Entries Tagged 'Paul Ten Haken' ↓

Before I go into my congratulatory mode, I want to talk about what went wrong for the two candidates that lost yesterday.

First, Mr. DeBoer. I have to be truly honest with you, I don’t think there was much more that Zach could have done to beat Soehl. I know that he attempted to get Tom Hurlbert’s endorsement, but that was sticky situation for Tom, and probably the reason why he declined. Tom has a successful architecture business and I think it would have been difficult for him to throw his weight behind either Curt or Zach because of those business connections. Hurlbert did the right thing by staying out of the endorsement game. I think where Curt succeeded was garnering the Union support. While he did raise a lot more money than Zach, I didn’t really see where he spent that money in a productive manner.

While Paul claimed he ran a ‘clean campaign’ from all appearances he did. Nothing came negative directly from him or his inner circle. Where the ‘dirty’ campaigning came from was NOT from his ‘tool box’. It came from the Sioux Falls GOP. They sent out nasty emails painting Jolene as a crazy liberal. Also, the endorsement from the Family Heritage Alliance should have been declined by TenHaken, as well as taking money from toddlers. While Paul may claim he personally kept it clean, that is really a fine line considering he could have informed the GOP to stay out of the race. By allowing them to throw the ‘dirt’ and letting the AG put out a misleading press release (the investigation is NOT done yet folks) Paul really did participate in ‘dirty campaigning’ even if he tries to distance himself from it.

Loetscher’s campaign certainly had it’s flaws. From the beginning of the runoff campaign I felt like Jo’s work was cut out for her. After the Argus put out a map showing where the TenHaken support was coming from it was clear to me she needed to put an army of volunteers together knocking on doors in ‘the red hook’ talking about bread and butter issues like infrastructure, property taxes and business experience. She also needed to reassure the people who voted for her to stay the course, and she needed to massage Anderson’s supporters a little bit.

She also reacted poorly to accusations. She should have just ignored them and never brought up the hacking or voicemail. I still think she was ‘framed’. I don’t think the tone of the VM was the issue, it was the fact that Paul left it to begin with. She also should have called the AG’s office and politely ripped them a new one about the premature press release and demanded a retraction. I think it would have just been best if Jo didn’t respond at all to the tricks, but she walked right into the GOP’s trap, hook, line and sinker. This comes from the inexperience of running for such a big position. She should have also hired an independent campaign advisor with NO ties to either political party or just ran the campaign herself with her husband. If she would have I think a lot of the rhetoric coming from the Right would have fallen on deaf ears. I have often encouraged friends who run for city, county or school board positions to register independent before doing so. If you are running for a non-partisan position, you should do it as a non-partisan.

Tenhaken and Soehl ran strong campaigns and deflected criticism well

 I will have to hand it to both of them, the dirt didn’t stick.

Besides the fact that the only dirt on Soehl was his business huckster donor list, which most people don’t pay attention to. He really didn’t have any barbs thrown his way. Besides, what would they have been anyway? As a retired firefighter he had a good resume and image. I do think Soehl can do the job, and it will be interesting to see if he will join the rubberstamp club or be his own voice. I do know that Soehl was NOT afraid to share his opinion during campaigning, and I hope he stays an independent voice moving forward though I still do worry about his donor list. I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and see how he votes on the big things concerning our city. I think he is an intelligent person and will give a different perspective, or least I hope he does.

TenHaken has a knack of just brushing things off. That is NOT a bad quality, strong leaders need this appeal. I can also say in my 45 minute conversation with Paul, he intently listened, rarely interrupting, I also hope he continues to listen to the public not just bloggers or the media. This is an area where Huether failed, big time. He had no time for the public’s opinion. Huether is the reason Public input is such a mess, his resistance to the public’s opinion is deplorable and disrespectful. I also think Paul can build a good team, I’m hoping it is not to partisan or religious. He must be the mayor to all people, not just the ones that voted for him or didn’t vote at all. I hope he understands that.

Paul has also made a lot of promises about transparency and embracing diversity, he needs to stick to those promises. I believe that transparency was the #1 issue in this municipal election cycle and if Paul fails on that level I think the council and the public with push back on him hard, and it won’t be a pretty site.

There are many things in Paul’s past that concern me, and like I have said before, people don’t automatically change after they take the oath, we saw that with 8 years of Mr. Nightmare himself. They might even get worse once the power goes to their head. I also hope that Paul works side by side with the council and the media to let the sunshine in, and if he does uncover misdeeds in the previous administration he shares that with the public. You can’t fix mistakes of the past by covering them up, that will just blow up in your face. We only have to look to the siding settlement fiasco as proof. I hope Paul and the council take a good hard look at the city’s finances before moving forward with any major budget decisions.

I will also say this in closing about Paul, I think he is prepared for the job, I think he enjoys challenges and I also genuinely think he cares about people, not sure what the scope of those people are though.

I wish him and Curt well moving forward, 2018 is going to be an exciting time to watch the new administration and council take shape, and as I understand it, lines in the sand are already being drawn on the council before the two new members are even sworn in. Detroit Lewis is going to be a very busy guy over the next couple of months, I’m going to try to embrace the journey and bitch a little less. I know, good luck with that.

