[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkhX5W7JoWI[/youtube]
Even more shocking is that she has spent over $42,000 – RUNNING FOR A COUNCIL SEAT! For somebody who is simply running to block Staggers from being on the council again, this is frightening on many levels. It really shows how out of touch Knudson is with the average Joe (spending almost 3x times what the job pays in a year). This has to be a new record in city politics.
READ THE FINANCIAL REPORT:Â moneybags
This proves two points I have made about running for office in Sioux Falls.
1) IT takes a lot of money, and that is why the average person doesn’t have a chance, even if they knock on many doors.
2) The elite businessmen and developers run this town, and they are not about to give up their power.
On a positive note though, if Staggers beats Knudson, he will prove that the money machine can be toppled.
Ironically, if you read the financials of all the other candidates running, none of them even come close!
De was also asked to attend a ‘DEMOCRATIC’ forum to speak (she is a registered Republican). The Staggers campaign also asked if they could attend, and they were denied.
The “story” goes that a certain well-known local Democrat with the initials, T.C., said that the Democrats only want “progressive” candidates at their forum!!***
Citizen/taxpayers have many different views on the meaning of the word “progressive”. The Democrats have invited the one at-large candidate who has an eight year history as a “tax and spend” Councilor!!! Need I say more…………….
I was a Democrat for four decades, I am now a registered Independent…..and this shameless exercise of a forum that the local Democrats will be holding today at the VFW is one of the reasons why!!!!!!!
I have watched from a distance Sioux Falls elections for many years and this one really has the monied elite lined up as not seen in years.
The banking, media and developers really are making a strong statement in this election cycle. Who is spending money on Karsky for his re-selection?
As I read about the rail options, event center decisions, infrastructure failures and other short sighted decisions a certain amount of disgust sets in. Our city leaders continue to implement plans for for a city of 30 to 40 years ago. We keep seeing plans come to the top of the pile as if we are still in the 1970’s or 80’s.
We build an events center in the wrong place, wrong size, wrong financing and now we see the wrong people may have been counting the votes just to finally get the building built. There has been a fight, leading to little support, in this town about the Arena since it was built in the 1960’s. Now we are going to get a successor barely larger than the one we have to see us into the next 50+ years.
We build fancy bridges like the one on 69th street for a ‘developers’ neighborhood designed to take people away from the center of the city. Instead of rebuilding the towns oldest collapsing infrastructure we spend money where there is no neighborhood. Why was the bridge not built to go over 26th street and or cliff ave to let the trains run. Oh yea, we didn’t think about it in the 1970’s so we can’t build it now.
I know the events center decision has been made and apparently we can’t do anything about it but make sure the money is spent wisely. We need members of the council who will stop spending on edge of Sioux Falls projects where developers and bankers own property and invest back into the center of Sioux Falls where the water, electrical, roads and sewer are falling apart.
I am trying to get all I know out to vote against the two charter revisions and to vote in Staggers, Ysbrand, Kyle and the rest of the list you gave us the other day. I had already voted when you published the list. I surprised we voted or recommended the same choices. I hope there is a ‘quiet’ majority out there ready to do the same and shake things up in city hall.
Scot, thank you for giving me a space to express my frustration…
‘Big-B’
Staggers should win but I fear one person will be taking the ballots home darkening De spots all night before results are announced. It’s impossible to win an election in this town when Huether’s vote counts 150,000.
What?!? Kelby and Dykehouse didn’t donate $1000 too?
i also think there should be some sort of ordinance prohibiting sitting councilors from donating to the campaign funds of candidates. if de is elected, will she feel obligated to fall in line with entenman since he gave her $1000? i wonder how much diamond jim gave to his buddy karsky?
Definitely serious money. The day of running a shoestring, grass roots campaign in Sioux Falls seems to be fading. At least there are reporting requirements.
Tom Cool was the Democrat who told Kermit he wasn’t ‘Progressive’. My definition of ‘Progressive’ is someone who puts citizens first when it comes to community projects. Kermit does this. I would agree, I left the Democratic party years ago. Actually when Daschle voted for the Iraq War. I said to myself, “The top Democrat in the country doesn’t believe in Peace and Diplomacy anymore, I’m done with this party.”
Big ‘B’ – The RR relocation was doomed from the beginning. Huether put it on the back burner because of the EC and now that pot is overflowing and burning on the stove top. He doesn’t give a shit, it was a Munson project, and I knew this project was doomed from the beginning. As I told councilor Jamison months ago, the Railroads are happy with their current situation, it has worked for a 100 years, cars have to stop for trains, not the other way around, why should they care? As for the $3000 plane trip, why couldn’t they have rode up to MPLS in a Transit Van? Gas would have cost around $200. Oh, that’s right, Huether takes chartered flights everywhere he goes. We live in a modern tech age, if someone needed to get a hold of him, they could have. As for Sue, she doesn’t have a job, so what does it matter if she blows 8 hours on the road?
Kyle has given me many thanks for my endorsement. I like the kid, and if he loses Tuesday, I encourage him to run again for something else. He is really bright and informed.
I have often been disgruntled by the city’s neglect of our core neighborhoods. I wouldn’t live anywhere else. All of the culture in our city is DT. It only makes sense. And giving tax breaks to developers doesn’t foster this kind of culture.
I think the max you can give is $1000 scott, and I think Kelby and Dana donated $500 twice, but don’t quote me on that.
Mark, it faded a long time ago. It truly is sad. Even Angie Buhl, who campaigned her ass off to get in the legislature had to spend a little capital.
Had a robo call from De yesterday—–if she had called in person I would have told her I already voted against her.
Joan, when you have that much cash on hand, you can hire ‘the little people’ to make the calls for you.
BTW, at the Democratic Forum today, Quen Be talked about the Walmart issue. She admitted that she doesn’t shop at Walmart.
Could have fooled me.
The Argus today noted just one of the quen be contributors. Diamond Jim. Strangely omitted were the many monied tentacles of Sanford. Kelby and Dana? Their last names show twice. $500 apiece. The rest are mainly Dave’s lawyer friends and developers. In general, a who’s who of contributors the typical voter will never be in social contact with. YET…the typical voter will most likely vote the name ringing in their ears from the $42,000.00 media blitz.
Big money wins nearly every time.
Since the Argus even brought up contributions, the least they could have done was provide the same link you did Scott.
Lalley and Ellis give me props on their ‘100 Eyes’ show quite a bit, I can’t complain, but yeah, some props in the actual paper would be nice. Entenman actually gave to several of the candidates, well, because we all know, “He doesn’t care about conflicts of interest.”