Category Archives: News

Americans mourned the passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who died suddenly last year in the middle of the presidential election. Justice Scalia was one of the strongest defenders of the Constitution who fought fiercely against judicial activism and legislating from the bench. Replacing him will be extremely difficult, and is of the utmost importance, as Supreme Court Justices can dramatically alter the course of our nation in just one vote.

President Trump has made an excellent choice in nominating Judge Gorsuch to replace Justice Scalia on the bench. An avid outdoorsman, Judge Gorsuch was born in Colorado, educated at Columbia, Harvard and Oxford, and for the past 10 years has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver. He has previously clerked for Supreme Court Justices Byron White and Anthony Kennedy. Throughout his career, he has a clear record of following the Constitution as it was written and following the rule of law. We believe Judge Gorsuch espouses the same approach as Justice Scalia and has a strong understanding of federalism upon which our country is built.

In our federal system, the Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the country and has ultimate jurisdiction over all federal courts. Because the current makeup of the court is evenly split between conservative and liberal-leaning justices, filling this 9th spot is as important as ever. This next justice has the potential to hold incredible influence over the ideological direction of the court for a generation to come. The Supreme Court is the final authority for interpreting federal laws and the Constitution. It is one of the most important responsibilities in our federal system.

That is why the decision was made early on by Leader McConnell and others to give the American people a voice in the process of replacing Justice Scalia, by waiting to confirm the next Justice until the 45th President was in office and able to nominate someone him or herself. We held that belief even when it looked like our party would not win the presidency. But as we have been reminded, elections have consequences. The American people chose to elect President Trump, who throughout his campaign said that he would nominate someone “in the mold of the late Justice Scalia.”

President Trump made good on fulfilling that promise when he nominated Judge Gorsuch to the Court. Judge Gorsuch is greatly respected on both sides of the aisle. In fact, he was previously confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit unanimously – with not a single Republican or Democrat member of the Senate dissenting. Nearly a dozen Democrat Senators who did not oppose his nomination in 2006 still serve in the Senate today, including Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Diane Feinstein and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

As such, we expect the Senate will continue its tradition of approving highly competent, qualified individuals to the Supreme Court in an up or down vote following a thorough vetting process. We owe it to the late Justice Scalia, our judicial system, the Constitution and every American to see his conformation through.

When Justice Antonin Scalia unexpectedly passed away last year, the country lost more than veteran of the Supreme Court. It lost a man who was universally respected by his colleagues in the courtroom, both behind and in front of the bench, and a man who will undoubtedly go down as one of the most brilliant legal minds in American history. Justice Scalia’s reverence for the law and Constitution was as evident in his written work as it was in his methodical and oftentimes witty oratory. He loved the court and his country, and his shoes will be big ones to fill.

Not that there is ever an ordinary vacancy on the court, but when Justice Scalia passed away, it came at an extraordinary time. America was in the middle of a heated presidential election, and President Obama was months away from leaving office. In order to protect the selection and confirmation of a new Supreme Court justice from the heat of election-year politics, Senate Republicans decided the best option was for the American people to have a voice in the process.

That meant Republicans were willing and prepared to give whoever was elected as the 45th president (Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton) the power to nominate the next Supreme Court justice. It also meant that the next Senate (led by Republicans or Democrats) would be the group to provide its advice and consent to the president on his or her nominee. Both the next president and the next Senate would be free from the political rhetoric and rancor of the campaign trail.

By now, we all know how the election ended. Donald Trump won, and he selected an extremely well-qualified, mainstream jurist who is ready to serve on the highest court in the land. Senate Republicans retained our majority, and we are ready get to work on the people’s business, which includes quickly confirming Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.

Judge Gorsuch’s resume is impeccable. He is the graduate of Oxford University, Harvard Law School, and Columbia University. He served as a clerk for two Supreme Court justices, including Anthony Kennedy who still serves on the court today. For more than a decade, Judge Gorsuch has served on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, a position to which he received unanimous support in the Senate. Perhaps most importantly, Judge Gorsuch believes that Supreme Court justices should be like an umpire who calls balls and strikes. The law is the law, and Judge Gorsuch agrees.

It is unfortunate that before this nominee was even announced, my Democrat colleagues in the Senate launched a filibuster campaign in an attempt to block the nomination. Not because of the character or qualifications of the person who would ultimately receive it, but because they think the seat belongs to someone else.

To be clear, seats on the Supreme Court do not belong to a president, a political party, or even a justice himself. The Supreme Court and the seats of which it is comprised belong to the American people. They, as should my Democrat colleagues who not that long ago believed we needed nine justices on the Supreme Court, are ready to fill this vacancy so Judge Gorsuch can get to work without delay.

South Dakota’s average price for a gallon of regular gasoline stands at $2.33 on Jan. 23 and is the lowest since Jan. 9, according to AAA South Dakota.

“Today’s Sioux Falls price average of $2.29 is actually the lowest it’s been since Dec. 28th of last year,” said Marilyn Buskohl, spokeswoman for AAA South Dakota. “Rapid City’s price average of $2.24 is the same as one week ago.”

Current Price Averages per Gallon of Regular Gasoline

Sioux Falls – $2.29, down 4 cents since 1/17/17 … up 69 cents since 1/23/16
Rapid City – $2.24, same as 1/17/17 … up 19 cents since 1/23/16
South Dakota – $2.33, down 2 cents since 1/17/17 … up 49 cents since 1/23/16
U.S. – $2.31, down 6 cents since 1/7/17 … up 47 cents since 1/23/16

The national average price of gas continues to decline as U.S. oil production increases. Today’s average price of $2.31 per gallon represents a decrease of three cents per gallon on the week, four cents per gallon on the month, and prices have moved lower for 14 of the past 15 days. Despite this recent trend lower, retail averages are up by 46 cents per gallon as compared to one year ago.