I guess if you want to take that as an endorsement for Loetscher, so be it.

Even with all the missteps by the Loetscher campaign over the past couple of weeks (which has more to do with HOW she responded, NOT what she was responding to) I just can’t bring myself to vote for Paul.

I have heard many voters tell me they are so disgusted with both campaigns they are not voting for either.

I try to remind them of my Banana VS. Raisin argument, you have to pick one.

Let’s face it, there really isn’t many differences between Jo and Paul in their professional lives. Both young business professionals that have been very successful. Neither has elected government experience, but both have been involved with boards and legislation and both have worked on political campaigns with their agencies.

So what separates Jo and Paul?

Some of those things are obvious. While Paul has been a little wishy-washy about diversity, Jo has made it a part of her campaign platform. And while Jo has been beat up a little about not having a 100-day strategy or plans for a transition team, unlike Paul, Jo understands that this is all new to her, and those plans have to be made carefully. I also think Jo understands the separation of power between the council and mayor.

Jo has made many missteps along the way, but she has never lost my trust and she has always continued to show a genuine passion for people.

Jo has also not lined her campaign chest with the business elite in Sioux Falls (or their toddler children) who will be the first to be asking for corporate welfare if a TenHaken administration rolls in.

Besides the fact that Paul has been involved with some pretty shady political hackery in his past, thinks it is OK to troll your employees on Facebook and tends to take an authoritarian approach to government the thing that has bothered me the most about Paul is that he has never really has had a consistent platform from day one. Jolene has never waivered from her platform.

Like I said, the inexperience of both of them is worrisome, but you gotta pick one. I pick the Banana.

It was quite comical when Paul said he has ‘tools’ to negative campaign, but won’t use them. It seems his biggest ‘TOOL’ over at the DWC has been quite busy smearing Loetscher. Here are a few of his headlines and posts about Jolene;

Loetscher Campaign going into this weekend… see definitions for “quicksand,” “death spiral,” “free fall”

Dakota Posts shoveling a load this AM on Jolene Loetscher

And here Jo goes again – SD Biotech association says they “have no idea” what Loetcher business is, despite biotech claims

Argus takes Jolene Loetscher to task for lack of transparency. Is she channeling Mayor Mike Huether?

Candidate for Mayor Jolene Loetscher twists opponents words when he says he wants to keep race positive

Uh oh, Jo. Fraternal Order of Police slams Loetscher campaign ads as “misleading”

KELO-TV boosting former reporter’s negative camapign smears against opponent in mayor’s race.

Loetscher campaign seems to be getting a bit desperate as Sioux Falls mayoral campaign winds down to run off

I know what you are thinking, I have been posting stuff about Paul. First off, everything I have said except for parodies has been the truth. Secondly, I have not received one single penny from the Loetscher campaign. Have I talked to Jolene and her campaign manager? Yes I have, but they have never asked me to post anything about Paul. Every post about Paul has been on my own fruition or at the advice of my readers who have tipped me off about several things.

Either way, I think Paul’s claim he has kept it clean is a bit of a stretch, considering there have many people behind the scenes stirring the pot and throwing the mud for him.

Listen to Jackboots get his ass handed to him by the Supreme Court, it is hilarious. Funny how none of the audio from this hearing has showed up in his campaign materials.

I also find it kind of strange that TenHaken looks like ‘Perry’ (Alexander SkarsgÃ¥rd) from ‘Big Little Lies’.

So if Paul becomes mayor he thinks he is going to make some changes;

TenHaken said establishing a sign-up sheet for those wishing to address the City Council, potentially reducing the five minute time allotment, enforcing a code of conduct for everyone at meetings and designating seats in the Council chamber for those who’ve signed up to speak.

First off, Public Input belongs to the public. Secondly, the mayor has ZERO power in changing the rules at public input, that is the council’s job.

I will not sign a sign up sheet, and I will not sit in a designated area. Public input belongs to the public. We own this government and the agenda, not the mayor or council. I will not have goofy rules put on my 1st Amendment rights.

When people are acting up, you gavel them and ask them to leave or escort them out by security.

It is already intimidating enough for people to come and speak, we don’t need to make that process harder for EVERYONE because a few bad apples called the mayor names when HE wasn’t following his own rules of conduct.

I refuse to take a number and be called on like a person waiting at the DMV. And if Paul or the Council think they are going to thru with these changes there will be the biggest revolt they have ever seen, and it won’t involve respect or decorum.

UPDATE III: Ding! Ding! Ding! And the winner is . . .

As the May 1 election approaches, those distinctions have been drawn. It is our conclusion that TenHaken’s experience and leadership qualities make him the best choice to succeed Mike Huether as the city’s next mayor.

Shocker!!! Oh, but the Argus wanted to reassure us no funny business is going on;

Editor’s note: Though community at-large members are a key part of the mission of the Argus Leader editorial board, such members were not part of the discussions involving this endorsement.

So Stu Whitney and Cory Myers endorsed Paul. That makes me feel comfortable.

