Trump worshipping outlaw motorcyle gangs or OMGs traffic the bulk of fentanyl and meth in the US including in South Dakota and Montana where a faction within Bandidos MC called the Ghost Dancers operates on reservations. The Bandidos, Hells Angels, Mongols, Outlaws, and Sons of Silence pose a serious national domestic threat according to the US Department of Justice.
7/25/24
Feds grinding away at Bandidos MC as Sturgis revs up
7/23/24
Bored Noem eying Senate seat
“You really are the heart of every single community,” Noem told about 30 people who worked for newspapers. “It really is important work.” The mood in the room changed swiftly when Noem was confronted by her own words in a political fundraising letter. In part, the letter said: “You know as well as I do that we can’t trust the liberal media to tell the truth.” It’s odd to hear Noem espouse that freedom, since a couple of times earlier in her book she took credit for banning critical race theory from the state’s universities. [Praising free speech while trampling on it]
We had a busy day of office meetings — lots to accomplish for the people of South Dakota! pic.twitter.com/10xfQxTYsR
— Kristi Noem (@KristiNoem) July 22, 2024
7/22/24
Sturgis bracing for another racist Rally as Noem, LEOs turn heads from child sex trafficking and meth
Human trafficking takes place every year at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. Experts say it seems to only be getting worse and Indigenous girls are a common target. [Sturgis, hunting season a hotspot for trafficking of Indigenous women]Learn more about red state failure at South Dakota News Watch.
7/21/24
Indigenous water protectors band with non-Natives to stanch Black Hills bleeding
“Through our shared opposition to F3 Gold’s exploratory drilling project, local Native and non-Native communities realized we have similar ideals about how this land should be cared for – and that the only way for us to protect ourselves from toxic mining is to band together as a united force,” said Taylor Gunhammer, organizer at NDN Collective and member of newly formed community board opposing the Newark project. “By pushing F3 Gold’s Newark project through, The U.S. Forest Service has eliminated both environmental review and meaningful tribal consultation altogether.” [NDN Collective]Colorado's mineral extraction industries have effectively stolen over $500 billion from the Apache of Oklahoma, Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, Comanche, Kiowa, Northern Arapaho, Northern Cheyenne, Shoshone, Ute Tribe of Utah, Southern Ute, and Ute Mountain Ute. Read that here.
7/19/24
Despite Noem brags energy and medical costs make South Dakota toxic for many
About one in four farmers in the United States turn to binge drinking in response to high stress levels, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the University of Georgia. The study authors also surveyed producers about their perceived stress and mental health stigma. The farmers surveyed reported overall high stress levels, as well as concerns about social stigma and financial costs connected with seeking mental health services. [Study: Link Between Ag Stress, Alcohol]
7/16/24
GOP Veep pick hates American Indians too
In disavowing Indigenous Peoples’ Day, he found himself on common ground with Trump, who has been taking shots at American Indians and Alaska Natives for decades, often relying on racist stereotypes and offensive depictions of Native peoples. Vance also wants to override tribal sovereignty without consent with S.2738, the Freedom to Breathe Act. The bill bars tribes, whose peoples have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, from enacting their own mask mandate laws in schools and in public transit on their lands. [Trump selects Republican who called Indigenous Peoples’ Day ‘fake’ as running mate]Learn more at the Washington Post.
7/15/24
Republicans still driving Natives from the polls
“This bill is designed to intimidate, discourage and prevent eligible tribal members from registering to vote,” San Carlos Apache Tribe Chairman Terry Rambler said in a press release. “This legislation is an unconstitutional attempt to suppress the Native American vote and comes after the high turnout in the 2020 election decisively impacted federal election results in Arizona.” [San Carlos Tribe Opposes Legislation Passed by the House that Would Require Photo IDs to Vote]Donald Trump hates American Indians so deeply after losing a 1993 casino case under the 1988 Indian Gaming Act he deployed Covid as a biological weapon in 2020 to annihilate as many people as he could and so far he has gotten away with attempted genocide.
The SAVE Act is an extreme measure, masquerading as election security, that would prevent millions of American citizens from easily registering to vote.
