The Volante's Political Blog

Technically, journalists don’t have a “right” to talk to anyone, let alone public officials; however, civic leaders have a responsibility to the people who elected them to speak to the press. The press is how people get the information they need to be informed citizens. Without informed citizens, democracy can’t exist.

When gathering information and setting up interviews for three different stories during the last month, I had attempted to get in touch with a certain state senator from Vermillion. After a number of unanswered phone calls and more than a couple voice-mails, I began to think that the 2010 Democratic Secretary of State candidate was ducking me.

By now if you haven’t figured out whom I am speaking of, it is the honorable Sen. Ben (BJ) Nesselhuf.

I understand the man is busy attempting to further his political career, something he said a year ago he wouldn’t do, but he is still the representative of District 17, Vermillion and the University of South Dakota.

When a story is written about the economic climate in South Dakota and what is going to be done about it in Pierre, our senators are the ones we turn to.

I’m not sure if the senator IS avoiding me intentionally, but I wonder if I was not seeking information as a journalist if he would talk to me. Is he accessible to others?

When I first met Nesselhuf during the 2008 election season, he was very likable and very accessible. I got to know the senator quite well when I went to Pierre the following January to cover the legislative session. We had drinks from time-to-time and discussed contentious issues off-the-record.

A seasoned politician such as Nesselhuf wouldn’t, one would assume, hold any differences in personal opinion against anybody, would he?      

The intention of this post is not to be in any way detrimental to Nesselhuf or his campaign for state secretary. It is merely me contemplating through Microsoft Office Word.

It might take a lot of effort on my part, but I look forward to speaking with the Sen. Nesselhuf soon.

All who watched the debate between Ben Nesselhuf and Jerad Higman noticed the candidates agreed with each other on many issues. As I was browsing through some of the District 17 Senate candidate’s brochures and I noticed they not only agree on issues, but the little things about campaigning as well.

On the back of Nesselhuf’s flyer, which emphasizes education, there is a picture of school children raising their hands in eagerness to participate in class. Higman has a flyer also touting education. On the back of his flyer, there are series of photos with school children. What I found to be a bit funny is Higman used the same photo as Nesselhuf, or vice versa, however you want to look at it. Apparently, the photo is so powerful, neither candidate could afford to go without it.  

One could assume the ad agencies used have a pool of photos to pick from and the similarity was peer chance. Also, I’m pretty sure neither candidate is aware of this. None the less, it makes me wonder how often in other political races this type of parody occurs.   

I know this revelation won’t stop the presses, but I thought I’d share it with you.   

Thursday night I moderated the debate between Jerad Higman and Ben Nesselhuf. I spent a good chunk of time developing the questions for the first half of the 90 minute debate. When contemplating what to ask, I made sure not to pose any questions that could be perceived as bias. All of the questions, which you can view at the The Volante website, were neutral. It was my intention not to give either candidate any unfair advantage.

Overall, I thought the debate was a hit. Good questions and good responses all around, but there was one exception. I understand that being bipartisan is important, and I don’t blame either candidate for agreeing on more than one topic; however, a certain question prompted, in my opinion, a less than impressive answer by Jerad Higman.

The question was about public smoking bans. I expected the incumbent democrat Ben Nesselhuf to tout the anti-smoking propaganda that Americans have heard since what seems forever, which he did. What I didn’t expect was republican Jerad Higman to concede to the liberal ideology, whether it’s correct or not, that business owners shouldn’t be able to decide what they can or cannot do in their own establishments. Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought conservatives protected the interests of business owners and personal freedoms, whether they want to bring their kids to Applebee’s or not.

Ben Nesselhuf and Jared Higman, candidates for District 17 State Senate, debate at the Freedom Forum at the Al Neuharth Media Center. Follow the debate with our live blogger Patrick Morrison.

For live, streaming video of the debate, click here. Mac users will have to download Flip4Mac. Click here for a free download.

For a live blog with Assitant News Editor Patrick Morrison, click here.

The South Dakota District 17 senate race is an interesting one to say the least. The school year has been the fuel on the flames without a doubt. The first fall print of The Volante offered a spirited opinion column from USD College Republican President Matt Hittle about Democratic incumbent Ben Nesselhuf and, in Hittle’s opinion, his lack of productivity as a District 17 Senator during the past four years.

The USD College Democrats are hitting back with their own onslaught of writing letters to the editor of The Volante advocating their candidate. Hittle has reported Nesselhuf’s competition, Jerad Higman, has had campaign signs torn down throughout town. Who the culprit is cannot be speculated on by this journalist, but Hittle is not shy in insisting the vandals must be Nesselhuf supporters.

The campaign fireworks have already been bright this fall, but are about to get brighter. On Oct 23 at 7:00 pm in the Al Neuharth Media Center, The Volante will hold a debate between Republican Jerad Higman and Democratic incumbent Ben Nesselhuf. The debate will be lively, I guarantee you that.

The College Democrats, the College Republicans and the Political Science League will provide a pool of questions to me and The Volante’s editorial staff. We will then choose which questions we see relevant and fair. If you would like to offer a question or questions, feel free to send questions to me or an editor at The Volante. The last portion of the debate will be questions from the audience.

It is an honor to say that yours truly will be moderating the debate.

I hope to see many of you there.