On Monday, I posted Bird flu in South Dakota: Millions of birds dead, worry shifting to humans, a South Dakota News Watch overview of the avian influenza situation in the Rushmore State. Meanwhile in Minnesota, another dairy herd was stricken by the disease. While it's not fatal in cattle, the quarantines of herds cause producers to lose revenue, and across the country. there have been cases of dairy workers and barn cats catching the disease. From the Minnesota Board of Animal Health: Statewide milk surveillance detects H5N1 at Stearns County dairy H5N1 influenza has been confirmed in a Stearns County... Continue reading

A day doesn't go by without a development in the upper Midwest ethanol carbon pipeline saga. And it's not just the populist insurrection here in South Dakota. Last week, the grassroots Montevideo-based organization CURE posted CO2 Pipeline Resistance to Congress: Cut the Waste, Repeal 45Q, documenting a trip to Washington SC to try to pull the carbon out of the federal tax credit profiteers: Last week, I traveled to the Capitol with a small but determined group of Minnesotans: landowners, farmers, and community members who are experiencing the threats posed by the carbon capture industry. We didn’t just come for... Continue reading

Over the years, Bluestem Prairie has posted about the criminal troubles of Jeremy Alan Giefer, most recently of St. Peter. At the Mankato Free Press, Brian Arola reports in St. Peter man's conviction for sexual misconduct affirmed by appeals court: ST. PETER — Appeals court judges on Monday upheld a St. Peter man’s jail sentence for sexual misconduct with a minor in 2021. Jeremy Alan Giefer, 51, received a 150-day sentence in jail, minus 39 days credited to him, in March 2024, after a judge found him guilty of second-degree criminal sexual conduct in a bench trial in Nicollet County... Continue reading

There's a flurry of new filings for the Minnesota state senate seating left vacant by the resignation of former lawmaker Justin Eichorn, while Eichorn himself seems to have gotten himself in more trouble since his arrest, as the Minnesota Reformer article republished below reports. A talented boy, that one. I noted last week in an update to Justin Eichorn resigns from Senate following federal charge; LeClaire to seek Senate 6 seat that Keri Heintzeman, wife of Nisswa Republican House member Josh Heintzeman, was seeking the office, as well as DFLer Emily LeClaire. Since then, there's news of additional contenders. The... Continue reading

My next door neighbor is grieving the thousands of snow geese that were found dead in and along Lake Byron, a lake where she fished as a child. Avian influenza is hitting South Dakota's wild and domestic flocks hard. I favor the concept of bird flu vaccine for poultry, and hope South Dakota farmers will embrace the use of lasers as a form of biosecurity to keep wild birds away from their poultry barns, as some Minnesota turkey growers have done. From South Dakota News Watch. Bird flu in SD: Millions of birds dead, worry shifts to humans Bart Pfankuch... Continue reading

On Friday, I'd republished South Dakota News Watch's Dusty Johnson's Sturgis military event reveals division among South Dakota veterans. The Sunday South Dakota Searchlight article republished below takes a broader look at those divisions. Veterans’ advocates say VA staffing cuts put vets out of work by Joshua Haiar Further impacts feared from Trump administration plan to cut 80,000 employees Staffing cuts in the federal Department of Veterans Affairs are disproportionately affecting the veterans that the department preferentially hires, said members of a South Dakota veterans’ advocacy group. They worry the Trump administration’s goal of cutting 80,000 VA employees will put... Continue reading

On Thursday, the Minnesota Reformer's Madison McVan focused on the Hennepin County Medical Center in Health care leaders say Medicaid cuts would further strain state hospitals and clinics. Saturday, the Reformer's sibling site Iowa Capital Dispatch published an overview of the effect of Medicaid cuts on the countryside by State Newsroom's Jennifer Shutt. Looks as if the cuts won't be a form of place-baiting. Medicaid cuts rippling through rural America could bring hospital closures, job losses by Jennifer Shutt WASHINGTON — Americans living in rural communities throughout the country could see their access to health care diminish if Congress changes... Continue reading

My younger veteran friends who live in other states have shared concerns about changes at the Veteran Administration under the second Trumpy administration, so this South Dakota News Watch article struck home with me. From South Dakota News Watch. Sturgis military event reveals division among SD veterans by Bart Pfankuch STURGIS, S.D. – An event hosted by Congressman Dusty Johnson to honor Vietnam veterans in Sturgis this week unwittingly revealed the growing division among some veterans in South Dakota and beyond. As Johnson told those assembled inside he wanted to make up for poor treatment of veterans in the 1960s... Continue reading