— End Citizens United (@StopBigMoney) July 10, 2024
Congress should be focused on passing the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. pic.twitter.com/zEaTYbzKo9
7/14/24
Demolition Ranch just one Republican outlet breeding domestic terrorism
Authorities noted that Crooks was wearing a T-shirt from Demolition Ranch, a YouTube channel known for its firearms and demolition content. The channel, hosted by Matt Carriker, boasts millions of subscribers and features videos that explore the capabilities of various firearms and explosive devices. ['Demolition Ranch' Owner Responds to Thomas Matthew Crooks Shooting Trump]So which Republican Trump rival wants to take him out? Crooks was the real martyr and came just inches away from saving American democracy but after the incident in Pennsylvania Trump’s disciples turned on the media.
Pretty solid photo of the shooter wearing a Demolition Ranch shirt. This is probably the largest / most monetized gun YouTube media empire. If you were getting a shirt as camo to blend in, makes sense. They are also hugely popular, not weird they'd have a crazy fan. https://t.co/b8TybF1F98
— Robert Evans (The Only Robert Evans) (@IwriteOK) July 14, 2024
5 months ago, Alex Jones and InfoWars guest Ivan Raiklin discussed how assassinating Trump would be beneficial, according to them, because it would lead to retaliatory “in kind” assassinations of a “deep state” list which includes President Joe Biden.
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) July 14, 2024
Ivan Raiklin: “If they… pic.twitter.com/yzc1x1QJxh
7/13/24
Harris/Whitmer ticket best course for Democrats
As a Senator, her brightest moments were when she attacked during hearings. She would aim a litany of Socratic-style questioning at an expert or nominee and methodically back them into a corner. Remember when she did it to Jeff Sessions? “I’m not able to be rushed this fast,” he broke down during one exquisite line of questioning from Harris during his confirmation for attorney general. “It makes me nervous.” Harris did it again to eventual Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his Senate confirmation hearings. She asked if he agreed there were “both sides to blame” for the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville that left one woman dead, as then-president Donald Trump insisted. Kamala Harris is, as many of her critics have noted, a trained prosecutor who spent the first two decades of her career enforcing the rule of law. [Either Way, Kamala Harris Can Help Beat Trump]
Joe Biden’s best dignity-preserving option is to run in an open convention this summer, @gcaw argues. https://t.co/kaP9zZ9wTQ pic.twitter.com/eEpi1h87iP
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) July 9, 2024
7/11/24
Trump, Noem killing decorum in Custer County?
The ever-increasingly contentious political climate we see on the national level continues to trickle down into local politics, as more and more you can read stories about or see videos about people going to their local county, city or school board members and creating a scene while being downright nasty.
From time to time you can see it even here in Custer County. Anybody who was at the Buffalo Gap Town Board meeting last week saw it first hand. The meeting vacillated from organized to chaotic, as tensions boiled over multiple times, leading to shouting matches between various members of the public and town board members, or between members of the audience. There were shouts of liar, insults and even people telling other people to go back to where they presumably came from before living in Buffalo Gap.
At one point in the meeting in Buffalo Gap town attorney Lance Russell stood and implored those gathered that it was important to show decorum at the meeting, and we couldn’t agree more. That’s not how we run governments in this country (despite growing evidence to the contrary).
And this isn’t just to pick on Buffalo Gap. Hermosa Town Boards have grown frequently contentious, the Custer County Commission occasionally has some steamed citizens that have to be calmed down, and there was a time nearly every Custer City Council meeting had people at each other’s throats. It’s one thing to be passionate, it’s another to be a disruptive jerk. [Decorum is important]Learn more at South Dakota News Watch.
7/10/24
Violent Black Hills county is even scaring Republican Wyoming legislator
All but one of the legislators who represent Weston County in the Wyoming Senate and House of Representatives were present to provide updates on legislative matters and answer questions from attendees at a town hall held in Newcastle on June 26 at the Weston County Event Center at the fairgrounds. “I will have nothing to do with the Weston County Republican Party and the far right that non-stop attack me,” he told the News Letter Journal, claiming the party chose not to support him after he won the Republican primary in 2022. [Town hall truant]James Wesley Rawles coined the phrase American Redoubt in 2011. From his SurvivalBlog (dot) com he supposes Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, eastern Oregon and Washington are survivalist havens for the christian nationalist movement. As recently as 2017 he used a post office box in Newcastle, Wyoming as his mailing address and credits the late Susan Callaway as his Black Hills connection.
