South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem took aim at President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, arguing it was unfair states with strict lockdowns get bailed out by the federal government while states, such as her own, demonstrated businesses could remain open.
“South Dakota kept our state Open for Business, and now we’re a national leader in vaccinations,” Noem said on Twitter. “But the federal COVID bill unfairly bails out states like New York that shutdown their economies. It rewards them for their bad actions. Does Cuomo really need more federal money?”
South Dakota kept our state Open for Business, and now we’re a national leader in vaccinations.
But the federal COVID bill unfairly bails out states like New York that shutdown their economies. It rewards them for their bad actions. Does Cuomo really need more federal money? pic.twitter.com/pZHG7Tb0M3
— Governor Kristi Noem (@govkristinoem) February 23, 2021
Noem attached a video of a Fox News interview, during which she called Biden’s relief plan a “very unfair bill.”
SOUTH DAKOTA BECOMES LEADING EXAMPLE OF VACCINE DISTRIBUTION
“It bails out those states that shut down their economies. It rewards them for making people stay in their homes and for taking away a business’s right to be open and take care of their customers and their employees,” Noem said when asked for her response on bailouts to some states. “It’s incredibly detrimental to our state because we made the right decisions, we trusted people, we have the lowest unemployment rate in the nation … tied for it with Nebraska, and we’re getting through this together.”
Noem said the new coronavirus relief bill bails out states that overstepped people’s individual liberties.
“What this bill does is reward New York and Illinois and California for their bad actions and their overstep of our personal liberties and our freedoms,” Noem said.
Noem also noted that while her state took criticism for its handling of the virus, it is also one of the leading states at vaccine distribution.
“What’s frustrating for me is that people attack us and South Dakota for taking the route and the path that we took,” Noem said. “What they don’t talk about is the fact that we’re in the top three of the nation vaccinating our people. We’ve been very proactive making sure people have access to the vaccine, we’re protecting our vulnerable population, and that people are happy.”
“Congress needs to do the right thing,” Noem continued. “They need to stop doing bills like this. They need to start focusing on what made America great, and that was trusting people, protecting our freedoms, and making responsible fiscal decisions.”
The state largely opted for a more relaxed public policy response to the pandemic despite being a frequent target of criticism from those who felt South Dakota wasn’t doing enough.
South Dakota ranked second, behind only Oklahoma, as the least restrictive state in the country, according to a WalletHub analysis of all 50 states. That approach has paid off economically, with South Dakota and Nebraska coming in with the lowest unemployment rates in the country.
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Biden’s $1.9 stimulus plan includes $350 billion in funding for state and local governments, many of which have been hit hard by a lack of revenue as a result of lockdown policies during the pandemic.
