May 22
Knudson rakes in some cash
By Denise Ross
2010 Republican gubernatorial candidate Dave Knudson raised $250,000 at a Thursday night fundraiser attended by about 200 people, a source close to the campaign (who is not Sen. Knudson) tells Hoghouse Blog.
I know he’s got to go a ways to catch up with Lt. Gov. Dennis Daugaard, who’s been raising money since, like, 1992, but isn’t $250,000 a haul? Especially for South Dakota?
Is the fact that Sen. Knudson could raise so much a sign that there’s active opposition to the Daugaard candidacy? (I haven’t been in Sioux Falls in ages, so I am totally guessing here. But I must wonder if the dollar amount is telling us something.)
Are we in for a spirited primary next spring? If so, please don’t go the route of Barnett-Kirby 2002. Or maybe go ahead. That was interesting, if a bit painful.
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I think it tells us that Knudson knows slot of rich people. I strongly suspect that most Daugaard and Knudson supporters like both guys. They act out of support for one, not opposition to the other.
Personally I’m not voting for anyone just because they could raise a lot of money. I’m voting for someone who’s NOT part of the current political system in Pierre, who can think outside the box to solve problems, who honestly cares about saving the state money instead of cozying up to certain providers of services (here I’m thinking of contracts with over-priced office supply companies and travel agencies). Voting for either Daugaard or Knudson is just more of the same status quo.
I want someone who isn’t afraid to cut state gov’t, who isn’t afraid to get goods/services from the lowest available place, who stands up to lobbyists, etc. And I do have one person in mind that I heard at a Lincoln Day dinner, and I’ll have to hear that person more.
I want a person who gets out to meet the people, who truly listens, who presents different ideas for dealing with state problems, who is a newcomer to politics with new ideas. It’s not the insiders who can raise the most cash who are getting my vote.
I get over to Sioux Falls regularly and can tell you that it is not a Daugaard lake as many would think. Knudson is very popular there and it is because of his intelligence. My read is that the movers and shakers in Sioux Falls place a premium on problem solving and brains. Both are attributes that Dave is blessed with. Before we disparage the “movers and shakers” we need to consider how much they have accomplished for SF and that region. Rapid City and the Hills should emulate them, not bad mouth them.