Fifteen Wyoming clergy members and faith leaders recently denounced a “rising tide of extremist rhetoric poisoning our debates and discussions in the Equality State.” They raised their concerns in a letter sent last week to Gov. Mark Gordon, Senate President Ogden Driskill, House Speaker Albert Sommers and University of Wyoming President Ed Seidel, asking them to take a stand. The religious leaders named Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray, the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, Turning Point USA and its founder Charlie Kirk as contributing to the rhetoric and “openness to political violence.” [Wyoming clergy speak out against political extremism]Tension is high in the Mountain West so local Bureau of Land Management offices and employees are on alert for militant zealots bent on violent disruptions or worse as the agency assesses resource management plans.
Ever wonder why the reddest state in America governs like it’s run by Democrats? @HagemanforWY explains. pic.twitter.com/3d3M1Vuy97
— Wyoming Freedom Caucus (@WYFreedomCaucus) June 22, 2024
7/9/24
Local horse shelter on alert after cougar kills two foals
“We are completely devastated by this loss and in response have taken as many precautions and actions as possible,” Susan Hemmerle, executive director of Santa Fe-based nonprofit The Horse Shelter, said in an email. She said the shelter has moved its other mares with foals, and a pregnant mare, off its ranch in Cerrillos “as they are at the greatest risk.” [Albuquerque Journal]Federal land managers removed about 50,000 free-roaming horses and burros from public ground across the West from 2020 to 2023.
7/6/24
Minnesota dam breach released 12 million cubic yards of poisonous sediment
More than a century's worth of sediment was unleashed downstream into the Blue Earth River after the partial failure of the Rapidan Dam last week. There was an estimated 11.6 million cubic yards of sediment behind the dam. And it was high in phosphorus and nitrogen because of nearby agricultural runoff. [Rapidan Dam partial failure sent more than a century’s worth of sediment pollution downstream]
7/5/24
Catholics are leading the crusade to destroy American democracy
When Kevin Roberts took over as president of tiny Wyoming Catholic College in 2013, few people outside of its Lander base even knew the school existed. But in just three years, the media-savvy Roberts managed to put the conservative campus in the national spotlight by embracing the term “Cowboy Catholics” and by refusing to accept federal grants and student loans that he felt would compromise the school’s independence and religious freedom. Its original dismissal of Trump as a legitimate candidate forced Heritage to scramble for influence. Roberts and Heritage have vowed not to let that happen again. To lead the “Project 2025” team, Roberts hired two former Trump administration insiders. [Wyoming’s ‘Cowboy Catholic’ could remake government if Trump wins]Roberts is also a principal in the Council for National Policy and a member of Opus Dei, as is Rick Santorum and Trump attorney general, Bill Barr.
According to federal court filings, the fraud began in the spring of 2020 when McCown received $841,863 from the federal coronavirus relief program, or CARES Act, that was administered by the Wyoming Business Council. Alerted to possible fraud by online tips, the Wyoming Business Council conducted an audit in January 2021 and reported its concerns to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. [Former Catholic College CFO sentenced in Lander fraud case]The Council for National Policy was created in 1981 by the extreme white wing of the Republican Party. Mike Pence is a member of the CNP as is Ohio Representative Jim Jordan (NAZI-OH) so was the late Wyoming resident, Foster Friess who gave $500,000 to a gaggle of religionist organizations in South Dakota just before he croaked. Robert Mercer, the blow-it-all-up Cambridge Analytica guy with billions stashed in South Dakota and ties to Faceberg and Maria Butina is a major donor to CNP. Members have included Oliver North, Jerry Falwell, Steve Bannon, Ginni Thomas, Betsy DeVos, Leonard Leo, current Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and other Earth hating notables.