Back on March 7, Bluestem posted Town hall with "garbage" constituents? Heavens no. But Center of American Experiment will interview Fischbach March 20 in Ottertail. Seems her constituents in Minnesota's Seventh Congressional District want a town hall, as I'd noted in subsequent posts here: Digest: MN07 press, residents and state DFL to Fischbach, "Listen to your constituents" and Upset MN07 Rep. Fischbach is following GOP script in avoiding town halls, constituents respond with meetings, signs, postcards. So how did Thursday's meeting go for the powerful think tank and the Republican congresswoman? At the Minnesota Star Tribune, Jenny Berg reports in... Continue reading

Updated March 21: In Minnesota Public Radio's always excellent Capitol View morning newsletter, Brian Bakst and Dana Ferguson report: Of note on the special election watch, House GOP leaders said they’re keeping their eyes on members in that Senate district that might try to make the jump. With a 67-67 split in the House, it could give Democrats a temporary advantage if either Reps. Josh Heintzeman or Ben Davis ran and won the seat. That grew less likely later Thursday when Keri Heintzeman, the wife of House member Josh Heintzema, became the first to open a campaign . A special... Continue reading

Another wrinkle in South Dakota's ethanol carbon pipeline epic. From the South Dakota Searchlight. Ethanol leaders see irony in governor’s ‘Open for Opportunity’ visit after eminent domain ban by Joshua Haiar Some ethanol leaders think it’s ironic that Republican Gov. Larry Rhoden brought his “Open for Opportunity” tour to an ethanol plant this week, after he signed a bill that negatively impacted a proposed multi-billion-dollar project for the industry. “The whole industry is very disappointed with how things went in South Dakota,” Walt Wendland, president of the Ringneck Energy ethanol plant in Onida, told South Dakota Searchlight. Rhoden visited the... Continue reading

Responsible decision on the part of the USDA. From the Iowa Capital Dispatch. USDA announces funding for bird flu research by Cami Koons The U.S. Department of Agriculture will fund research projects that explore the highly pathogenic avian influenza in poultry, as well as novel vaccines and therapeutics to treat the bird flu, according to a Thursday announcement. The $100 million investment is part U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins’ $1 billion plan to combat avian influenza and inflated egg prices. Rollins, in a conference call with poultry and farm stakeholders, said the agency has made “significant progress” on its five-pronged... Continue reading

I was happy to get a flu shot last fall. The Stateline article below makes me glad that I did. As published in South Dakota Searchlight. Flu deaths rise as anti-vaccine disinformation takes root by Tim Henderson, Stateline South Dakota has one of nation’s highest fatality rates As vaccine skepticism gains a greater foothold in the Trump administration and some statehouses, some Americans may already be paying the price, with deaths from influenza on the rise. Flu-related deaths hit a seven-year high in January and February, the two months that usually account for the height of flu season, according to... Continue reading

On Tuesday, I republished the Minnesota Reformer article, State Senator Justin Eichorn, Republican-Grand Rapids, arrested on suspicion of soliciting sex with a 16-year-old girl. Now there's an update from the Reformer. Jeepers. From the Minnesota Reformer. Sex sting charges: MN senator texted ‘when do ya turn 18?’ to undercover cop by Michelle Griffith Sen. Justin Eichorn, R-Grand Rapids, allegedly responded to an online advertisement for sex and agreed to meet a 17-year-old girl in person, but the girl was actually an undercover officer, according to the U.S. Department of Justice and a statement of probable cause filed in Minnesota court... Continue reading

On Monday, I republished a South Dakota News Watch article, South Dakota populists seek staying power with takeover of state Republican Party. News Watch has since released a companion article about the South Dakota Democratic Party. From South Dakota News Watch, here's part two of the series. South Dakota Democrats seek new message for voter momentum by Stu Whitney Dan Ahlers recalls campaigning for a 2018 South Dakota legislative race in his hometown of Dell Rapids and calling on a household he knew was registered Republican. The woman who answered the door recognized Ahlers from his work in Pierre and... Continue reading

The success of anti-pipeline organizers in South Dakota seems to be spreading east. Prairie fires will do that. As readers may remember, earlier this month South Dakota Governor Larry Rhoden signed eminent domain ban on carbon pipelines. From the Iowa Capital Dispatch. Pipeline opponents push for a ban on eminent domain for carbon pipelines by Cami Koons Iowa landowners and pipeline fighters gathered Tuesday at a rally in the Iowa Capitol Rotunda asking lawmakers to ban eminent domain for carbon dioxide pipelines. Senate Democrats also pushed for an amendment that would help pipeline and eminent domain bills go to the... Continue reading

I've been wondering about Eichorn's judgement since he was one of the Minnesota Republicans who introduced legislation inspired by the chemtrails conspiracy theory back in 2024. And this month's publicity-stunt Trump Derangement Syndrome bill mentioned in the article below didn't help much. But that pales compared to the crime that's put the Grand Rapids Republican in the Bloomington Police Department jail, with a free trip to the Hennepin County Adult Detention Center. From the Minnesota Reformer. GOP state Sen. Justin Eichorn arrested on suspicion of soliciting sex with a 17-year old girl by Michelle Griffith and Christopher Ingraham State Sen.... Continue reading

