Stace Nelson and Lance Russell kicked out of the SDGOP Establishment's closed caucus?

[Another Update: Stace Nelson explains himself at a Madville Times comment.]

[Another UPDATE: Here is a comment from SDWC:

Yes Gary, we are told this. However, the vindictiveness continues. Heard today, Thur, that Speaker Rausch would not recognize Stace Nelson when he rose to speak on a bill. Totally ignored him and then called on Rep Gosch who had already spoken once. Stace Nelson could not have been accidently overlooked by Rausch as Stace stands, what, about 6′ 6″, and weight maybe 280.

The lack of fairness, class and maturity is very evident in our House leadership.

I have a source that says that is true. Not only has it been a bad day for representative governemnt, it is a bad day for free speech and the First Amendment.]

[UPDATE: Just got off the phone with Stace Nelson. I am not going into detail about our conversation, but today is clearly a sad day for representative government.]

Bob Mercer is reporting that Stace Nelson and Lance Russell are maybe now banned from the SDGOP legislative caucus:

House Republicans are up on the Capitol’s fourth floor in their closed-door caucus at this moment, but Republican Rep. Lance Russell of Hot Springs is down at his desk in the House chamber on the third floor. The whereabouts of another Republican House member, Rep. Stace Nelson of Fulton, wasn’t immediately known. But good sources say there was a shout-down in the office of House Speaker Val Rausch, R-Big Stone City, this morning with Nelson present. Supposedly Russell and Nelson are persons non grata among the Republican caucus for their past behavior regarding House Republican leadership. Russell had stopped going to the daily caucus meetings long ago.  Whether they have been truly barred from attending isn’t clear. One reason is that House Republicans have a rule: What’s said in caucus isn’t repeated outside of caucus. Russell said this afternoon that nobody’s directly spoken to him about his official status. “All I’ve heard is back channels,” he said. There is at least one state Highway Patrol office in uniform who has been present in the third-floor hallways around the House chamber. We’ll relay more as we can reliably learn it.

UPDATE: Nelson just confirmed that he received word, in a phone message from House Republican leader David Lust at 4:45 p.m. yesterday, that he was kicked out of the caucus. Nelson said that when he spoke to this reporter earlier yesterday he thought the question about his status was a joke. “The joke’s on me,” he said this afternoon. Among the complaints against him, he said, was the legislator voting-record report card that was linked to his web address. Another was that he spoke too much to reporters about certain internal disputes within the House Republican ranks involving him and others. You have to wonder where, and how, all of this will come to a head. Others evidently are, too; at least two HP officers are now walking the third-floor halls around the House chamber.

Nelson left this comment at the Mercer post:

The first I saw Rep. Rausch this morning was when he came into local government late. I did NOT have any shout out with anyone this morning. I got to the building at about 930, went to Tax Committee and waited there for Rep. Russell. We both then went to LRC to request an office for next Monday. We left there at about 0950 at which time I rushed to my desk to get my folders and laptop. At that time I found a note on my seat from Raush dated 25Jan12 requesting I be in his office at 9:30 (26Jan12). That meeting never occurred. After committee, Rausch asked me to meet him in his office. I declined and requested he provide me anything he wanted to say by written memo. Between yesterday and today, seems that certain plans have been unwittingly foiled.

Let this be a lesson to you outspoken conservatives. The SDGOP Establishment will not tolerate standing up to their Big Government/Big Business fascist agenda. You either quietly play along and help maintian the conservative limited government base, or else. And if they need to help of the media to paint you as dangerous potential criminals, then...

Comments

[beenthere]

Obviously,Mercer's "good sources"are lying. I saw Stace right after he walked into the Capitol,at about 9:35 am Thursday,talked to him briefly and saw him go right where he said he was going.