Bill Barr covered up Iran-Contra for Bush, Reagan & Mike Flynn’s mentor Jack Singlaub.
— Jim Stewartson, Counterinsurgent 🇺🇸🇺🇦💙🎈 (@jimstewartson) July 4, 2024
Bill Barr’s dad gave Jeffrey Epstein his first job with access to kids.
Bill Barr was hired by Trump & went to visit Epstein in jail. Epstein was dead the next day.
Jack Singlaub wrote a letter… pic.twitter.com/emkPq6m5QK
7/3/24
"Blessings of liberty" would undermine food safety, forest health
According to Project 2025, a second Trump White House–and by extension, an already Trump-loving Congress–should enact a wholesale overhaul of the 2018 Farm Bill and its implementing agency, the 163-year-old U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Continued foot dragging by today’s House leadership to even schedule a Farm Bill vote and a long-stalled Senate already has Washington discussing another extension of the 2018 law until after–you guessed it–January 2025. [Alan Guebert: Farm Bill politics 2024 lean toward Project 2025]South Dakota's Earth hating congressional delegation frequently calls for a socialized Black Hills timber industry to placate Hulett, Wyoming-based donor, Neiman Enterprises while spouting the "blessings of liberty." In the ag portion of the Project 2025 text is an outline for unlimited corporate access to national forests despite a timber glut and sawmill closures.
Nitrates are rushing from fields into waters of the Corn Belt. Pollution reigns across Iowa and other states. Industrial agriculture is worst water polluter ever in U.S. https://t.co/gYgJZbSAga
— Keith Schneider (@modeshift) May 24, 2024
7/2/24
SD exports down more than 11% as energy prices soar
The June RMI for South Dakota slumped to 45.5 from May’s 47.9. The state’s farmland price index rose to 50.1 from 48.4 in May. South Dakota’s June new hiring index declined to 48.1 from 50.3 in May. According to trade data from the International Trade Association, exports of agriculture goods and livestock for 2024 year-to-date were up 24.5% from the same period in 2023. [Rural Mainstreet Economy Down for 10th Straight Month; Farmland Prices Fall for a Second Consecutive Month]Learn more about red state failure at South Dakota Searchlight.
7/1/24
Corn acres down but hemp's budding
Farmers grow three different varieties of hemp in South Dakota: CBD, fibers, and grain and seed. South Dakota reached No. 1 for grain and seed acres in 2022 and now reached No. 1 for fibers this year. [South Dakota No. 1 state in nation for hemp production]ip image.
6/27/24
Fast-tracking Tower name change in the works
Immediately upon taking office as the first Native American to serve as the Secretary of Interior, Deb Haaland in November of 2021 directed the National Park Service to create a new Advisory Committee on Reconciliation in Place Names on behalf of the Department of the Interior. If the U.S. [Board on Geographic Names] doesn’t act within a reasonable time, then the Interior Secretary has the authority to rename a geographic feature. The Subcommittee said it is time for the Secretary to rename the geographic feature, as well as the unincorporated populated place, given the time that has passed and the support of 20 sovereign Nations. The National Park Service says that maps from 1857 to 1901 mark Devils Tower as Bear Lodge or Bears Lodge. [Committee asks to fast track Devils Tower name change to Bear Lodge]Even failed red state, South Dakota has removed derogatory monikers from geographical features but it's not that Black Elk Peak has been renamed for a Lakota holy man that irks Earth haters it's that the mountain was renamed for a warrior who rebuked the Roman Church.
6/26/24
Land board blocks Montana overreach in APR bison case
Yellowstone National Park calls for more bison in the park, increased hunting of animals outside the park & an expansion of the tribal transfer program in new plan. #mtnewshttps://t.co/pvO08rOsKX via @MTFreePress
— Amanda Eggert (@amandaleggert) June 7, 2024
6/25/24
Earth hater Burgum embraces CO2 pipeline that splits GOP
While Burgum has outlined plans to make North Dakota carbon neutral by 2030, he’s steered clear of describing the pipeline or other carbon capture initiatives as environmentally friendly. Instead, he touts them as a lucrative business opportunity for North Dakota that might ultimately assist the fossil fuel industry. [A potential Trump VP pick backs a controversial CO2 pipeline favored by the Biden White House]South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem signed SB 201 which some call the "Landowner Bill of Rights" further splitting the South Dakota Republican Party.
