June 27, 2017

To the Editor;

The recent actions, attitude and behavior from our REPUBLICAN Commissioners raised serious questions regarding their real motivation, intent, integrity and honesty. You know, integrity is defined as doing the right thing when there is no one there to challenge your actions.

All three of the current Commissioners ran as Republicans. They attended Republican events, proclaimed Republican platform values, and indicated if elected they would emulate those values into their governing.

Dr. Kattnig was so bold as to admit he came from a Democratic family and he was the only one who became a staunch Republican. After all, he told us again and again during the campaign, “People, I am a professional and son of Custer County. I know what this county wants!

The people want low taxes, less government, more liberty and less intrusion from government. So do I.”

Donna Hood ran as the champion of the people. Someone who would in her benevolent heart said she would (she even said she would give her salary back to the County) reach those in need and make the county better. After all, as a business woman of great achievement here in the valley she had a plan. Her plan, if you recall, did involve the word “progressive”. You have to watch those words! They slip them in there just like another guy who said, “if you like your Doctor you can keep your Doctor.” There was another gal who talked a lot about, “our values”. Nice sounding, soft, comforting but those values involved abortion, more government control, less liberty and a socialist America.

Jay Printz was a little more slippery in his campaign. He was one of those politicians and good lawyers who could talk all day and when he finished you had no idea where he really stood on anything. He claimed to be a Republican.

Somewhere between the election and the day these three were sworn into office, a polarizing shift in attitude, intent and behavior took place. Suddenly, the people who voted for them are the people they intend to control. The dynamic shift in attitude became immediately evident. Dr. Kattnig starts talking down to people in meetings. The incident where Robin Young was not being fired by the Commissioners but replaced at their insistence became public. (A really gutless way to go about a problem). A tape recorder placed on the Commissioners desk for years becomes an object of frustration and concern for these learned elected people. His Honorarium Printz declares, “we don’t want that here. Remove, it please.” At least he said “please.”

Since being elected, not one Commissioner has attended any Republican Central Committee meeting including the recent Lincoln Day Dinner. When asked about his absence, Mr. Printz replied, “I don’t think I would be welcome there.” Why would he make such a statement as a staunch, died in the wool, red county, conservative Republican?

Dr. Kattnig missed the Lincoln Day Dinner but found time to give a speech at the Democratic Party dinner. Are you curious why he would do that being a conservative Republican? This is a man who gave up the Democrat tradition against the wishes of his family. Maybe he has a reason as pure as the driven snow for his actions, maybe not.

Dark Skies is proposed for Custer County and Printz declares, “there’s been no decision on Dark Skies but it is inevitable. We are going to have it.” He didn’t say we may have it, or might have it but we are going to have it. If you think this is some silly little measure to keep the light from shining up instead of down, please get informed. This code has some real teeth. All those teeth are snarling right at you the property owner.

The International Building Code is being considered and once again Printz makes the case for a “compelling interest” to deprive us of our liberty. The Government has used the “compelling interest” argument many times to intrude on personal liberty. Most often liberty is deprived in the name of security or safety, exactly the argument Prince would use in forcing the IBC Code. (It sounds more like Karl Marx than Ronald Reagan.)

These three Republicans are proposing landfill fee increases, hikes in other fees and a tax levy for road improvement. Sounds like Democrats at the Golden Dome, not conservative Republicans in Custer County.

There’s an old colloquial expression I heard a lot as a boy from my mother, “your actions always speak louder than your words.”

The expression is truly appropriate regarding these three Commissioners. They are not acting as Republicans! They are acting as though once elected they were given a mandate to do whatever they pleased in regard to County Government.  It is obvious they do not know the limits of their Office. What is even more disturbing is their “we don’t care attitude” coupled with “were going to do it like it or not insensitivity” regarding the people who put them in office. Sooner, rather than later, the Commissioners are going to get themselves and ultimately Custer County into a Criminal Investigation or Civil Law suit. “We the people” are not required to bend to these Commissioners whims and belligerence. They were elected they can be removed! This is not the old Soviet Union. They are not the commissariat and the voter is not the peasant masses.

I’ve only lived in Custer County for ten years. Yet, I know the vast majority of people who vote here did not intend for this kind of Commissioner hegemony. It is no consolation to say, “well I didn’t vote for them.” The gratification from that statement lasts about as long as it took to say it. Instead, we should all be asking, “how do we fix this problem, other than waiting till the next election?” Asking for the Commissioner’s resignations would be a start although getting them to agree would be like asking a zebra to give up its stripes. However, doing nothing is no longer one of them. The old conservative “get along and go along” to keep peace died in Custer County about three minutes after these three decided to ruin the liberty we enjoy. If they won’t go quietly into the night of their liberalism then we should remove them through a County recall vote.

Larry Luikart
Rural Custer County.