UPDATE II: From Cory Myers;

Hi Scott, all – Michelle is a former community member of the Argus editorial board. She was not part of any editorial board discussions concerning the mayoral candidates, nor any board discussions since December of 2017.

How fun it was for Cory Myers to cry about transparency yesterday;

But specifically for a campaign so focused on transparency, I see no reason why Loetscher won’t release this voicemail.

You mean like when you (didn’t) release this information before the general election when your editorial board endoresed TenHaken and Loetscher;

Oh, that’s right, you didn’t bother telling your readers.

Ironically, TenHaken is the one that scooped this on his FB page. So the Argus ED Board, who has a FORMER member that is assisting TenHaken’s campaign, was endorsing TenHaken.

WOW! Let’s talk ‘transparency’ Cory.

Can’t wait to see if the Argus endorses TenHaken before Tuesday. Cory might have to do a lot of explaining to his far away boss in Denver and the execs at Gannet. Or maybe this is just par for course?

Why not endorse Donald Duck? It would seem less ridiculous.

Some of the Biggest Banksters and developers in Sioux Falls have thrown thousand$ at Paul and Curt.

PTH: TENHAKEN-Donor

CS: SOEHL-Donor

I always find it ironic when I hear certain candidates tell us what they will do for ‘US’ than read their donor list that tell us a different story.

The other night in the final mayoral debate, TenHaken made the comment that he felt we haven’t used TIF’s enough. I just about fell out of my chair. With 5 years of record building permits, why is it that we continue to handout corporate welfare to the developers? They are NOT hurting, just look at the money they threw at these two candidates.

We need to focus on bringing customer service back to ALL the citizens in Sioux Falls, not just the super wealthy. Council Candidate Zach DeBoer has proposed numerous initiatives that would lift up neighborhoods and support more affordable housing in Sioux Falls. Paul and Curt have proposed we stay the course with corporate welfare and TIF’s.

Some say the decision on Tuesday is a hard one. Just look at these donor lists, it will make your decision a lot easier.

This letter writer lays out why Jolene has more integrity than Paul;

First, he takes a $1,000 donation from each family member of the DocuTap founder Eric McDonald and his five children. He claims this does not violate any campaign rules in this race and was found to be ethical. Nevertheless, it violates moral integrity of a candidate for mayor. He went on to claim that the children in the McDonald family independently supported him as a candidate for mayor. I for one find it hard to believe that a 6-year-old child can even comprehend the concept of the campaign for mayor.

The irony of this is that McDonald could have created a PAC to funnel as much money as we wanted to Paul instead of using his children as a political pawns. But McDonald’s actions aside, Paul should not have accepted the donation, and several people have told him so. It lacks ethical behavior. He has raised close to $200k, did he really need to take money from toddlers?

Second, for a man who claims he will have transparency in his office, how can he be trusted to work on the business of the City of Sioux Falls or will he be too busy digging up dirt on every citizen of Sioux Falls?

Paul’s past is worrisome, trolling his employees on FB, trying to chase down political operatives using college students, and moving data around to cover a state employee’s ass. Imagine how he will treat the citizens of Sioux Falls? How many instances have we heard of Jolene doing these things. ZERO.

Paul TenHaken lacks the moral integrity to be mayor. He fits the mold of Mayor Mike Huether and eight years of that administration is enough. Join me in voting for Jolene Loetscher.

I have compared Paul to Mike on several occasions. Let’s face it. I told people about Mike before he was elected. He marketed one of the most predatory credit cards in the nation. The Feds changed the laws because of it. I told people, his actions as a professional will not change when he becomes a public official, and I was right. I feel the same about Paul. You can’t just flip a switch and become a person with integrity because you put your hand on a bible and took an oath. While I believe Paul and Jolene have similar experience in business and lack that similar experience in governing, the one thing that separates them is honesty, integrity and ethics. I think Loetscher has it, and I’m willing to live with her missteps starting out if I know she will do things in the open. We don’t need another corporate welfare lackey in City Hall, we don’t need another Huether.

Besides the fact that they have received no evidence;

The Attorney General’s statement does say investigators on this case are waiting on records from other social media entities.

The timing of this press release is questionable.

Remember when Marty’s buddy Rounds was running for Senate and they couldn’t comment on an ‘ongoing’ investigation into EB-5 during a campaign? But it seems for some reason it is OK for the AG to say they have essentially ‘found nothing’ because, well they have ‘nothing’ a couple days before an election who just happens to have a Republican VS a Democrat.

Gee, that’s not questionable at all. Marty Jackley wouldn’t do anything underhanded like that? Would he? That would be like saying a guy killed himself using a 5-Foot branch, but we won’t let you see the autopsy, just trust us.

Reminds me of when TenHaken was helping his buddy Pity Pat out move servers around the country to hide his campaign store and when we questioned the obvious conflict of interest Jackley says, “They didn’t steal anything. Investigation closed.”

Jackley has made a mockery of the AG office.

During the debate tonight, TenHaken said a major endorsement is coming. Wonder if that is from Jackley? I would think he would be smarter than that while running for Governor, but who knows, the Silver Fox wiggles his way out of all kinds of things.