In July 2023, Bluestem posted There once was a gal from Castlewood/ who didn't pick a laureate when she knew she could, which explored Governor Kristi Noem's refusal to approve the South Dakota State Poetry Society's state poet laureate recommendation. Fortunately, by the end of August, the Cricket Killer lost that battle, I noted in Update: South Dakota Poetry Society gets first choice, Bruce Roseland, for state laureate. The state poetry society has proven to be a winner, the South Dakota Searchlight reveals. South Dakota’s poet laureate honored with Western Heritage Award by South Dakota Searchlight staff Bruce Roseland, South... Continue reading

I've been reading about historical populism in the Dakotas, and so the latest article from the South Dakota News Watch fits in well with that material. And with earlier coverage of the ethanol carbon pipeline insurrection. From South Dakota News Watch. Populists seek staying power with Republican takeover by Stu Whitney The shifting landscape of South Dakota Republican politics went seismic on Feb. 22 in Pierre, when county leaders voted property rights advocate Jim Eschenbaum as the new chairperson of the state party’s central committee. No one sensed the moment’s gravity more than Eschenbaum, a retired farmer from Hand County... Continue reading

Earlier this month, I'd posted Town hall with "garbage" constituents? Heavens no. But Center of American Experiment will interview Fischbach March 20 in Ottertail and Digest: MN07 press, residents and state DFL to Fischbach, "Listen to your constituents". This afternoon on MinnPost, Forrest Peterson picks up the story. Upset that Fischbach is following GOP script in avoiding town halls, constituents respond with meetings, signs, postcards by Forrest Peterson As the temperature is beginning to rise over the frozen ground of western Minnesota, so too is the political heat on the region’s representative in Congress, Republican Rep. Michelle Fischbach. Many residents... Continue reading

Looks as if the Republican Party of Minnesota will just have to live with a tied Minnesota House. Poor things. From the Minnesota Reformer. Minnesota Supreme Court dismisses recall petitions against House Democrats who boycotted session by Michelle Griffith The Minnesota Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the 29 recall petitions against the House Democrats who boycotted the beginning of the legislative session earlier this year, ruling the allegations failed to meet the level of “serious malfeasance or nonfeasance” that’s needed for a successful recall. The Minnesota Republican Party last month filed recall petitions against 29 House Democrats for being absent... Continue reading

In 2024, Sout Dakota voters were asked to vote on seven ballot measures. Doesn't sound like that situation is going to change. Read more about election-related bills considered and adopted during the 2025 legislative session on South Dakota Searchlight’s 2025 SD Election Legislation page. From South Dakota Searchlight. Lawmaker assertions about voter fatigue don’t stop them from sending four measures to the ballot by Makenzie Huber After some South Dakota lawmakers complained about fatigue from the number of questions on the ballot, they’re sending four of their own measures to voters. South Dakotans considered seven ballot questions during the 2024... Continue reading

Fine commentary by the executive director for Friends of the Big Sioux River and executive director of Northern Prairies Land Trust, that echoes earlier Bluestem post about the plight of farmer after radical slashes in Washington D.C. From the South Dakota Searchlight. Funding freezes and staff cuts pull the rug out from under farmers by Travis Entenman What happens in Washington, D.C., can oftentimes feel far away, disconnected from everyday life in the rest of the country. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s recent efforts to streamline the federal government have, and will continue to have, unintended consequences for farmers’ and... Continue reading

As Republican members of congress refrain from conducting town halls, someone is taking their place. From Iowa Capital Dispatch. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz returns to Iowa Friday, first stop on town hall tour by Robin Opsahl Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential candidate, is going to host a town hall in Des Moines Friday as the first stop on a national tour heading through Republican-represented areas. The Des Moines town hall, set to begin at 3 p.m. Friday, is the first stop for the Minnesota Democrat as he plans to head to areas currently represented by Republicans... Continue reading

Are Wendy and Judd Hoff's legal problems, stemming from charges of theft of signs in 2024, coming to an end? Mr. Hoff, readers may remember, was the endorsed DFL candidate challenging incumbent Mary Franson, R-Alexandria, in the 2024 election. Looks like it. The Alexandria Echo Press reported Thursday morning, Felony theft charge dropped in Wendy Hoff case involving signs: ALEXANDRIA — The charge relating to the alleged theft of hundreds of signs has been dismissed against Wendy Hoff The action was taken March 11 in Douglas County District Court. According to a document filed that day, the dismissal was based... Continue reading