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30 Dec 20, 6 tweets, 2 min read
Just posted: My analysis of South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and her handling of the pandemic, and the national spotlight, in 2020.
inforum.com/newsmd/coronav…
"South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s hands-off pandemic approach initially appeared to be a winning gamble, and it catapulted her into the national spotlight. ... But COVID-19 wasn’t finished with South Dakota." My analysis: inforum.com/newsmd/coronav…
"Noem made 40 media appearances in the 65 days between the state's first reported COVID-19 case in March and her last regular pandemic news conference in mid-May ... Just over half of her media appearances, 22 in all, were with conservative national media outlets"
Noem "was outside South Dakota for at least 12 days visiting eight states in October, according to a Forum New Service analysis of her social media sightings and media reports." inforum.com/newsmd/coronav…
"'We haven’t had a governor who’s spent this much time out of state for business that was clearly not state business,' said Michael Card, political science professor at the University of South Dakota ... in an Oct. 30 interview."
inforum.com/newsmd/coronav…
"Noem has routinely said she would let the "science, facts and data" guide her COVID-19 decisions. But the governor has increasingly been at odds with the science, facts and data used by medical professionals and public health authorities."
inforum.com/newsmd/coronav…

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More from @jayfug

jayfug Profile picture
23 Nov 20
Also notable from this interview: Sanford Health Chief Medical Officer Allison Suttle says Gov. Noem should institute a state mask mandate -- "that would help us in our attempt to fight this virus"
(Sanford has, as an institution, not backed mask mandates, unlike Avera Health)
Now usually a CMO's statement would show me a health system's stance. But in this case, CEO Kelby Krabbenhoft has said mask mandates aren't needed. But that was in interviews as Sanford Health was actively distancing itself from things he was saying about COVID-19. So.... ?
Worth noting that CMO Suttle has gone her own way before and been outspoken about state policy. Here's from Oct. 2019, on Medicaid expansion (SD has rejected Medicaid expansion): duluthnewstribune.com/lifestyle/heal…
Read 5 tweets
jayfug Profile picture
20 Nov 20
SCOOP: *Damage control time*
To employees, Sanford Health's top execs now disavowing CEO Kelby Krabbenhoft's email about why he won't wear a mask, including his claims he doesn't have to because he is immune to COVID-19. My report, and their full email: inforum.com/newsmd/health-…
Sanford Health top execs: "We know that words matter, and words have power, and we regret that the message left many frustrated and disappointed. You are our heroes working tirelessly to take care of our patients and we hear you, support you and appreciate you."
On Krabbenhoft's claims he's immune because he's had COVID-19: "When it comes to immunity the science is evolving and we must continue to follow CDC guidelines. Whether you’ve had the virus or not, it is recommended that you wear a mask when you cannot be socially distanced."
Read 5 tweets
jayfug Profile picture
18 Nov 20
Busy week in South Dakota for city mask mandates. Several of the state's largest cities are approving/considering mask mandates, on the urging of the state medical association and Avera Heath (Notably not Sanford Health). The state of play:
1. Brookings has a mask mandate, The city council passed a mask mandate over two months ago and extended it another 60 days in late October. A recent report from Brookings:
dakotanewsnow.com/video/2020/11/…
2. Huron approved a mask mandate on a unanimous city commission vote on Monday. 30 days. No penalty. plainsman.com/article/time-t…
Read 6 tweets
jayfug Profile picture
17 Nov 20
So KELO decided to bite on Gov. Noem's staff's objection to a USA Today story about the COVID situation in South Dakota. Their call. In my view, it wasn't worth the time. I'll tell you why in just a few tweets (because that's about all that objection is worth)
1. Noem adviser Maggie Seidel, who wrote the "more nonsense" email blast to media about the Joel Shannon article (linked below) isn't even playing with the same set of facts.
usatoday.com/story/news/hea…
2. Shannon uses mortality rate data (via NYT) from the past week, because the point is to show how things are right now (bad by any measure). Seidel says he's wrong by ... citing mortality data from the beginning of the pandemic, stripping it of any useful recent context.
Read 7 tweets
jayfug Profile picture
18 Sep 20
My dispatch from the side of U.S. Highway 14, where South Dakota's attorney general struck and killed a man with his car last week. inforum.com/news/governmen…
Here are more photos from the Ravnsborg-Boever crash scene. Let's walk through it, in the direction of travel. These images are as I shot them yesterday. Here's the presumed start of the scene. Notice the green spray paint line on the road, to the left of the speed limit sign.
Off almost immediately to the right (north) is a SD DOT shop. This is where a vehicle that looked like Ravnsborg's wrecked 2011 Ford Taurus was towed on Tuesday.
Read 17 tweets
jayfug Profile picture
13 Sep 20
So SD Gov. Kristi Noem, with 90 minutes notice, announced a press conference in Sioux Falls city hall, at 5:15 pm on a Sunday. No mention of topic. To be streamed here: Facebook.com/govnoem
Stand by.
Also, just FYI: This is previously unscheduled press conference, unusual in that there's no topic listed and last-second notification, and a really odd day/time for max media exposure (other than SF is the state's media center). Just really odd.
BREAKING: SD Atty Gen. Jason Ravnsborg involved in a traffic collision in Hyde County, 10:30 pm yesterday on Hwy 14, just west of Highmore. 1 fatality from crash. They wouldn't tell us any other details (condition of anyone, who else involved, how many people/vehicles involved).
Read 20 tweets

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