federal money back to Washington. Curd called for ending and reversing the liberty-destroying trend of Congress inserting "the federal government ever deeper into the lives of our citizens under the guise of assistance and compassion."

So here's more assistance and compassion from Uncle Sam that Curd can urge us to reject:

• The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is sending us $13.4 million "to support community development and produce more affordable housing." Building homeless shelters, helping low-income folks buy their own homes... definitely weakening our spirits, right, R. Blake?
• HUD kicked in another $145K last month for job training vouchers. Helping low-income folks get off welfare and into jobs... more evil government intereference, right, R. Blake?
• USDA is sending South Dakota tribes over $700K in stimulus money to help people eat. Expect R. Blake to send that money back and drive out to teach our Lakota neighbors how to fish in the Cheyenne River.
• USDA also sends money that supports state grants to farmers markets in South Dakota. Boy, R. Blake sure wouldn't want to promote South Dakotans growing and selling their own food to their neighbors.
  
• Last week Governor Rounds announced $25 million in Recovery Bonds (yup, that durned Obama stimulus again) to do things like upgrade Miller's electrical grid and build a new school in Harrisburg. Oh, how folks in Miller will suffer from better electrical transmission! How the children in Harrisburg will see their liberty destroyed by learning in a new building! You're totally against that, right, R. Blake?

Don't expect R. Blake to respond to these issues. He'll keep up conservative fakery, lifting his pinky to the Tea Party crowd while voting the same way as every other South Dakotan we send to Washington, bringing home the bacon our state depends on.

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Perhaps related from Ned Hodgman, sometimes government must act, even if we don't like it.

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Update 2010.04.24 12:16 CDT: Add another $3M in free money and $5M in easy loan money from USDA to Kingbrook Rural Water System. This stimulus money will help connect 185 new customers to my water system, install 16 miles of new pipe, and build a water tower near Ramona. I suspect R. Blake would have Kingbrook just go down the street and ask Mary if they could borrow her water tower.

What Principles? Curd Misrepresents Own Tax Pledge

R. Blake, did you even read the thing you signed?

Dakota War College parrots the press releases, but Bob Mercer gets the story: Republican Dr. R. Blake Curd is trumpeting the fact that he's the only candidate in South Dakota's U.S. House race to sign this posturing little pledge from Americans for Tax Reform.

Easy for R. Blake to say, now that he's already voted for SB 186, a tax increase on South Dakota employers. Mercer says SB 186 means South Dakota employers will pay tens of millions more this year to replenish our state unemployment insurance fund. Of course, it's worth noting that SB 186 also decreased another surcharge on employers. NFIB says the law appears to be revenue neutral (see David Montgomery for numbers), but the fact remains that Curd voted to increase taxes for at least some South Dakota businesses.

Now I'm actually fine with increasing that tax. We've got to have unemployment insurance, and we've got to fund it somehow. Now's not the best time to hit employers with a tax, but grumbling about that now is like the fire crew grumbling about having to get up a two a.m. to put out a fire.

What I'm grumbling about is R. Blake's fake principles. If "signing the pledge to oppose any and all tax increases was a simple decision that fits in with my basic principles for governing," then are we to assume he didn't discover these basic principles until after March 3, when he voted for SB 186?

Not only is Curd's pledge blatant pandering to the inattentive voter, but he doesn't even understand what he signed. R. Blake says he signed a pledge to fight "any and all tax increases." The document he claims to have signed (hard to read—doctor's penmanship!) talks about opposing increases in marginal income tax rates and decreases in deductions and credits. Americans for Tax Reform (you know, Grover Norquist's outfit fighting to drown government in the bathtub) does peddle a State Taxpayer Protection Pledge that advocates opposing every tax increase, but that's a whole different kettle of bad policy fish.

R. Blake Curd likes the sound of Tea Bag slogans echoing in his head, but he's still faking it. He still can't mesh his fancy speeches and his voting record into a coherent governing philosophy.

Even if you want to throw the bums out, you don't want to throw this bum in.

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Bonus Blake Backsliding! R. Blake hates the stimulus package. But he voted, right along with fellow tea-flavored Republican Gordon Howie, for HB 1018, which changed our unemployment law to allow us to qualify for more stimulus money. (I welcome the good doctor to explain to his friends the tricky amendment machinations surrounding HB 1018.)

