South Dakota Governor Larry Rhoden is back at it again, prioritizing freedom, individual responsibility, and the right to self-defense while validating my choice to call this state home. On Monday, March 24, Rhoden signed a pair of pro-Second Amendment bills into law that open up concealed carry in bars and on public college campuses, also taking action to protect South Dakotans from political subdivisions who think they have the right to overrule the law of the land.
“One of my favorite things about South Dakota is how much we respect freedom — especially our Second Amendment freedom,” said Rhoden during a bill signing at Boyds Gunstocks in Mitchell, South Dakota.
Senate Bill 100, sponsored by Senator Jensen, Senator Voita, Representative Gosch, and Representative Mulally, allows those with enhanced concealed-carry permits or reciprocal out-of-state permits to carry a concealed handgun on state university and technical college campuses. The enhanced permit, available to those 18 years of age and up, is much like a regular permit with a few additional perks, mostly regarding expanded carry rights in reciprocal states like North Dakota in exchange for a background check and completion of an NRA-certified handgun course.
The measure requires handguns and ammunition to be secured in a locked case or safe when not carried. Institutions are permitted to place carry restrictions under specified conditions, including air-quality-controlled labs, facilities requiring a security clearance, special events protected by metal detectors and armed security, and labs containing flammable liquids, dangerous chemicals, and hazardous gases.
While SB 100 is a relatively popular measure that received few downvotes, Representative Jim Halverson, a former state trooper and likely to be a former South Dakota representative if he keeps it up, fought against the bill, raising doubt about the ability of young adults to act responsibly and therefore be afforded the right to self-defense.
“I slept very little last night because I couldn’t make peace with my God if I didn’t stand up and speak against this bill today… A locked box in a dorm room just doesn’t seem like a good plan,” said Halverson.
The problem with Halverson’s argument is common, and it has been debunked for so long that it’s almost shocking to witness the broken chain of logic continually passed off upon Americans. Halverson assumes that the absence of a firearm will stop a person who has decided to take their own life or the lives of others. That is a criminal and mental health issue that never had any bearing on the tool used or how one might choose to obtain it. These faulty arguments trade the liberty and God-given right to self-preservation for what is essentially political snake oil.
House Bill 1218, sponsored by Representative Aylward and Senator Voita, prohibits local governments from adopting any policy that subverts state law regarding restrictions on employees, officers, and volunteers carrying a concealed firearm in government buildings, facilities, and vehicles. The bill also contains a late addition repealing a state law that creates gun-free zones at eateries and establishments that serve alcohol, a portion of the bill that received the most pushback from those who think diners have an obligation to be more compliant victims.
“It’s unfortunate that this change didn’t even get a committee hearing… Small business owners deserved the opportunity to share how this law would impact them,” says Nathan Sanderson of the South Dakota Retailers Association.
I find it curious that, regardless of his position as Executive Director of the South Dakota Retailers Association, Sanderson could be so in touch with what a small business owner deserves without mentioning the right to self-preservation deserved by all Americans and enumerated in the Constitution. I wonder if he would support a bill that made small business owners personally liable for the safety of their patrons while shopping and walking to and from their vehicles. I won’t hold my breath on that one.
Governor Rhoden Wasn’t having any of the typical liberal nonsense either, having heard every tired argument in the book and every reason why Americans shouldn’t have access to the right to bear arms. He likened the rhetoric to that of the argument against Constitutional carry, signed into law by Kristi Noem in 2019.
“There was a lot of wringing of the hands and speculation about what could happen with constitutional carry…None of that proved to be true,” says Rhoden.
Like any other state, gun deaths fluctuate in South Dakota. However, evidence shows that most firearm-related mortalities come from suicide, not from people going out to dinner and deciding to pop off a few rounds in the dining room. The prioritization of liberty and self-reliance was at the top of my list when the time came to relocate. It is a value I appreciate and one that will keep me here for the rest of my life if it continues to be sustained in this manner. My hat’s off to Governor Rhoden and all South Dakota Representatives who sponsored and voted for these bills.
My answer to any that say that there will be blood in the streets due to Constitutional Carry is that the only thing that changes is now the people who are strapped are legal. This business of declaring some places as inappropriate is ludicrous. People have and will carry into those places and will do no harm, unless that is their intent to start with. After all, we all know that criminals all follow the law.
Gun free zones are only possible with strictly controlled access, metal detectors, and lots of law enforcement. I’ve only seen it in a few government buildings and concerts. They’re about the only ones that could afford to do that.
“After all, we all know that criminals all follow the law.”
True, but only if the law makes something illegal enough. Just regular “illegal” is insufficient to render a change in behavior.
House Republicans Advance Five Key Pro-Gun Bills Including Concealed Carry Reciprocity.
https://www.shootingnewsweekly.com/gun-nation/promises-kept-house-republicans-advance-five-key-pro-gun-bills-including-concealed-carry-reciprocity/
USSC justice gorsucks and others sidestepped their oath to protect and defend the US Constitution when they decided to place Criminals and Gun Control an agenda Rooted in Racism and Genocide above a Constitutional Right. One can conclude the demented biden/harris/atf Gun Control has not left the building.
