Via Amande Radke: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1BEEcwBz1e/
Last night, I had the great honor to speak at the Butte County Republican Committee Lincoln Day Dinner in Belle Fourche, SD. I felt right at home west river in cattle country, and my presentation highlighted the grueling private property rights battle that has faced citizens on the east side of the state and the countless victories and blessings that have come since every day citizens got off the bench and got to work in this David & Goliath fight.
Standing alongside me were two legislators who have become treasured friends in this ongoing battle to keep South Dakota free — Speaker Pro Tem Karla Lems and Senator Mark Lapka. Lems and Lapka were the prime sponsors of HB1052 during this 100th legislative session, and with its passage, the people of South Dakota can finally rest easy at night knowing a private, foreign-backed, out-of-state Green New Deal carbon boondoggle cannot force its way onto land where it’s not welcome.
Yes, we had much to celebrate and many lessons learned that were shared last night because this playbook is being enacted all across the United States, and we the people must be ready to push back.
And our message to every South Dakotan last night was — we have come a long ways; we have achieved a great deal; but we are just getting started. There is much work to do, so let’s roll up our sleeves and get after it — we can never let something like this happen in our great state every again, and we are NEVER going back!
As I looked out at the crowd last night, it was a humbling thing because there were countless faces in the sold out event who have been actively involved in this fight. From serving on the RL21 committee, to gathering signatures, to passing out signs, to organizing rallies and meetings, to testifying in Pierre, to serving in our legislature, to baking auction pies to help raise money for the cause, and the list goes on and on. It was a heavy lift, but it became much lighter when we all committed to carrying it together.
Without question, what has been done in South Dakota is setting the example for the rest of the nation. One thing is clear, in South Dakota, we may be open for business, but we are not for sale. And the future of our agricultural communities looks very bright indeed because we now truly control the land beneath our feet.
Today, South Dakota serves as a beacon of hope, inspiration, and motivation for others across the nation to have courage to stand up to their bullies. In South Dakota, we truly are a place where “Under God The People Rule,” and together, we will lock arms together and work to keep it that way.
God bless!