Curd and Noem: Obama Stimulus Evil (Except When It Funds Programs We Like)

Badlands Blue highlights more hypocrisy from million-dollar mansioneer R. Blake Curd and millionaire-subsidy rancher Kristi Noem. Curd and Noem like to make hay by criticizing the Democrat they hope to unseat, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, for voting for the stimulus package. But Curd and Noem are perfectly happy to spend that evil money to support things like ethanol blender pumps that they think are good for South Dakota.

These Republicans just can't be honest with South Dakota. They want to win by telling you they oppose deficit spending and big government. But they know full well that keeping the state budget afloat, promoting South Dakota priorities, and climbing out of the recession all depend on aggressive government action. Curd and Noem know Obama and the rest of us Dems are right; they just can't admit it.

Curd and Noem Know Nukes? Republicans Evidently Don't Like Ike

R. Blake Curd is a wealthy Sioux Falls surgeon who likes mansions and tries buying access to candidates of whichever party holds power. Kristi Noem is a farm welfare queen without a college degree. Both scare me when they farcically pretend to be nuclear warriors and presume to criticize President Barack Obama's nuclear weapons policy.

While the President is busy signing historic treaties with Russia, Curd and Noem might want to brush up on the history of an icon of their own party:

In the spring of 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower made a sweeping change in the American approach to nuclear war. Henceforth, the United States would rule out waging nuclear war against non-nuclear states....

Eisenhower had no grand objective in installing this policy. Rather, he had become worried by a growing clamor emanating from the Pentagon, supported by “wizard of Armageddon” intellectuals like Henry Kissinger and Democrats keen on retaking the White House, that the United States could wage, and win, a “limited” nuclear war....

On Monday, President Obama announced, in his Nuclear Posture Review, a new American approach to nuclear war that comes right out of Eisenhower’s playbook. And, indeed, Mr. Obama quickly came under criticism from those who have argued that new American technologies, together with the diminished capacity of traditional adversaries, have now made nuclear war winnable... [Campbell Craig, "Just Like Ike (on Deterrence)," New York Times, 2010.04.08].

Yeah, but Eisenhower was soft on Communism, too, right?

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p.s.: Yes, Nelson made similar noise at the same forum about Obama's new nukes policy. But I give Nelson a break this morning, simply because I appreciate his continuing, consistent, and straightforward defense he's been giving conservatives for his role in taking Rep. Roger Hunt to reveal the name of the big anonymous donor in the 2006 anti-abortion campaign. "It wasn't about Roger Hunt, and it wasn't about the issue [of abortion]," Nelson told a conservative forum in Sioux Falls Monday. The lawsuit was about the law. Nelson is doing his share of pandering to the yahoos (also known as my fellow citizens), but if we're going to have a Republican stink up the joint, I'd take the faint musk of Nelson over the stench of Woe de Noem or That Which Rhymes with Curd.

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Update 2010.04.10: As Mr. Smith notes below and as Mr. Feser notes here, Curd and Noem also appear to forget that President Obama goal of a nuke-free world mirrors that of Saint Ronald. Nuclear policy also happens to be one of President Obama's strongest areas of experience... certainly stronger than anything any South Dakota candidate has to offer.

9-12ers Bring Nelson, Curd, Howie to Madison Tonight

Memo to Nelson campaign: brief out your response to my cousin's imminent question: "So what do you think of full-reserve banking?"

The local Glenn Beck fan club is hosting three political candidates at its Good Friday meeting, one of whom actually stands a chance of winning. The Madison 9-12 Project is hosting a conversation with Secretary of State Chris Nelson, District 12 State Representative R. Blake Curd, and District 30 State Senator Gordon Howie to Madison tonight, 6 p.m., VFW.

Gubernatorial Candidate Gordon Howie will be attendance. He will be talking about his candidacy and the South Dakota Health Care Freedom Act.

U.S. House candidates Chris Nelson and Blake Curd will also be there. I am sure they are eager to shake babies and kiss hands... or something like that... [Jason Bjorklund, meeting announcement, Madison 9-12 Project calendar].

One clarification: the Health Care Freedom bill is Tea Bag Republican Senator Howie's third attempt to nullify health care reform by declaring federal law invalid in South Dakota. (Next step: abolishing the Civil Rights Act and expropriating Ellsworth AFB, to be renamed Fort Sumter.) 9-12 organizer Jason Bjorklund is organizing a petition drive to put Howie's twice-failed legislation on the November ballot as an initiated law, and Howie and the 9-12ers will be stumping for signers tonight.

