South Dakota Politics

Herseth and Hate Crime

SDWC:  "A bill was introduced in the United States congress recently to provide additional funding for the prosecution of hate crimes. . . . Recently, Republicans offered an amendment to this legislation to expand on who would be protected to include veterans, soldiers, and senior citizens as a protected class under the Hate Crimes bill, since sometimes people in those classes are victims of violence because of their status.  As you'll note here, on this mostly party line vote, South Dakota's representative, Congresswoman Herseth-Sandlin, voted against providing additional protection for veterans, soldiers, and senior citizens from violence directed at them."

UPDATE:  This is a great line:  "So, according to Congresswoman [Herseth]'s vote, if a soldier in uniform returning from Iraq is attacked by war protesters, it's not a hate crime. But if this same soldier puts on a dress and is attacked, it is a hate crime.”

Herseth votes for Marriage Protection Amendment

DVT notes that Rep. Herseth voted in favor of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage yesterday. The roll call vote tally is HERE.

Herseth's vote places Senator Daschle, who opposes the constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, in an uncomfortable position. Daschle has a 100% rating from the nation's leading gay rights group, the Human Rights Campaign. Daschle's opposition to the amendment is contrary to the position of two-thirds of the voting population in South Dakota.

Herseth opposes Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act

Democratic Representative Stephanie Herseth opposed the Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act. According to the National Law Journal, the bill "would reinstate mandatory sanctions for lawyers who file frivolous lawsuits under Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and would eliminate the current 'safe harbor' that gives lawyers 21 days to withdraw a suit after a motion for sanctions has been filed."

Herseth supports Pledge Protection Act

Last week, the House passed the Pledge Protection Act, a bill providing that "No court created by Act of Congress shall have any jurisdiction, and the Supreme Court shall have no appellate jurisdiction, to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of, or the validity under the Constitution of, the Pledge of Allegiance[.]"

Democratic Representative Stephanie Herseth voted to support the bill. Should the bill come up for a vote in the Senate in the next few weeks, Herseth's support for it will place Senator Daschle in a box, much as Senator Johnson's support of the flag amendment has placed Daschle in a box on that particular issue.

True blue or Blue Dog?

Stephanie Herseth in South Dakota, quoted by the AP:

"The most effective vehicle for me to work in a bipartisan way in advancing rural interests is through the Blue Dog Democratic caucus, a group of more conservative, moderate Democrats who've worked effectively in reaching across the aisle with their Republican colleagues in the House to advance those issues that are important to rural America"

Stephanie Herseth in Boston, Massachusetts, speaking to the New York delegation at the Democratic Convention, quoted by Roll Call:

“It sure is a treat for someone from South Dakota, one of the country’s smallest delegations to address one of the country’s biggest delegations,” [Herseth] said.

But then she sounded more like a true believer. Speaking of her own special election victory two months ago, she said, “A true blue Democrat was elected in a red-blood red state.”

Outside of South Dakota, Herseth says she's a "true blue" Democrat. Inside South Dakota, Herseth says she's a conservative "Blue Dog" Democrat. Hopefully, Larry Diedrich will ask Herseth about the distinction between the two types of Democrats in the coming months.

(Via Sibby and Q.)

Herseth supports "Marriage Protection Act of 2004"

The AP has a story today headlined "House OKs Gay Marriage Jurisdiction Bill." Excerpt:

Stung by a Senate setback on gay marriage, Republicans passed legislation in the House Thursday to prevent federal courts from ordering states to recognize same-sex unions sanctioned elsewhere.

According to the House roll call vote, Rep. Herseth joined with most Republicans to support this bill.

Herseth off to a shaky start

For those of you who missed the link and excerpt I supplied in an earlier post, see this story from The Hill headlined "Rep. Herseth moves fast — a bit too fast." It seems Herseth's press release operation is firing on all cylinders, while her "independent voice" has already been exposed as a lemon.