The only reason the republicans give lip service to 2nd amendment rights is because the democrats are opposed to it.
No government, none, no exception, wants their citizens armed. They may give lip service to it, they may talk it up for a period of time, but in the end, they all want their citizens disarmed (yes, even Switzerland)
A government only wants another nation’s citizens armed. The US government totally supports gun rights in many country, especially governments we dont like. We know that armed citizens can resist government, unarmed citizens cannot.
Our government does not want resistance.
Never forget that regular citizens in this nation once owned actual real “Weapons of war”. They had warships, cannons, the whole shebang.
Now if a US citizen dares to try to buy an Uzi, it’ll take months and government permission slips, if you happen to live in a state that allows one.
It’s so nice when Govenors allow We The People to exercise Our Constitutional Rights.
And, President Trump said , “Your Second Amendments Rights are safe with me.”
Well bless his heart, it’s nice to know a president will give Us Our constitutional rights.
Joe the Taker and Donald the Giver.
It warms my heart knowing My government works for me.
I suppose a warm heart is better that a red ass!
“Better that a red ass”
?
I’m ignorant, could you clarify that statement for me please.
Xdduly, I was trying to say it is better to have a little something good than none at all.
You aren’t’ ignorant. My play on words is not always obvious.
Left wing stupid and mental illness and criminality on display, well, on a 4 wheeler in this case: Man Accused of Attacking Tesla With Mini 4-Wheeler Finds Out That Wasn’t a Smart Idea.
https://redstate.com/nick-arama/2025/03/27/man-accused-of-attacking-tesla-with-mini-four-wheeler-finds-out-that-wasnt-a-smart-idea-n2187163
White House Aides Had a ‘Death Pool’ Plan for Biden, Led Him Around With Neon Tape on the Floor…
https://redstate.com/rusty-weiss/2025/03/27/dems-had-a-death-pool-plan-for-biden-led-him-around-with-neon-tape-on-the-floor-book-n2187175
‘Veto Corleone’: VA’s Glenn Youngkin Goes on Veto Spree, Strangles Gobs of Progressive Legislation.
“Sometimes you just have to know when to say ‘no,’ a concept that Republican Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin seems to have taken to heart. During a Wednesday legislation massacre, the Old Dominion State’s chief executive vetoed a staggering 159 bills sent to his desk by the Democrat legislature.
It was a legislative bloodbath, worthy of the likes of Don Corleone if he had dealt with bills instead of rival mobsters:
You could call him ‘Veto Corleone,’ a Republican strategist told Fox News Digital in comments later Wednesday, after 159 bills were killed upon reaching Youngkin’s desk.
Virginia’s General Assembly passed bills this session that would have prevented prayer in front of abortion clinics, required the commonwealth to implement a comprehensive ‘environmental justice’ strategy and adjusted criminal bond policies.
All of those bills were vetoed by Youngkin, and the legislature’s Democratic majority is far from veto-proof — with two-seat margins in each chamber.
…
Other vetoed bills included two pertaining to gun control legislation, restricting the purchase or transfer of firearms and the like.
…”
https://redstate.com/bobhoge/2025/03/27/veto-corleone-vas-glenn-youngkin-goes-on-veto-spree-strangles-gobs-of-progressive-legislation-n2187153
YIKES: Babysitter Doing Nighttime Monster Check Finds Something SCARY Under Child’s Bed.
“If you’re a parent, you’ve been there: it’s bedtime, and your kid asks you to check for monsters under the bed or in the closet.
99.99% of the time, there’s nothing there. But the five seconds it takes to check and assuage your kid’s fears is worth it if it means a night of peaceful sleep.
But in Kansas, a babysitter went to do the obligatory monster check and found something truly frightening:
Kansas Babysitter checking for monsters finds man hiding under child’s bed. 27-year-old man arrested
…
A babysitter discovered a man hiding under a child’s bed near Great Bend. It happened in the 2000 block of Patton Road around 10:30 p.m. Monday.
The Barton County Sheriff’s Office says a babysitter was putting the children to bed when one of them told her that a “monster” was under their bed.
The babysitter, hoping to comfort the child by showing them there was nothing, looked under the bed and came face-to-face with a man hiding underneath. There was an altercation, and the babysitter and a child were knocked over.
The man fled the home before the sheriff’s office arrived. The man was identified as someone who used to live at the house but was barred from being there due to a protection from abuse order.
The sheriff’s office says deputies continued searching for the man in the area into the morning. He was found near the home again, and after a short foot pursuit, he was taken into custody.
…”
https://twitchy.com/amy-curtis/2025/03/27/kansas-babysitter-finds-intruder-under-childs-bed-n2410517
Because I understand that these and other pro-2A bills actually make S. Dakota a safer state to visit, the state will likely see a few hundred tourism dollars from my family soon.