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Seiler Attends Inaugural Pierre Pride Festival, Cites Role in 2016 Potty-Panic Bill Veto

Democratic candidate for Attorney General Randy Seiler isn’t afraid to show his support of South Dakota’s LGBT community. He posts this photo of himself at Pierre’s first Pride Festival on his campaign Twitter:

Randy Seiler, Amanda Bachmann, and Michelle Lavallee at Pierre Pride Festival, 2018.07.07. Photo from Seiler campaign Twitter.
Democratic candidates Randy Seiler for Attorney General, Amanda Bachmann for District 24 Senate, and Michelle Lavallee for Lieutenant Governor at Pierre Pride Festival, 2018.07.07. Photo from Seiler campaign Twitter.

Seiler made clear that his support for LGBT neighbors is more than a photo opp. In remarks to the expectations-exceeding crowd at Saturday night’s Pride event at the Ramkota, Seiler said he helped Governor Dennis Daugaard see the wisdom of killing 2016 House Bill 1008, the 2016 anti-trans potty-panic bill:

Also a part of the governor’s veto message was the threat of a federal lawsuit: “Preserving local control is particularly important because this bill would place every school district in the difficult position of following state law while knowing it openly invites federal litigation.”

The reason for that part of the veto message, Seiler told festival attendees on Saturday, was the effort he made as U.S. Attorney for the district of South Dakota at the time. He had done the research to determine that the bathroom bill was unconstitutional, and he had told Gov. Daugaard that his office was prepared to bring legal action against the state if the bill were signed into law. Seiler said he’d told the governor that he’d be “buying a federal lawsuit” if he signed the bill [link added; Dave Askins, “Organizers County First Pierre Pride Festival a Success,” Pierre Capital Journal, 2018.07.09].

Not even in office yet, and Seiler already has a record of saving South Dakota money by keeping us out of lawsuits over unconstitutional legislation. Nice work, Randy!

Seiler’s opponent in the A.G. race, Jason Ravnsborg, was too busy to attend Pierre Pride.

18 Comments

  1. DR 2018-07-09 09:59

    Too busy? Mocking a guy serving our country…

  2. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2018-07-09 10:14

    Mocking? Au contraire, DR: stating fact. Ravnsborg was busy with something else. That busyness kept Ravnsborg from attending Saturday’s event. That’s exactly what I said, and it’s fact.

    Ravnsborg was too busy to be in Pierre for this event, much as he’s been too busy to file various papers on time for various legal clients, causing them complications for their legal cases. Ravnsborg’s energies are apparently better spent in the Army Reserves. Let him stay there. Randy Seiler’s energies are better spent serving as South Dakota’s top lawyer.

  3. Roger Cornelius 2018-07-09 12:10

    Now you went and done it, Cory.
    You have Powers and his paddies all whipped up in to a frenzy.
    Powers is all concerned that Randy sponsored the Pride Parade and that it will lead to sex in the girls bathroom.

  4. Porter Lansing 2018-07-09 12:19

    Anne Beal, a highly influentual member of the group that wrote the South Dakota Republican Party’s platform (the rules they live by and are promoting in November’s election) repeated this morning, ““Same-sex marriage is the stupidest thing I ever heard of! It’s stupid!” She doesn’t care about morality, religion, law, tolerance or politics, she cares about stupidity, and she’s not going to support it.
    Deplorable, Anne. Resign NOW!!

  5. mike from iowa 2018-07-09 12:57

    If Ann wants stupidity, look first at your WH and then cast the first stone.

  6. Roger Cornelius 2018-07-09 13:25

    There is nothing Anne Beal can do about same-sex marriage except complain, it is here to stay.

  7. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2018-07-09 13:30

    Heck, Roger, it sounds like I’ve done my job and can put my feet up for the rest of the day! :-)

    Anne Beal needs to get out more. There are many far more stupid things than two people making a lifelong commitment to each other. Even within that subset of human activity, I’d say Ivana, Marla, and Melania all made far stupider marriage choices than some of the gay folks I know who’ve married gay partners. But far be it from me to propose any sort of state intervention in their questionable choices of partner.

