Free Republic

South Dakota would be the first state in the U.S. to approve a law requiring transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond to their sex at birth if the governor signs a bill passed Tuesday by the state Senate. The Senate voted 20-15 to send the bill to Republican Gov. Dennis Daugaard, who initially responded positively to the measure but said last week he'd need to study it more before making a decision. Advocates say the bill is meant to protect the privacy of students, but opponents say it discriminates against vulnerable adolescents. [...] The American Civil...

Gov. Dennis Daugaard says a measure to require some welfare applicants to pass drug tests would be a waste of money and "somewhat insulting." Daugaard said Friday that he hasn't previously been enthusiastic about similar proposals. Republican Rep. Lynne DiSanto is the measure's main House sponsor. Her plan would require applicants under 65 to be drug tested before receiving food stamps or cash assistance.

The recent post about the Battle of Guadalcanal by Freeper DuncanWaring reminded me of Calvin Graham's story. Graham lied about his age to enlist, and was aboard the battleship South Dakota during the battle. He was wounded in action, and received the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Graham was twelve years old at the time!

HARRISBURG, S.D. (AP) — A shooting at a South Dakota high school that left the principal with a minor injury may have turned out far worse if not for staff members who tackled the student suspected of firing at the administrator, authorities said Wednesday. Just moments afterward, Harrisburg High School Principal Kevin Lein took to the intercom to announce a lockdown and tell students he had been hit, "but was fine," senior Aanna Okerlund said. Other than Lein, who was struck in the arm, no one was reported hurt....

FLANDREAU, S.D. — The Santee Sioux tribe has already proven its business acumen, running a successful casino, a 120-room hotel and a 240-head buffalo ranch on the plains of South Dakota. But those enterprises have not been immune to competition and the lingering effects of the Great Recession, so the small tribe of 400 is undertaking a new venture — opening the nation's first marijuana resort on its reservation. The experiment could offer a new money-making model for tribes nationwide seeking economic opportunities beyond casinos. Santee Sioux leaders plan to grow their own pot and sell it in a smoking...

The Pentagon has responded to a globally-released ‘Kill List’, asking law enforcement to give extra protection for military personnel whose personal information was released,News Channel 10 reports. CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports the Pentagon spent the weekend notifying the soldiers who appeared on the list, and urged city police departments and military police to increase patrol in the neighborhoods where the targeted live. The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) published the list days ago, a report that contained names, photos, and home addresses of U.S. Armed Forces personnel, causing alarm in cities potentially at high-risk....

Ted Cruz says his hard-line strategy to defund Planned Parenthood and risk a government shutdown is about doing the “right thing” and following through on Republicans' vows to conservative voters. But many of his Republican colleagues say it’s really all about Cruz. Even some of his closest allies from past battles— fellow tried and true tea party Republicans like Sen. Mike Lee of Utah — aren’t exactly jumping to join Cruz’s latest crusade. Same goes for Cruz’s onetime allies-turned-presidential rivals, Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Rand Paul of Kentucky. As the Texas Republican prepares for a potentially decisive month...

STURGIS, S.D. — A South Dakota saloon that billed itself as the “world’s largest biker bar” and was the subject of a reality TV show was destroyed early Tuesday by a fire that may have gained momentum when it hit an adjoining distillery containing 500 gallons of grain alcohol. Volunteer firefighters found heavy smoke when they responded to the Full Throttle Saloon in Sturgis around 12:30 a.m., and the main building was gutted less than three hours later. No injuries were reported. The bar, which featured such amenities as zip lines, musical stages and rental cabins, had been the subject...

The bar, which featured such amenities as zip lines, musical stages and rental cabins, had been the subject of a reality television series. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee snagged the endorsement of Sen. Mike Rounds, R-South Dakota, Huckabee's campaign announced Tuesday.

Students in South Dakota will now graduate from high school without studying early American history, under new teaching guidelines adopted by the state. After a year of deliberations, the state Board of Education adopted new curriculum standards that no longer require instructors to teach the first 100 years of U.S. history. Such milestone events and developments as the Revolutionary War and the drafting of the U.S. Constitution could be completely ignored. Cutting out early U.S. history in 11th grade hurts the ability of students to “think historically” when they reach higher education, according to a letter sent to the state...