The two Republican parties consist of one group of traditional conservatives and another group that’s even more conservative and not at all traditional. One group is interested in steering the ship of state while the other would rather run it aground. [Dana Hess, Primary upsets could cause a hard right turn in the Legislature]Recall that in response to that citizen resistance in a neighboring state Mrs. Noem signed a bill that revived that state’s criminal and civil penalties for rioting and incitement so had Donald Trump led his insurrection in South Dakota he would have run afoul of her riot boosting law. But in the eyes of some that as Commander in Chief Trump clearly failed the State of North Dakota for not removing the protesting citizens from land managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers.
6/24/24
Weaponized wildfire likely in southern New Mexico blazes
Hopefully they will be as successful in preventing foreign-inspired pyroterrorism and will become better at preventing massacres by deranged white domestic terrorists with stockpiles of weapons. [Wildfire Today]Learn more at KRWG.
6/23/24
Today in red state failure: BHNF being ripped apart over wildlife extermination
The northern long-eared, little brown, and tri-colored bat are three of the species Northern Hills Ranger District Wildlife Biologist Amy Hammesfahr describes, when she says bats are hanging by a loose thread. [Black Hills Pioneer]
The Bearlodge RD is soliciting interest from businesses & individuals wishing to offer new outfitting & guiding services for hunting big game (deer & elk), hunting mountain lions, & hunting spring turkeys on NFS lands. https://t.co/04mKBnvLyT pic.twitter.com/NlV76MBYST
— Black Hills NF (@BlackHillsNF) June 18, 2024
6/22/24
"South Dakota Amtrak: Feasible, defensible, and much-requested! - SD1"
6/21/24
Today's intersection: the unitary executive, John Eastman, SCOTUS and environmental protection
But before getting sucked into the gravitational force that is Donald Trump, Eastman, 64, was the sort of conservative legal figure whose name one might forget, a law professor with a cushy job and a chairmanship at a practice group of the conservative legal organization the Federalist Society. He epitomizes the type of anti-regulatory, Federalist Society–bred legal mind you can expect to see elevated by Trump. Many environmental lawyers see the preservation of rivers, lakes, forests, and the air—which cross state lines—as an issue of inherently federal concern. [Fish, Toads, and John Eastman: Inside the Conservative Project to Undo Federal Environmental Laws]Yes, the US Environmental Protection Agency and US Fish and Wildlife Service are within the Executive Branch and as Commander in Chief the president could simply order the Army Corps of Engineers and all to stand down.
John Eastman didn't just come out of nowhere. He lived an entire legal life before Donald Trump.
— Jackie Flynn Mogensen (@jackiefmogensen) June 19, 2024
I spent weeks examining Eastman's writings, speeches, and legal work on environmental law over the last 40 years. A clear theme emerges: https://t.co/TFNIxysiTW
6/18/24
SDGOP not so civil war drawing blood, flinging feces, hurting women
All of the money went to people on the extreme end of the political spectrum. Only candidates that [sic] would support the political careers of Jon Hansen, Fred Deutsch, Scott Odenbach and Spencer Gosch were worthy of seeing our misappropriated donor dollars.
What these people have done with our donor dollars is much worse than this looks. We always were about pro-life. Now, [South Dakota Right to Life] spends our dollars to oppose 100% pro-life public servants. Only those that are part of the “tin foil hat” world view, so they will support Jon Hansen for Speaker and Scott Odenbach for Majority Leader, were deemed worthy of getting our misappropriated funds.
We pro-lifers, that [sic] aren’t part of the “tin foil hat” world need a place to send our funds in support of the sanctity of life. There are thousands of us in South Dakota. Hopefully a trustworthy new option will surface. We still have much work to do to reach the hearts and minds across our whole state on the sanctity of human life. Time to go hug our kids and grandkids and pray for our future. [Schoenbeck, Dakota War Toilet]1. Abortion is health care and a pregnant woman is the patient.