I think I just made up a saying. It could be an axiom or a bromide. Maybe it’s a platitude. At any rate, it sounds true. (Maybe it’s a truism.) Here it is: The only fair tax is one that …
Americans didn’t learn much about Pentagon nominee Pete Hegseth at his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, but they did learn more about the world’s greatest nondeliberative body. …
At an early age, a few people taught me the power of a quick wit — how it can defuse a situation, help assert oneself, or unite an otherwise divided room. Terry Ree and Bruce Williams were two …
A year of widening political divisions ended with the sobering news that confidence in the nation’s judicial system has also taken a hit, dropping to a record low 35 percent, according to the …
In her 2024 budget address, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem announced an educational innovation for parents and students: educational savings accounts. She explained that this investment would pay for …
Soon Gov. Kristi Noem could be installed as the next secretary of Homeland Security. In one of her last official acts as governor, Noem managed to instill some uncertainty in South Dakota’s …
On Jan. 3, the new Republican majorities in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives were sworn in and I officially took over as Senate majority leader, and in a few weeks President Donald Trump …
As a new Congress was sworn in, this might seem like a bad time to talk about raising federal lawmakers’ pay. A government funding package failed last month, throwing Washington into a frantic …
The deadly attack on new year revellers in New Orleans, which killed at least 15 people and injured dozens more, was all the more terrible for its familiar characteristics. The method of attack …
January serves as National Human Trafficking Prevention Month, an important time for reflection, awareness, and action. This month is a solemn reminder of the urgent need to protect the most …
Gov. Kristi Noem seems surprised about the amount of state money flowing to public broadcasting. “South Dakota has the third highest per capita funding of public broadcasting of any state …
Jimmy Carter’s presidency began with a simple act meant to signal a new relationship between the people and their government: He and his wife, Rosalynn, got out of their limousine and walked a …
Anglers catching fish in zebra mussel-infested lakes may be reeling in adult walleyes with mercury content 72% higher and perch with 157% higher levels than those being caught on non-infested lakes. …
She didn’t really say it in so many words, but it was obvious to anyone who listened to Gov. Kristi Noem’s budget speech. She’s breaking up with us. Maybe she didn’t want to …
Every year, I am always blown away by the decorations at the South Dakota State Capitol. Volunteers decorate dozens of trees and decorate the whole Capitol in a theme. This year, the theme is …
To hear South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem tell it, her newly proposed and euphemistically named “Education Savings Account” program is all about giving disadvantaged parents the …
Next month, Americans will turn the page on the Biden presidency. For many Americans, that day can’t come soon enough. The last four years have been characterized by a number of crises. With …
It was almost two years ago that this space was used to offer the idea that the South Dakota Legislature was operating under a two-and-a-half party system. The half party was Democrats, too few to …
Longstanding laws and norms govern how one presidential administration is supposed to hand off power to the next. They’re designed to ensure a smooth transfer while at the same time imposing …
The noise of wingbeats flying above the cattails creates instant excitement for my two yellow labs. Ducks start landing in the decoys, and my two oldest sons (who are 4 and 6) look up at me with huge …