Herseth votes to kill energy bill, then votes for it on final passage

It's "Energy Week" in the House of Representatives, an attempt to underline the fact that the Senate has yet to pass the energy bill, in large part because Tom Daschle refused to use his vaunted clout last fall to get the the two votes necessary to kill a Democratic-led filibuster (Daschle said on the Senate floor that he "reluctantly" supported the bill). Daschle's refusal or inability to use his clout left ethanol in a lurch.

The AP has a story headlined "House Resends Power Bill; Action Unlikely." Excerpt:

But a Democratic attempt to kill the bill failed 230-192. The House then passed the legislation 244-178 with all but a handful of Republicans voting for it.

A quick look at the House roll call vote on the Democratic attempt to kill the energy bill shows that Stephanie Herseth voted with the Democrats to kill it. Remember, this bill includes provisions for ethanol so important to South Dakota. When that attempt to kill the energy bill failed, and the bill was up for final passage, Herseth turned around and voted FOR the bill she had just tried to kill. It's a classic having-it-both-ways maneuver, which Herseth no doubt learned from the master of the technique.

Was Herseth involved in Texas re-districting fight?

A sharp-witted reader, after reflecting on the fact that Stephanie Herseth was in Texas last summer during the re-destricting fight according to a report in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, notes this:

Was she part of the legal team down there in the redistricting fight? (I would guess). All very normal, but hardly independent. As partisan as it gets.

Quite right.

More on Daschle's "independent voice"

I noted earlier that Tom Daschle is starting to float the idea that he is an "independent voice" despite the fact that Americans for Democratic Action gives him a lifetime liberal quotient of 83 percent. A Senate Democrat who could more legitimately be labeled an "independent voice" is John Breaux of Louisiana, who has a lifetime average liberal quotient of 55 percent. Interestingly, Tom Daschle was reportedly furious at John Breaux for exercising his independent voice in supporting the Bush tax cuts in 2001. That is a telling indication of Tom Daschle's "independent voice."

Independent Voice Watch

DVT notes this recent quote from Tom Daschle:

Daschle responded from Washington, saying he offers an independent voice for his constituents. "The question for me on every issue is what is best for South Dakota and the country," Daschle said.

DVT says this is ridiculous because Daschle is "in charge of killing the President's agenda in the Senate."

To put it more starkly how Daschle's assertion doesn't compute, consider that his official title is "Democratic Leader." To be the leader of a political party, it logically follows that you deeply imbibe that political party's Kool-Aid. Consider also that Americans for Democratic Action gives Tom Daschle a lifetime liberal quotient of 83%. That rating is higher even than George McGovern's, who was defeated in 1980 by Jim Abdnor largely because McGovern was considered too liberal.

When Tom Daschle attempts to use that carefully focus-grouped phrase "independent voice," it's important to keep his leadership status and his ADA rating in mind.

Independent Voice Watch

Stephanie Herseth rode to victory largely on her claim to be an "independent voice" for South Dakota:

"We are South Dakotans first, not Democrats or Republicans," Herseth told several members of that group Friday at her Sioux Falls headquarters.

"They want their representative to be an independent voice because South Dakotans are independent folks. You won't have any doubt whose side I'm on," she said.

Now the AP has this report:

In a release, the National Republican Congressional Committee criticized Herseth, D-S.D., for her first vote in Washington.

Herseth voted against HR444, the Back to Work Incentive Act of 2003, which would give eligible unemployed workers up to $3,000 to use for job training and other services that help them get back to work.

''Representative Herseth forgot who elected her,'' said Carl Forti, NRCC communications director. ''It's sad to say, but with her very first vote, we see Stephanie is more concerned with appeasing the liberals who got her elected than delivering needed help for South Dakotans.''

The bill, strongly backed by the Bush administration, passed the House 213-203 and now heads to the Senate, where its future is uncertain.

You can access the roll call vote on HR444 HERE. For all roll call votes this session, click HERE.