On Friday a jury acquitted law enforcement officer Jeronimo Yanez of manslaughter charges after he shot Philando Castile to death in Minnesota. After the verdict was made public so too was dashcam video of the shooting, which you can watch below. I’ll warn you that it’s quite graphic and harrowing to watch. It’s deeply troubling…
Legislature Opts to Sue Governor Doug Burgum Over Vetoes
A meeting of the Legislative Management Committee today voted to proceed with litigation against Governor Doug Burgum over vetoes issued earlier this year, though there will be more meetings and votes before anything gets filed. “We need to make a statement that the governor was out of bounds on this,” Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner…
Stenehjem Joins North Dakota to Group of 13 States Threatening to Sue California Over Coal Divestment Initiative
UPDATE: ND Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread has signed on to a similar effort opposing California’s push. You can read his press release here, and the letter here. In California, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has begun what he’s calling the Climate Risk Carbon Initiative. Arguing that because of climate change investments in fossil fuel energy production are…
Stenehjem Protects the Separation of Powers
“All sides are gonna be pissed at Wayne,” a political friend texted me yesterday upon news of Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem’s opinion (see below) on the legality of some of Governor Doug Burgum’s vetoes issued earlier this year. “Nobody got everything they wanted.” That’s true. As you can see from this key excerpt, Stenehjem upheld…
The Partisan Shooting of Rep. Scalise Is a Relatively New Thing in the History of American Political Violence
“Try to find the humanity in the people you disagree with.” That’s what I wrote in my Sunday print column this week. The subject, of course, was the shooting of Rep. Steve Scalise and three others. In the New York Times today Ross Douthat has some thoughts on why the motivations of James Hodgkinson, the…
Elections, Not Political Deal Making, Should Earn Democrats Control of Committees
North Dakota Democrats hold just 22 seats out of 141 in the state Legislature. Because of this, during the regular legislative session, Democrats chair no committees. In fact, they don’t really have enough elected members of the Legislature to even cover all committee assignments. That’s as it should be. If Democrats want to control committees…
Why Shouldn’t We Have Free Speech in Church?
The Trump administration has been signaling their intent to roll back what’s called the Johnson Amendment. Essentially federal policies which prohibits 501(c)3 non-profit groups, including religious organizations like churches, from endorsing candidates. “Free speech shouldn’t stop at the door of our churches, synagogues and places of worship,” Vice President Mike Pence said at the annual meeting…
Audio: Cities Representative Said Legislature Had No “Exit Strategy” From Property Tax Buydowns
“City property taxes are going to go up.” That’s what Blake Crosby, executive director of the North Dakota League of Cities, told me on air yesterday. “It depends on the particular city,” he added, “but generally speaking yes they’re going to have to.” He blamed the Legislature for the increases. He said that state lawmakers…
Audio: Rep. Kevin Cramer Says He’s Thinking About Security at Town Halls After Scalise Shooting
Congressman Kevin Cramer was on the radio show today and, of course, we talked about the shooting of his colleague Rep. Steve Scalise. Cramer said there was a lot of “very somber self reflection” on Capitol Hill today, though he added that he and his colleagues “are trying to go on with business too.” He…
Audio: Line 3 Pipeline Project Manager Says There Will Be More Environmental Impacts if Old Line Isn’t Replaced
UPDATE: This post originally said the public hearings were being held by Enbridge. That was an error. They’re being held by the State of Minnesota. Public hearings regarding Line 3 pipeline replacement project have begun in Minnesota. And of course, because pipelines are a hot political topic these days, those hearings are featuring push back from…
