Jensen attracted attention nationally for his assertion in an interview with the Rapid City Journal that the free market, not government, should be allowed to decide whether or not racial discrimination is acceptable, and that his SB 128 introduced in 2013, which would allow discrimination by business owners, would serve to protect "the constitutional right to free association, the right to free speech and private property rights."

")[4] Jensen's stance was repudiated by Republican Governor Dennis Daugaard, who issued a press release stating, "I found his comments to be completely out of line with South Dakota values.

[6] In 2022, it emerged that Jensen had been a member of the far-right militia group, the Oath Keepers.

[7] In 2025, Jensen purposed a bill which would have directed the South Dakota Department of Education to withhold money from the Huron School District.

The bill received statewide condemnation including from fellow Republican lawmakers, leading to Jensen being demoted as Vice Chair of the House Education Committee and withdrawing the bill less than 24 hours.