Yesterday SDPB gave nearly 16 minutes of air time to Marty Jackley, who will return the Attorney General’s office this January thanks to the lack of lawyers from any other party willing to run for that office. At the end of the interview, Jackley addressed the Attorney General’s proper role with the Government Accountability Board, which has struggled to handle valid complaints against Jackley’s current political ally, Governor Kristi Noem.
Jackley said the public should expect the Attorney General and the Division of Criminal Investigation to assist the Government Accountability Board in its investigations. However, Jackley said the public should expect and demand that criminal matters should not go to the GAB but instead should be addressed by the Attorney General or the state’s attorney with jurisdiction.
Jackley’s comment noteworthily applies to the complaint about Noem’s illegal personal use of the state plane. Jackley’s impeached predecessor, killer Jason Ravnsborg, received the initial complaint about Noem’s abuse of the state plane from travel-watchdog Senator Reynold Nesiba in February 2021. Nesiba’s complaint referred to a state law (SDCL 5-25-1.1) with a criminal penalty, thus making clear he was asking the Attorney General to look into a criminal matter, not merely an ethical violation. Yet then-AG Ravnsborg sat on that complaint of criminal activity for seven months before referring it to the Government Accountability Board. The GAB sat on the complaint for nearly eleven more months before figuring out what Jackley enunciated yesterday: the Attorney General should have handled the criminal complaint in the first place instead of passing that buck to the GAB.
Attorney General Mark Vargo has handed this warm potato to Hughes County state’s attorney Jessica LaMie to avoid any appearance that he might bias the investigation in favor of the Governor who appointed him to his six-month gig in the Attorney General’s seat.
But Jackley appears to be saying that the complaint against Noem’s friends-and-family flight plan is just one more thing that Jason Ravnsborg screwed up. The Attorney General should not need the Government Accountability Board to tell him whether a state official has broken the law; the Attorney General ought to have the brains and the balls to make that legal determination himself.
Just like Kristi Noem not knowing what to do about the covid crisis so she did nothing and labeled it “supporting small government” while thousands died; the legal hierarchy in SD doesn’t know what to do about a Governor who breaks laws in plain sight, so they do nothing and label it “the other guy’s problem.”
Fix it, SD. You know in your hearts what to do. America is embarrassed by you!
Brains and balls are two (three?) things Jason Ravnsborg does not have. He might still have his job if he had displayed and used either.
Noem’s got bigger balls than Ravnsborg does. IMO
Let’s just throw this whole pack if AR-15 Prairie Dog shooting Club to the wolves.
Interesting. The inept inbred Republicans have so few democrats to hound and politically kick around they are taking to attacking their own pack. Lady gov might get re-elected unless the parents of South Dakota children along with sensible teachers call BS to her injecting her trumpism and quest for higher office into the schools (wasn’t the sign “In God We Trust” in all schools enough?) along with workers who have not shared in the rich bounty of their employers or company owners.
Now, this law enforcement candidate is making political noise about the ball swing women who kicked his butt in the primary an election 4 years ago. When this law enforcement candidate had the chance to root out bad law breaking people he looked the other way or said one thing and did another. It got bad enough the enablers of the bad guys start killing themselves.
South Dakota voters should be able to do better in November. Should!
RST Tribal Member, quick OT if you don’t mind….. What is the historic or cultural significance of Sioux Nation purchasing 40 acres of land around Wounded Knee cemetery? If you like, ask Cory for my email address.
Mr. Jackley is speaking in tongues….Republican jibberish. We all know, Governor Noem is “too big to fail.”
Shotgun
Shelter belt
Another Wednesday
Another sh!t storm.