At first glance, when you think of governors who have mishandled the coronavirus pandemic, the first person who comes to mind is Florida’s Ron DeSantis. After all, his refusal to close the beaches even after sh*t got real with the news that Rudy Gobert and Tom Hanks had tested positive for coronavirus may very well have directly led to the rash of stay-at-home orders that now have over 95 percent of the country in de facto lockdown. Moreover, if not for pastors and insurance companies realizing that common sense and humanity outweighed legality, his decision to carve out a loophole for churches in his statewide stay-at-home order could have led to another outbreak.
It takes a lot of effort to be more incompetent than that. But it looks like one governor might have found a way to pull that off—South Dakota’s Kristi Noem. She has adamantly refused to take the bare minimum steps to flatten the curve, like closing non-essential businesses and banning dine-in service at restaurants. She hasn’t even considered a stay-at-home order, even though health care professionals have warned her that South Dakota’s hospitals are even more vulnerable to being overwhelmed than those in larger states because they just don’t have as many beds. Her reasoning? “South Dakota is not New York City.”
The mayors of South Dakota’s two largest cities, Sioux Falls and Rapid City, know better. They’ve banned dine-in and closed nonessential businesses. However, they claim that without action at the state level, there’s not much they can do to stop the virus from spreading. And they’re both Republicans, like Noem—proof that Republicans in ruby-red states are still capable of competent governance.
However, Noem has refused to see reason even though her state is now home to the largest coronavirus cluster in the country. In case you missed it, Smithfield Foods’ giant plant in Sioux Falls has been connected to over 640 cases—over 46 percent of South Dakota’s statewide total.
The reason for this isn’t too hard to find. Given how rural this state is, workers were probably carpooling and busing in from nearby counties that hadn’t taken even rudimentary steps to flatten the curve. Combined with what workers claim to be almost no regard for social distancing, the result is akin to what happens when you light a match near a gas tank.
But even in the face of this, Noem has refused to bend, judging by her appearance on Friday night with Laura Ingraham.
It was obvious where this was going when Ingraham gushed over Noem for “refusing to devastate her state’s economy and ruin people’s lives.”
When the discussion turned to the Smithfield plant, Noem claimed that the plant would have had to stay open even if she’d issued a stay-at-home order since food processing plants are universally considered to be essential businesses. Um, Kristi? Without measures to keep workers from getting this virus from outside the plant, it will still spread. We know you’re a prairie version of Sarah Palin, but good grief.
Noem also noted that two-thirds of the state had no cases at all, and several counties had only one case at most. But that’s because the worst of the pandemic is only beginning to hit flyover country. You don’t get ready for a fire when it breaks out.
Noem claimed that her measures have bent the Mount Rushmore State’s curve by some 75 percent. But what she isn’t telling you is that the rate of new cases is actually going up even as the rest of the country is leveling off.
For those who don’t know, Noem made a name for herself as a simon-pure tea partier during her four terms as South Dakota’s lone congresswoman. So it’s no surprise that she wagged her finger at those who are willing to give up their freedoms.
What Noem doesn’t seem to realize is that social distancing and stay-at-home orders are a last resort. Due to a combination of a slow response at the federal level and the nature of this virus, the only way to keep the health care system from being overwhelmed is social distancing. And that’s especially true for a rural state like South Dakota.
Plus, have some consideration for your neighboring states. If South Dakota gets overwhelmed, where are the patients going to go? Most likely to the Twin Cities, Omaha, Lincoln and Sioux City.
All things considered, Noem makes DeSantis and Trump sound competent. Now that takes some effort.