Port Clinton, Ohio, Police Chief Robert Hickman was seen in photos wearing a Confederate flag vest while on vacation in South Dakota.An Ohio police chief isn’t really addressing the controversy that has unfolded since he was seen in photos wearing a Confederate flag vest while vacationing in South Dakota, WKYC reports. Port Clinton Police Chief Robert Hickman said that he doesn’t “look at the Confederate flag as a racist symbol,” with some residents defending him, saying he doesn’t have a “racist bone” in his body. “I think he was just wearing a shirt,” Port Clinton resident Bryan Meek told the...

BISMARCK, N.D. — A federal judge in North Dakota on Thursday blocked a new Obama administration rule that would give the federal government jurisdiction over some state waterways. U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson of North Dakota issued a temporary injunction against a the rule, which gives the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers authority to protect some streams, tributaries and wetlands under the Clean Water Act. The rule was scheduled to take effect Friday. “The risk of irreparable harm to the states is both imminent and likely,” Judge Erickson said in blocking the rule from taking effect....

Republican legislators have gotten their messaging instructions from their top leaders: Tout unpopular free-trade measures during the August recess, ignore popular curbs on the migration that saps Americans’ wages. Breitbart News has exclusively obtained an internal August recess messaging instruction set for Republican legislators produced by Sen. John Thune (R-SD) 52% , who orchestrates the GOP Senators’ PR pitch. This 20-page messaging instruction manual seems to confirm prior reports by Breitbart News that Republican Congressional leadership has no plans to enact popular immigration reforms to curb large-scale migration. Each August, Senators and Congressmen return home to listen to constituents’ concerns...

Ben Wattenberg died this week at the age of 81. He gave me my first job in Washington, as his research assistant at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington think tank. (I returned to AEI as a fellow a few years ago, my office just a few doors down from where Ben used to work.) Ben was one of the last star pundits of what might be called the Old Order, before cable news and the Internet transformed the landscape. When everyone was rushing to CNN to shout at each other on "Crossfire," he launched a PBS show called "Think...

James Swan parked his old Dodge alongside the South Dakota visitor center, where grungy hippies were sprawled on a lawn and passing around a feather. The two-dozen vagabonds are planning to unleash thousands of their brethren into the Black Hills for prayer and free thinking. But Swan wasn’t feeling the peace and love. “We don’t want you here. You have no f—king respect for Lakota people!” the 54-year-old Native American yelled into a mic attached to his truck. His T-shirt bore another message: portraits of warriors who had shellacked the U.S. Army in the Battle of Little Bighorn, alongside the...

A conference to discuss and analyze Islam that began Friday continues today in Rapid City. Today's schedule for the Answering Islam Conference begins at 9 a.m. in the Rushmore Room at the Ramkota Hotel and Convention Center. Topics include "How to Reach Muslims for Christ," "How has Islam infiltrated American Politics" and "How to Refute Islam." Speakers include Shahram Hadian, who is described on a promotional poster as a former Muslim who became a Christian pastor, and Tom Wallace, founder of the "Fortress of Faith" radio show. There is no charge for admission. The event has a number of local...

South Dakotans apparently have good BS detectors. Check out the expressions on their faces.

Senators on Wednesday blocked a Republican push to tie Iran's support of terrorism to a final deal on the country's nuclear program. Senators voted 45-54 on the amendment from Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), which would have required President Obama to certify as part of a diplomatic deal that Iran hasn't carried out or directly supported an act of terror against the United States or a U.S. citizen. Republican Sens. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), Dan Coats (Ind.), Bob Corker (Tenn.), David Perdue (R-Ga.), Jeff Flake (Ariz.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Orrin Hatch (Utah) and John McCain (Ariz.) voted with Democrats against the amendment....

Two of the country’s most powerful and politically influential labor unions are backing President Obama in the recent court challenge to his 2014 executive action on illegal immigration, saying they support the president’s effort because "undocumented workers" need more workplace protection and their participation helps the U.S. economy. The AFL-CIO and the National Education Association on Monday each filed so-called amicus briefs in a federal appeals court case in which Texas and 26 other states are challenges the president’s 2014 memorandum on illegal immigration. The memorandum essentially expands work authorization and delayed-deportation programs for illegal immigrants. And it provides similar...