SIOUX FALLS - Tonight Senator Billie Sutton demonstrated his trademark steady demeanor, commitment to honesty and integrity, and readiness to be Governor of South Dakota in the first general election gubernatorial debate on Keloland News.
To conclude his remarks for the evening, Sutton said:
“When I got into this race, it was for a lot of reasons, but none more important than the fact that our country and our state are becoming more and more divided. We need to focus on coming together, and we can come together around our shared values of honesty, integrity and hard work – values we all hold dear. Because, as South Dakotans, we have a lot more in common that not. We all believe that if you work hard you should be able to get ahead; that our kids and grandkids should have as good or better opportunities than we had; when ag is strong, South Dakota is strong; and our government should be as honest and trustworthy as our people. These are the ideals I’ve fought for, and theses are the ideals I’ll fight for as governor of South Dakota.”
Sutton demonstrated his commitment to the people of South Dakota by emphasizing that 90% of his financial support in the last reporting period came from South Dakota, while 44% of Noem’s campaign cash came from out-of-state PACs. In fact, Noem has stockpiled nearly $1M from out-of-state and Federal PACs since the Primary Election alone.
After Sutton unequivocally denounced a state income tax, Noem proceeded to tell that and other lies about Sutton throughout the debate, even though the Associated Press Fact Check found that she “lacked proof” for her false claim.
Sutton for South Dakota campaign manager Suzanne Jones Pranger said:
“Senator Billie Sutton came to the stage tonight to have a conversation about South Dakota issues, but Congresswoman Noem came with an agenda to mislead voters. Like the career politician she is, Noem came armed with choreographed Washington lies, articulating verbatim her campaign’s previously exposed falsehoods and half-truths.”
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