While the South Dakota Legislature dithers about impeaching an Attorney General who killed a man and lied about it, the North Dakota Legislature expels one of its members for chronic sexual harassment:
Members voted 69-25 to expel Rep. Luke Simons, a Republican from Dickinson, for a pattern of behavior they said stretched back to soon after he took office in 2017. The expulsion came with strong support from Simons’ own party, which holds a supermajority in the chamber.
Majority Leader Chet Pollert, who co-sponsored the resolution to expel, said Simons had been given “multiple chances to avoid being in this situation.”
“There is only one way to make this behavior stop and that is to expel Rep. Simons from this House,” Pollert said [James McPherson, “North Dakota House Expels Lawmaker Accused of Misconduct,” AP via ABC News, 2021.03.04].
The North Dakota Legislature wasn’t afraid to gather and release evidence supporting its action:
A 14-page document compiled by the nonpartisan Legislative Council includes allegations that Simons made “advances” toward female staffers and interns, commented on their appearances and tried to give one staffer an unsolicited shoulder massage. One staffer described his behavior as “really creepy.”
The council this week released two additional documents alleging inappropriate and bizarre behavior by Simons, a 43-year-old rancher and barber who is married and has five children. One woman said Simons referred to her as “that pretty one,” and insulted her husband, “saying that usually women who are classy dressers like myself are married to shmucks like my husband.”
The woman, whose name was redacted in documents, also alleged that Simons once placed his lunch box in her office before leaving to use the restroom and said, “bet you hope there’s not a bomb in there, huh?” [McPherson, 2021.03.04].
Alas, like the South Dakota Legislature, the North Dakota Legislature sat on accusations of a predatory creep in its ranks for years and only took action when dogged journalist Rob Port forced the information out into the open:
The public only learned recently what members of the North Dakota House have known for several years: Simons has repeatedly made comments that are demeaning, suggestive, abusive or otherwise inappropriate toward women.
…He kept making his boorish and abusive comments despite repeated warnings by House GOP leaders, who first tried to counsel Simons, a barber and rancher, to get him to act appropriately. Those efforts failed miserably, as the public learned recently when Simons shouted a vulgar obscenity at Rep. Karla Rose Hanson, D-Fargo, who asked him to wear a mask, as required by legislative rules, in the Capitol cafeteria.
That outburst led Forum Communications columnist Rob Port to submit a public records request with the Legislative Council, yielding documents exhibiting a pattern of shameful conduct by Simons dating back to the 2017 session.
More incidents came to light after Simons’ conduct was reported, a drum beat that forced legislative leadership to take decisive action [editorial, “Expelling Luke Simons from the North Dakota House Was Justified. It Took Too Long,” Fargo InForum, 2021.03.04].
Holding scuzbucket politicians accountable requires courage from both the press and the government. North Dakota’s Legislature finally found the courage to remove Simons for his documented misdeeds; will we have to wait four years for the South Dakota Legislature to screw up similar courage and deliver justice for the family of Joe Boever, the man unpunished Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg killed?
South Dakota could really use an open records law like ND has.
Nearly any government document qualifies to be requested, including emails, text messages, documents, etc with few exceptions.
After working under this law in a politically charged environment of a pandemic, the law does an incredible amount to promote day to day accountability. Yes, all one has to do is pick up the phone – but the accountability is still there and is part of discussions on almost a daily basis
A rancher and a barber, he should be a sheepherder, he would be happier.
M D, I suspect a similar public records request for a similar report circulating internally in our legislature would get nowhere.
Do not castigate all barbers because of the dull clippers of one. Without barbers, the world would be a darker place.
One other good takeaway from Mr. H’s blogging about this is that in the more northern and more barren Dakota, the legislatures pack their own lunch in lunch boxes. This could be a real turning point on transparency and humility for our own gravy sucking free lunch loading legislatures. Pack your lunch, fellows. Just like everybody else has to.
I spent some time on coal mining issues in North Dakota in 1981, and some of that involved their legislature. Then in 1982 I spent my first year in the prison of South Dakota’s legislative session. I can tell you that in the early 1980’s the North Dakota legislature the was far, far superior to South Dakota’s lame excuse for a legislature. At that time both were led by Republicans, but the North Dakota folks were not creatures of the Cretaceous age.
Mr. Pay, you are still in the prison of the South Dakota legislatures. Your mind and thoughts are trapped, and your soul is tortured, and the ravaging of the mining in the Black Hills continues at a pace not even you can comprehend.
SD Leg and Noem handed 600K to her families businesses.
Isn’t a one party system another name for Monarchy or corruptocracy?
The Republican Leg and Republican Gov and Rep executive branch handed out 600 000 in easy money to Noems family.
Do you think the Democratic Party, which seems bent on NEVER gaining power ( “Ahhh, fellow Democrats, I am pleased to present to you the new 2022 Platform. Chief among these is We have no desire and no hunger to ever seize power in Pierre. Before we break for lunch, remember, this means we will never have a majority in the Legislature till 2300 or later, which is what we want.”). Will ever give 600 000. $ to the average person in South Dakota?
Never will they. Never will they dream or imagine that.
So the R Party believes in basic income for big businesses , D party believes in nothing, so who will stand up for the average person, teenager or kid in South Dakota, and dare even HOPE that they will receive 500k or 100k from the SD government?
Trumps virus bucks came from Trumps signature, Democratic Congress and Republican Senate, and the biggest piece of Socialism for rich folks we’ve ever seen!
I know the D Party will never ever Dream of 500k for every adult in South Dakota.
But I do!
DP, agree, been in on county issues as well regarding ag issues and so forth… can only say our neighbors are ahead of us all the way around. (Professionally and futuristic)