HURON ­— Representative Dusty Johnson (R-SD) visited with seniors at Wolsey-Wessington High School on Thursday morning, encouraging them in their knowledge of their national government.

Johnson opened the talk with the students by quizzing them on the makeup of the U.S. Congress, explaining that while every state gets two Senators, he is the only Representative for the state.

“Long Island is just part of New York City, but the population is such that they have 10 Representatives in the House from just Long Island,” Johnson explained. “That’s more than South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and North Dakota - combined!”

Johnson was asked about his beginnings in politics, and he identified that growing up in a family that needed to access government assistance programs when he was young led him to be very intrigued by how to ensure that those programs promote independence rather than dependence.

“Interest in the government’s role in people’s lives was a driver for me to get into politics, and it remains a driver for me today,” Johnson said.

Rep. Johnson also noted that he has a high school senior in the home, so he understands a lot of the decisions that the seniors in the room were pondering. He related that while he and his wife met while attending the University of South Dakota, their son will be attending South Dakota State.

“It will be difficult to never speak to him again,” Johnson joked.

He explained that students should seek to enhance their knowledge base, specifically finding an area where they can stand out in the workforce.

“If what you can do well is what everyone else can do well, you are going to have trouble being successful,” Johnson observed. “Teaching, welding, nursing, driving truck…those fields are in demand everywhere and require specific skills that give you power to negotiate and the ability to work wherever you want with that skill set.”

He explained his schedule as part of the answer to a question from a student, explaining that he spends about half of his time in Washington, D.C., and half of his time in South Dakota. He then explained a typical day when he is in the state by going through his schedule for Thursday and Friday, which has him visiting seven South Dakota communities for various reasons.

Johnson also explained how many bills are proposed versus how many receive a vote. He said that likely 10,000 bills that get introduced, but only roughly 400 will even get a vote on the floor of the House.

“I won’t read a bill that isn’t going to come up for action,” Johnson noted. “A lot of the proposed bills are what are called ‘messaging bills’ for my colleagues to show their constituents or their party that they’re working on a particular issue, but they never make it to the floor.”

Johnson continued his day by visiting a recovery center in Redfield and taking part in a Vietnam veterans pinning ceremony there on Thursday.