MINOT, N.D. — As we all wait for the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial, and brace ourselves for more violent rioting, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is turning to other states for law enforcement backup. On Monday, April 19, Walz “declared a peacetime emergency for the seven-county metro area and announced that the state would tap police resources from…
Minot-Area Lawmaker Cited for Drunk Driving
MINOT, N.D. — This morning Rep. Scott Louser, a lawmaker from Minot-area District 5, called me to say he’d recently been charged with driving under the influence. The details weren’t immediately available via the state’s online criminal records database, but Louser issued a statement owning up to the incident. “Transparency and accountability in public service…
Friday Mailbag: Cops as Soldiers, Performative Politics, Consultants in Governance, and That Weird Thing I’m Holding During Live Streams
MINOT, N.D. — I’m writing this column on Thursday because, this same day, I’ll be getting my second shot of COVID-19 vaccination. I chose Moderna, mostly because that’s what was available when I made my appointment, and the first shot knocked me for a loop for about 36 hours. I’m hoping this second shot won’t…
It’s About Politics, Not Academic Freedom
MINOT, N.D. — Wanna hear a joke? A noisy contingent from North Dakota’s university system, as well as their sundry apologists, are upset about an amendment to legislation that would withhold some matching tax dollars, under the challenge grants program, for state schools that partner with abortion providers. This is an affront to academic freedom, they tell…
Bastiats Pushing Censure Resolutions for ND Republicans Who Voted to Expel Simons
MINOT, N.D. — Around the country, MAGA-aligned Republicans have been pushing censure motions in their local party committees for elected Republicans who had the integrity to vote to impeach and convict disgraced former President Donald Trump. Or, in other instances, to vote against the push to overturn the national election results. Here in North Dakota, the…
Brother of Disgraced Bastiat Lawmaker Loses District Chairmanship
MINOT, N.D. — To call the spat in the North Dakota Republican Party between the moderate-minded majority, whose competent governance is primarily responsible for the party’s dominance over the decades, and the Trumpy Bastiat Caucus, which has risen to the status of a noisy minority in recent years, a “civil war” would be overstating the case. Still, there…
A Sign That There Are Still Some Grown-Ups Governing in Bismarck
MINOT, N.D. — Today, Gov. Doug Burgum signed House Bill 1425 into law. It’s a big deal, a fantastic accomplishment for Rep. Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck, and the other lawmakers who backed it, and a credit to Burgum as well. Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread, a member of the State Investment Board, also deserves our congratulations for pushing this idea forward. It’s a bit…
Spare Me the Bellyaching About Legislative Pay
MINOT, N.D. — To participate in American politics is to hear many hypocrites whining about the people they elect. It’s fashionable to dislike politicians. A Gallup poll in November of 2018, contemporaneous to the national mid-term election, showed 74% of Americans disapproving of Congress. That same year, 91% of the incumbents in the House of Representatives were…
Donations From Democrats to Hoeven Ax Attacker Look Worse Now That He’s Pleading Guilty
MINOT, N.D. — In early January, just days before an angry mob of disgraced former President Donald Trump’s supporters would execute a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol, I reported in this column that some prominent North Dakota Democrats had donated to a GoFundMe page set up for a man who had attacked Sen. John Hoeven’s Fargo office with an ax.…
On Oil and Gas Issues, Biden’s Administration Is Only Interested in Listening to Some American Indians
MINOT, N.D. — Recently, the Environmental Protection Agency announced the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council’s formation, or WHEJAC. The goals of this council, per the EPA’s website, “are to provide advice and recommendations to the EJ IAC and the Chair of CEQ on a whole-of-government approach to environmental justice.” Among the issue areas named in…