‘Toss up' draws big guns

Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md. and the Democratic majority leader, attended two meetings on renewable energy with Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, who is seeking a fourth full term in the House. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was in town campaigning with state Rep. Kristi Noem, a Castlewood Republican who is trying to unseat Herseth Sandlin.

Also Wednesday, a national political analyst at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics changed his rating on the race from “leans Democrat” to “toss up,” more evidence that Herseth Sandlin faces her toughest challenge since 2004.

Hoyer attended meetings on biofuels and wind energy, and he wasn’t shy about sharing his primary reason for his visit – the re-election of Herseth Sandlin.

“The main reason I came out to South Dakota is because I want Stephanie Herseth back in Congress, because I need her and you need her,” he said.

Hoyer called her an effective advocate for agriculture and renewable energy, a “gem” who uses ration to find answers rather than “knee-jerk responses.”

At one point, Herseth Sandlin complained about delays in increasing the ethanol blend limit from 10 percent to 15 percent a gallon, a change that is critical to farmers and the ethanol industry. She criticized federal bureaucracies for inconsistencies in regulating and promoting renewable energies, and she accused oil companies, auto makers and some environmental groups of trying to sabotage policy goals established in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.

“Since the day after it was signed, there were forces out there trying to undermine it,” she said.

Hoyer, looking on, turned to the audience and said, “You just saw an example of the advocacy of your representative.”

At another point, he said, “I’m going to tell you that Stephanie is a real leader in the Congress of the United States.”

The achievements of House Democrats in passing key pieces of legislation have been blunted because of inaction in the Senate, he added. Senate Republicans, if they stay unified, have enough votes to bog down the process.

Republicans had a different take on Hoyer’s visit. McCarthy noted that Hoyer played a role in talking a Rapid City doctor out of challenging Herseth Sandlin in this year’s primary after she voted against the health reform law. Herseth Sandlin told the doctor, Kevin Weiland, that she wouldn’t vote to repeal the law, which Republicans view as a quid pro quo.

Noem said that Democratic proposals have killed jobs and raised taxes on small business.

“We’ve been constantly talking about jobs and getting our economy back on track,” she said.

Both McCarthy and Noem slammed the Democrats for failing to produce a budget which, they say, shows Democrats have no plan to rein in deficit spending at a time of crisis.

“In a normal household, that’s when you bring everyone in the household together and go over it line by line,” McCarthy said. “That’s what we should be doing now, going over it line by line.”

Deficit spending promises to be a pivotal issue in this campaign and campaigns across the country. McCarthy noted that the economic stimulus that Herseth Sandlin voted for in 2009 didn’t focus on infrastructure projects and did not live up to its promise of keeping unemployment below 8 percent.

“More people actually believe that Elvis Presley is still alive than the stimulus created jobs. Now how do you hang your hat on that?” McCarthy said.

Hoyer acknowledged that deficits and the national debt are weighing on the minds of many Americans, and he called the mood “schizophrenic” because Americans want the economy to get better and they also want government spending curbed, which he said were “opposite aspirations.” Without more government spending, at least in the short term, the economy won’t get better.

“Let me encourage you not to get frustrated,” Hoyer said. “The country is going through a very, very difficult time.”

“We’re not going to grow the economy long term,” he added, “if we don’t invest in infrastructure. Period.”

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