The latest Freedom Index, a legislative scorecard produced by The New American magazine, illuminates the voting records of federal and state legislators based on their voting records on key legislation. The evaluation framework used is “adherence to constitutional principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility, national sovereignty, and a traditional foreign policy of avoiding foreign entanglements.” In short, the evaluation criteria are focused on the liberties framed in the US Constitution by the Founders.
In South Dakota, the results show is split between the Republican Party leadership a number of rank-and-file members in the state legislature that parallels the ideological split between Republican leadership in the US House of Representatives and more conservatives members that led to the demise of Speaker Kevin McCarthy.