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Rapid City Journal Editorial: Return Noem to Washington
In 2010 we endorsed Kristi Noem for U.S. House of Representatives as a better fit for West River than Stephanie Herseth Sandlin.
Two years later, that still holds true for Noem, who is being challenged by Democrat Matt Varilek of Yankton.
Noem's background of helping to run a farm/ranch operation near Castlewood gives her a unique perspective in Congress, where she serves on the House Agriculture, Natural Resources and Education & Workforce committees. She also served in the South Dakota Legislature, which helped prepare her for the political stage.
Varilek has worked on the staffs of South Dakota Sens. Tim Johnson and Tom Daschle, but otherwise is a political novice. His lack of political experience at even the local level is a major drawback in his bid to become a member of Congress.
Noem, on the other hand, has proven that she is capable of representing South Dakota as its sole voice in the House of Representatives. Her appointment as freshman liaison to the Republican leadership gives her additional clout in Congress.
Varilek has made it a major campaign issue that his opponent has not attended many of her committee and subcommittee hearings. While we are disappointed that Noem has a sketchy attendance record, she does have a solid voting record, and there's no indication that it has made her ineffective.
Varilek also has questioned why Noem wasn't able to deliver a farm bill before coming home to run for re-election. Noem points out that only 20 percent of the farm bill is related to agriculture, and that many members in the House wouldn't agree to cuts to nutrition and food stamp programs in order to slice this year's $1.1 trillion budget deficit.
One of Noem's biggest issues is getting a handle on the national debt. She said the House has voted on $6 trillion in spending cuts over 10 years that the Democratic-led Senate won't bring up for a vote. However, Varilek faults Noem for voting for the “Ryan budget plan” because it includes spending cuts and entitlement reform. That makes us wonder how seriously Varilek will tackle the nation's deficit and debt problem.
On many issues, Noem and Varilek can be found on the same side. That's understandable because they're trying to attract the same voters.
We give credit to Varilek for running a strong campaign and forcing Noem to defend her record. What faults he has exposed can be chalked up as freshman mistakes. However, we do expect Noem to go to committee meetings and do a better job of representing South Dakota.
In our view, Noem has done a good enough job these last two years to send her back to Washington as South Dakota's at large member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
2012-11-04 18:00:07
Source: http://www.kristiforcongress.com/news/post/rapid-city-journal-editorial-return-noem-to-washington/
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