This guest post was submitted by Fargo-based attorney Mark Western I spent some time yesterday watching the impeachment hearings conducted by the United States House of Representatives Intelligence Committee. As a practicing attorney (and an avid political watcher), I have been watching, with some interest and some confusion, about the points that the various members…
Left Wing Protesters Disrupt Legislative Meeting Over Legacy Fund, Tell Majority Leader to F**K Himself
Lawmakers are in Fargo again today holding public hearings soliciting ideas for the $6.8-billion-and-counting in the state’s Legacy Fund. I wrote about yesterday’s iteration of this hearing earlier today, but sources on the scene tell me today’s continuation of the hearing has been disrupted by left-wing protesters. Here’s a brief (and not very high quality,…
Hey Standing Rock, Was Yosemite Sam Busy?
I’m watching the North Dakota Public Service Commission’s hearing on a proposed expansion of the Dakota Access Pipeline today ( it’s on-going, you can live stream it here, I’m not sure if or when an archive will be available). The proceedings are mostly unfolding as you’d expect. A sober, if at times pointed, discussion of…
The Legacy Fund Should Be About Legacy, Not the Spending Needs of the Moment
Earlier this year, I wrote a print column headlined, “We’re Going to Do Something Stupid With the Legacy Fund.” Yesterday the Legislature’s Legacy Fund Earnings Committee held a hearing in Fargo and the various special interests who pitched ideas for spending now-$6.8 billion fund, and I’m more convinced than ever that I’m going to be right. The…
Print Column: Let’s Hope the Anti-Pipeline Activists Don’t Set Any Fires This Time
MINOT, N.D. — North Dakota’s Public Service Commission will be holding a hearing in Emmons County this week concerning a proposed expansion of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The capacity would roughly double to more than 1 million barrels per day. There is a large turnout expected from both supporters and critics of the pipeline. What many North…
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection port of entry near Carbury, North Dakota. Photo via Google Street View
Let’s Not Make It Harder for Our Canadian Friends to Visit North Dakota
Last week Governor Doug Burgum sent a letter (see below) to U.S. Customs and Border Protection urging them not to limit the hours of three ports of entry along North Dakota’s border with Canada (map). The hours of operation for the U.S. side of the crossings at Antler, Carbury, and Maida are 9am to 10pm.…
Feed the Kids, Sure, but Should Parents Be Let Off the Hook for School Lunch Debt?
Recently, in Fargo, a group of well-meaning people raised some $4,000 as a way to help address the roughly $30,000 in school lunch debt accumulated in the local public school system. What these folks did is commendable. This sort of altruism, which has been making headlines both in North Dakota and across the nation, isn’t…
Print Column: National News Outlets Squander the Public’s Trust and Local Journalists Suffer for It
MINOT, N.D. — This year the Columbia Journalism Review released the results of a national survey finding “the press” was the least trusted institution they asked about. They also asked respondents about Congress. You have to work at being trusted less than Congress. That term, though. “The press.” What does it mean? More on that in a…
Dakota Access Pipeline Expansion Expected to Bring in at Least $33 Million Per Year in Tax Revenues
Next week you’ll be hearing a lot about the Dakota Access Pipeline. As I mentioned in a post yesterday, the North Dakota Public Service Commission is putting on a meeting on Wednesday at the Emmons County Courthouse to hear public comment about a proposed expansion to the line. The line can carry about 500,000 barrels…
As Dakota Access Pipeline Fight Heats up Again Poll Says Nearly 70 Percent of North Dakotans Support Expansion
On Wednesday next week, North Dakota’s Public Service Commission will be holding a public hearing at the Emmons County Courthouse in Linton to allow comment on a proposed expansion of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Currently, the line has the capacity for about 500,000 barrels per day. The expansion would take that into the neighborhood of…