Betty Olson | |
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Member of the South Dakota Senate from the 28th [1] district | |
In office January 15, 2015 –January 10, 2017 | |
Preceded by | Ryan Maher |
Succeeded by | Ryan Maher |
Member of the South DakotaHouseofRepresentatives from the 28B [2] district | |
In office January 9,2007 –January 15,2015 | |
Preceded by | Ted Klaudt |
Succeeded by | J. Sam Marty |
Personal details | |
Born | April 19,1946 |
Nationality | American |
Political party | Republican |
Residence(s) | Prairie City,South Dakota,U.S. |
Profession | rancher,EMT,substitute schoolteacher |
Betty Olson [3] (born April 19,1946) is a rancher,EMT,and substitute schoolteacher. [4] She is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the South Dakota Senate in District 28 from 2015 to 2017. Before that,she was a member of the South Dakota House of Representatives in District 28B from 2007 to 2015.
Betty Olson attended local schools and went to university. She became a rancher and also worked as an EMT. She worked some periods as a substitute teacher in the public schools. She lives in Prairie City,South Dakota.
In 2014,Olson wrote a column for the Butte County Post (a South Dakota local weekly newspaper) that contained a joke widely criticized as a bigoted slur. The "joke" alleged that President Barack Obama was a Muslim terrorist,and cast 7-Eleven managers,Motel 6 managers,cab drivers,and customer service representatives as Muslim terrorists. [13] As the controversy stirred and outrage grew,Olson refused to express regret for her words,saying the problem was that "people don't have a sense of humor." She later denied being a racist,noting that "the guy who sent it to me is married to a black lady...." [14]