  8. Jenny 2018-07-09 13:32

    I really think that people that are so worried about other peoples sexuality like Anne Beal and Powers must not get enough sex and love in their own lives.

  9. Porter Lansing 2018-07-09 13:37

    What Powers wants to do and who he’s trying to influence is apparent from this statement, ” I’m not sure how all of this is going to play among the church-going folk in South Dakota.”

  10. Jenny 2018-07-09 13:44

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-5JqBr_Eis

    I dedicate this song to all the people like Anne Beal and Pat Powers that are against adults being able to marry who they love.
    It’s called Love Is Free by Sheryl Crow and sends a nice peaceful and loving message to the Haters!
    Peace and Love everyone! Isn’t that what Christians want?

  11. CIB vet 2018-07-09 15:39

    Was the evangelical mulligan for just trump’s adulterous affairs or did it include all christians? Just wondering………

  12. Kelly 2018-07-09 17:08

    We all know why Ravnsborg wasn’t there. Think about it.

  13. bearcreekbat 2018-07-09 18:26

    In another post mfi linked a great opinion piece that catigorized our nation’s current stupidity. It was one of the most accurate, although distressing, description of stupidity in the USA today that I have seen. As usual, mfi finds reality among the garbage offered up every day. Read the opinon piece linked by mfi and understand where we are heading if we don’t begin to reject such depressing and harmful absurdities.

    https://eand.co/the-age-of-the-imbecile-c52ee205d94c

  14. grudznick 2018-07-09 22:33

    It is funny when Mr. Ravnsborg is mocked for being too busy (factually), when also (factually) he hasn’t had a real job for years and hasn’t been too busy to do anything else but collect delegate votes and “volunteer” as some poor county’s lawyer where he never tried a case.

    grudznick urges all you libbies out there to vote for your man, Mr. Seiler, and don’t be typical libbie asses about it so you can turn a few more conservatives with common sense towards your cause to finally elected somebody with a (D) behind their name.

  15. Kelly 2018-07-09 23:35

    Ravnsborg has skeletons in his closet. Hang on there is more to come.

  16. Debbo 2018-07-10 00:48

    Thats great news that Pierre had a better turnout than expected at their Pride Celebration and wonderful that political candidates showed their support.

  17. Miranda Gohn 2018-07-10 12:03

    Those really pushing for Ravnsborg really have gone to great lengths to create this false image and supposed qualifications for South Dakota’s top law enforcement officer and consumer advocate being the Attorney General. Political favors sure seem to be owed to this guy who has had an unusual amount of time to be campaigning for years and doing the SDGOP’s foot work in defending measures that could be a threat to the governing party’s power and with his seminars contributing to the Islamaphobia/Xenophobia and Bigotry which again divides us and is so destructive and hurtful using one of the oldest political tools being fear and scapegoating for political gain.

    Can South Dakotans count on him to aggressively and objectively go after corruption in our state government knowing how the wheels sure seem to have been greased to get him to the AG finish line? I highly doubt it.

  18. Miranda Gohn 2018-07-10 12:24

    My understanding is that Jason Ravnsborg served as a Transportation Company Commander during the Iraq War. I appreciate his service and realize how vital Transportation/Logistical support is in the military for operations. It is also targeted by the enemy too in war also. No matter where or how someone served they should be proud of what they did since it takes everyone working together to accomplish the common goal but why in the world would Ravnsborg have photos of him in front of an A-10 Warthog on his old US Senate race website? It implied he did something he did not. He certainly must have known about it after the website went live and was only taken down when challenged if memory serves me correctly. Did he feel giving the impression of being a pilot of a popular ground attack Iraq Republican Guard tank buster plane would get him more votes than being a Transportation Unit Commander? How does that make those who served in Transportation units feel especially those under his command?
    Not good enough?

    Can you imagine the political fallout if someone running for US Senate anywhere in the US were to have a campaign photo of them wearing a Green Beret, Jump boots in front of the US Special Forces Command HQ sign at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina when this person although served honorably in the Army Reserve never a Green Beret, in Special Forces, never went to that school or even Airborne School?

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