I am pleased to see the 9-12ers advancing from raging and flag-waving to canvassing for real civic action. Too bad their first project would cost the state a half million dollars in futile litigation.

But hey, they're also giving out free hot dogs! Come eat, come meet and greet! Tonight, Madison VFW, 6 p.m.

SHS Can't Win for Trying: Now Blamed for Other Blue Dogs' Votes

Memo to Herseth Sandlin: triangulation still isn't going to win you Republican votes. You tried in November, and Chris Nelson hammered you for not blocking health care reform on the procedural votes. Now you cast no votes on the bill and the procedurals, and you still catch Republican heck. Dr. R. Blake Curd moans and groans that you didn't show enough leadership in lobbying your fellow Blue Dogs to stop the bill:

While our own Representative voted against the measure, 30 other members of the so-called Blue Dog Coalition voted for the bill. If Rep. Herseth Sandlin had used her position in the Blue Dog Coalition to convince 4 other members to vote “no” the bill would have died. South Dakota only has one seat in the House and therefore we need a leader who will stake out their position and convince others it’s the right course of action [R. Blake Curd, official campaign propaganda, regurgitated at DWC, 2010.03.21].

If they can't hold you accountable for your vote, they'll hold you accountable for everyone else's vote. Remind me to comb the Legislative records and use this trick on Curd and Kristi Noem.

No matter what you do, Stephanie, the right wing is going to paint you as a leftist. You might as well have the fun of being a leftist! Get back on that Dem horse, ride hard, and ride left!

Legislative Notes: Curd vs. Noem on Small Schools

Of interest to small-town voters: The South Dakota House yesterday passed HB 1150 on a 40–29 vote. Compare the votes of two of our Republican candidates for U.S. House: big-city doctor R. Blake Curd votes aye, while small-town ranch gal Kristi Noem votes nay.

Dr. R. Blake Curd evidently feels it's perfectly acceptable to punish small schools for their success in attracting open enrollees. Evidently supporting school choice isn't a big issue for this conservative. Noem apparently feels we can find budget savings for the state somewhere other than on the backs of successful school districts.

Locally, District 8 Reps. Mitch Fargen and Gerry Lange joined Noem in voting against HB 1150. Let's see where our senator Russell Olson goes on this school-choice issue.

In other news from the Legislature yesterday:

• HB 1222, the farmers market bill, got unanimous support from the House (yay!).
• SB 21, a rather mushy bill that sort of bans social investing with the state investment funds and sort of doesn't, passed the State Senate unanimously. The more direct SB 134, stopping state investment in Iran, has passed the Senate and awaits attention from House State Affairs.
• Even deferred to the 41st day does not mean dead! Senate Appropriations resurrected SB 193, the pro-life bill that would extend Medicaid to all pregnant women. Alas, they made that effort just to give the bill a formal "Do Not Pass" recommendation.
• Oh yeah, and HB 1277 & HB 1278, those silly little anti-blogger bills, went nowhere in committee. Thank you, Mr. Powers, for your testimony. And thank you, members of the committee, for your rationality. Now, back to the counterplans....
  

Primary Prediction: Nelson 40%, Curd 31%, Hickey 29%

Pastor Steve Hickey has taken my advice to get off the abortion horse and expand his political horizons... and how! This morning he's joining the field of candidates vying to unseat our Democratic Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin.

Hickey's outspokenness and untraditional positions on issues like Native Americans and the Black Hills will bring back some of potential for interesting debate that we lost when Thad Wasson bailed. hickey also brings whiskers back to the race (Steve! Do not shave!). And with a campaign slogan like "Give Congress a Hickey!" how can he lose?

Here's how: Pastor Hickey and Dr. R. Blake Curd now split the angry conservative and fundagelical vote. Hickey pulls ahead with coherent conservatism as Curd proves himself a Tea Party faker... but then Curd cries "Indian lover!" and scares the hard base away from a candidate who wins praise from a liberal blogger for proposing reparations to Native Americans. The Chamber of Commerce Republicans run for the safety of Secretary of State Chris Nelson.

Final primary vote: Nelson 40%, Curd 31%, Hickey 29%. I want to give Hickey second place, as I think he'll cream Curd on personality and communication... but I really worry the Native American issue won't play well among GOP primary voters. Republicans, please prove me wrong.

Pastor Hickey, make the most of it. Lead the conversation.

But after June 8, the race gets boring again.

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Well, heck—that calculus lasted for about ten minutes. Darn you, Kristi Noem!