Constituents see a gubernatorial path for State Senator Troy Heinert

Since at least 2011 I've taken my proposal to mirror state gaming statutes to mayors and several commission members to make Deadwood the exclusive non-tribal cannabis market but they have always blown me off because they wanted the sports betting gig. So my position today is that the tribal nations trapped in South Dakota must have exclusive production and distribution privileges. South Dakota will be the 52nd State to make it legal for white people to grow or sell cannabis but tribal nations are already underway so the nutbag legislature should simply legalize possession and get out of their way.

South Dakota Sen. Troy Heinert, D-Mission, said marijuana legalization and businesses associated with marijuana can provide a boost to Native American reservations that have long faced economic challenges. South Dakota tribal communities have historically seen higher-than-average unemployment rates and low median incomes compared with the rest of the state. “I think it has a very good chance to provide an economic engine that could transform tribal communities,” he said. Heinert, a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe who is the minority leader in the South Dakota Senate, said several factors may give an edge to tribal governments or individual tribal members who pursue economic development related to legal marijuana. Heinert said tribal governments are smaller and more nimble than state government in regard to issuing permits or licenses related to the growth, production or sale of marijuana. Reservation communities also have the natural resources and potential workforce to support rapid development of marijuana-related businesses. “The biggest thing is that we can move faster,” Heinert said. “We have a land base; we have lots of people who are looking for work, and it is something that would be new.” [Legalization of marijuana could provide economic boost for S.D. Native American tribes]

Kevin Woster agrees.

An amended version of Senator Heinert's SR 701 asking the federal government to rescind the medals of honor that were given to the white soldiers at Wounded Knee is headed to the Senate floor. Now his constituents are encouraging him to run in the 2022 South Dakota Democratic Party gubernatorial primary.

Toured the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe Grow Facility. pic.twitter.com/OblZpvHymk

— Delbert Hopkins Jr. (@SwoChairman) February 18, 2021