Governor Kristi Noem dedicates her weekly propaganda piece to claiming that when South Dakota’s economy looks strong, she gets the credit, but when dollars go down, we should blame Joe Biden. This fallacy is part of Noem’s larger campaign to soft-land her way out of her exaggerations of South Dakota’s “Strongest Economy In The Nation™” and the impending revenue reality check that will come as we lose the temporary and perverse tourism advantage we gained from our coronavirus recklessness.
Economist and Senator Reynold Nesiba (D-15/Sioux Falls) recognizes the Governor’s CYA-hypocrisy:
“On one hand she keeps touting how strong the economy is, keeping everything open, what fast growth we have. But when it comes to revenue estimates, she suddenly changes” [Sen. Reynold Nesiba, quoted in Lee Strubinger, “Noem ‘Not Comfortable’ with Lawmakers’ Revenue Projections,” SDPB, 2022.02.18].
Professor Nesiba reminds us that inflation and a growing economy go hand in hand and that the Biden bucks Noem is trying to scapegoat will actually boost our economy:
“We glanced at some of the earlier numbers that happened the last time we had inflation this high back in the 1980s. What you saw was revenue growth of about 10 percent,” Nesiba says. “That in a time of inflation with a state that relies so much on a really broad-based sales tax, we’re going to see increased revenues simply from inflation, let alone from this growing economy.”
Nesiba says various state and federally funded infrastructure projects will create jobs and revenue for years to come [Strubinger, 2022.02.18].
If I were making budget plans for FY2023, I’d give more credence to the assessment of an economist who can earn an honest paycheck with or without a government paycheck than the spin of a subsidy queen who’s banking on running for President in 2024.
People should examine her claim that she was going to lose the farm (not ranch) because of estate taxes. That was a particularly good one of hers. Even before Trump, but I guess grate minds think alike.
Today I heard Putin make a stronger case–despite his ridiculous provocations–for invading Ukraine than I’ve ever heard Noem make for her policies, what with her terse and simplistic declarative statements that do nothing but continue to dumb down the level of intelligent discourse in this state.
Will Noem engage with Sen. Nesiba’s observations? She doesn’t engage with the larger discourse of recognized economists and scientists.
They lie. NOem and the rest of the fascists, lie. https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/2/21/2081434/-The-night-American-Nazis-packed-Madison-Square-Garden-to-celebrate-George-Washington-s-birthday?pm_source=story_sidebar&pm_medium=web&pm_campaign=recommended#comment_82958944