Blog Brag: Dakota Free Press Shows Legislators How to Serve the Public

Former Democratic legislator Quinten Burg questions the folksy aw-shucks-ery we hear from some legislators about their part-time status as lawmakers:

Legislators who fully understand their role are those who work at it every day of the year. The weeks spent each winter in Pierre are a small part of it, Burg said.

“It’s not easy. It takes a lot of your time,” he said.

It’s also a continuous learning process, from the day one takes the oath until the day he or she retires from office.

“The more you know, the less you know,” Burg said. “You just think you’ve got something figured out and you realize there’s so much more there yet.”

Burg served in the House from 1999 to 2004 and again from 2007 to 2010. Throughout that time, he was a member of the Appropriations Committee, representing Beadle, Jerauld and Hand counties [Roger Larsen, “Speaker Cites Lack of Leadership,” Huron Plainsman, 2017.11.03].

Work at it every day of the year—hmm…. Over the past twelve years, I’ve written 14,673 blog posts. That’s an average of just over three blog posts a day. At least 80% deal directly with South Dakota issues, and usually I’m talking about the Legislature, ballot questions, state government corruption, constitutional rights, or other questions of public policy. So, on average, every day I offer at least one topic of South Dakota law and policy for conversation. I consult the Legislative Research Council’s website almost daily, provide sources for confirmation and extra reading, and invite public comment via multiple channels (Facebook, Twitter, private e-mail).

Via Dakota Free Press, I publish more information and more analysis more regularly and get more people reading and talking about more Legislative topics than any sitting legislator. And I do it all without Speaker Mickelson or Pro-Tem Greenfield authorizing reimbursements for frilly out-of-state travel.