At a rally in Minneapolis President Donald Trump touted a change in federal policy giving states and cities a level of veto power over refugee resettlement in their jurisdictions. Not surprisingly, given Trump’s polarizing nature, this change was met with no small amount of blowback. “Trump’s executive order requires state and local governments to consent…
Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner: Reserve Officers Are Being Used Appropriately
This guest post was submitted by Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner. On January 3rd 2019 there was an article written in reference to law enforcement agencies routinely using unlicensed, unregulated officers for law enforcement purposes. In that article, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office is referenced. As the newly elected Cass County Sheriff, I feel that…
Podcast: National Journal Reporter Zach Cohen, Opioids Lawsuit
On the radio show today I spoke with Zach Cohen who is covering North Dakota’s Senate race for the National Journal. Also Cass County commissioner Chad Peterson talks about his local government’s decision to file their own lawsuit over opioids against the advice of Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem. Here’s the full audio of today’s show. If…
North Dakota Needs Fewer Elected Offices
In Cass County last night a proposal to elect fewer county officials was heard by the County Commission with no opposition from the public. Though at least one commissioner was skeptical per this report from Helmut Schmidt. “I struggle with this, because you know the citizens are smart enough to elect me, but they’re not…
Matt Evans: An Attempt to Quantify the Criminal Justice Costs of Refugee Resettlement in Cass County
Officially, police departments in North Dakota tell us that they have no way of knowing the refugee status of their inmates, and so, cannot report this data. This information gets transformed by the pro-refugee advocates as “there is no evidence that refugees commit more crime in our area!” Of course, they could just as easily…
Cass County Sheriff Paul Laney Seems Disconnected From Reality
I love cops. I grew up the son of a cop. I have a deep and profound respect for the job they do. But you know what scares me a little bit? Law enforcement leaders who insist on thinking of themselves as soldiers and not peace officers. Who insist that they need to be kitted…
Poll: 57 Percent Of Fargo/Moorhead Area Residents Oppose Refugee Resettlement
Refugee resettlement in the Fargo/Moorhead area has been controversial for decades now, but there hasn’t been a lot of efforts to quantify just how controversial. The folks at Valley News Live have done that, and they found majority opposition. You can read the full polling memo below, which was produced by Mason-Dixon Polling out of…
Guest Post: Fargo-Moorhead Diversion Project Is A Disaster
Having experienced many of the various cultures here in the United States, there is one aspect of North Dakota and the mid-West that I am incredibly fond of – one that sets itself apart from many other parts of the country – the sense of community. The unconditional friendliness towards one’s neighbor is something that…
Prosecutors Drop Charges Against NDSU Linebacker Initially Charged With Aggravated Assault
Cass County State’s Attorney Birch Burdick announced today that they are dropping charges for aggravated assault against NDSU linebacker Travis Beck. After explaining that they initially filed their charges based on eyewitness accounts, he said that after further police investigation including interviews and further review of videos it became clear that they couldn’t support a…
Oil Patch Continues To Trump Population Numbers In North Dakota Sales Tax Collections
The annual sales tax report is out from Commissioner Cory Fong’s office (see below), and it’s got some pretty interesting numbers. Overall, in 2012 the State of North Dakota saw taxable sales grow an astonishing 28.7%, an increase of more than $5 billion from $25.29 billion to $19.6 billion. What’s interesting is that most of…