Plain Talk

This week a group of filmmakers representing the bulk of North Dakota's film industry gathered outside of Gov. Doug Burgum's office, in the Memorial Hall of the state capitol building, to make a point about the process surrounding $700,000 in grants made to one Bismarck-based production company. Matt Fern, who is also based in Bismarck, points out that $100,000 of the grants was awarded without being advertised at all. Another $600,000 was awarded after an abbreviated application process that seemed design to serve the interests of just one company. He joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss why that process was unfair, and why, if North Dakota hopes to build a solid film industry in the state, officials need to do better. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

Sometimes politicians are rich when they go into politics. Sometimes they get rich, somehow, while collecting the relatively modest salary that comes with even some of the highest-level elected offices. How does that happen? And why is there such a disconnect between the ardent, eat-the-rich populism of this moment and the success filthy rich politicians have at the ballot box? Matt Lewis, a senior columnist for the Daily Beast and a regular guest on more national programs than I can conveniently list here, is the author of "Filthy Rich Politicians: The Swamp Creatures, Latte Liberals, and Ruling-Class Elites Cashing in on America," and he joined this episode of Plain Talk to those questions, his book, and the state of play in American politics. Also on this episode, my co-host Chad Oban and I discuss polling on property taxes, abortion, and a federal court ruling that North Dakota lawmakers most hold another special session to address redistricting.

New results from the North Dakota poll were characterized by the sponsor of the poll, the North Dakota News Cooperative, as well as many media outlets covering those results, as showing that state lawmakers are out of step with voters on issues like abortion and ballot measures. Of course, in the coming elections, most legislative incumbents will likely be re-elected, so are they really all that out of step? We talked about it on this episode of Plain Talk. We also covered some tough political headwinds the proponents of abolishing property taxes face, and some of the on-going weirdness emanating from Gov. Doug Burgum's campaign for the White House. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Please search for the show and subscribe wherever you get our podcasts, or click here for more information.

I don't think many people were surprised that Gov. Doug Burgum did not take first place in the North Dakota Poll's presidential preference survey. Like it or not, Donald Trump is a singular political figure among Republicans in this moment in history. He makes his own gravity. Of course he was going to be the first choice for president among Republicans. He's also the first choice in Florida and South Carolina, despite the presence of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and South Carolina U.S. Senator Tim Scott in the race. But did you expect Burgum to come in third place? Behind DeSantis? And just a couple of points ahead of Haley? I expected him to do better. We talked about that on this episode of Plain Talk. We also discussed some of the recent off-year elections around the nation, where Trump's populist movement took it on the chin, and what that means for the durability of that movement. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

Thanks to the widely-reported consternation over carbon pipelines, carbon capture has become a hot-button issue. But political kerfuffles tend to obscure that North Dakota is on the bleeding edge of carbon capture and storage technology. On this episode of Plain Talk, Jeff Zueger, the CEO of Harvestone, joined us to talk about the new carbon capture and storage project they've launched at their Blue Flint Ethanol facility near Underwood. At that facility, they're capturing 100% of their emissions from the fermentation process, and since October, they've been injecting 600 metric tons of CO2 about a mile-deep underground daily. As significant as that is, the project's provenance may be even more critical. North Dakota was the first state in the nation to be granted primacy over carbon injection wells by the federal government. Blue Flint Ethanol is now the second project launched in North Dakota under that primacy through a process that, per Zueger, took just months as opposed to the years you might expect from federal regulators. Zueger said capturing carbon is of huge important to the ethanol industry, from the farmers who grow fuel crops to companies like his that turn them into fuels. Carbon capture is "one of the single biggest things we can do to step down our carbon intensity," and that matters, because increasingly the fuels market is demanding lower carbon intensities. Zueger pointed out that, thanks to the emergence of electric vehicles, the liquid fuels markets are already contracting, and the demand that's left wants lower-emission fuels. "We have to respond to those markets," he said.

When I first invited Attorney General Drew Wrigley on to this episode of Plain Talk, our intention was to speak about the lawsuit against Facebook company Meta that North Dakota is now a part of. And we did eventually get around to talking about that, but in between my invitation and today, when we actually recorded the interview, former state Sen. Ray Holmberg was indicted on criminal charges related to international travel to procure sex with minors and child pornography. Wrigley's, whose office handled much of the inquiry into Holmberg's alleged crimes, sent out a press release saying that investigation was one of the first things he was briefed on after being sworn in last year. Something in that release caught my eye. Specifically, this passage: "In early February 2022, within hours of my taking the Oath of Office as Attorney General, the US Attorney's Office and the leadership of the Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) briefed me on the early stages of this joint federal and state investigation. I immediately instructed the BCI to move this case to priority status where it remains today, due to the on-going nature of this investigation." Why didn't that investigation already have priority status prior to Wrigley taking office? And did Wrigley's predecessor, Wayne Stenehjem, who passed away last year prompting Gov. Doug Burgum to appoint Wrigley, recuse himself? The answer to that last question is no. "He had not recused himself from the case," Wrigley said. I asked Wrigley if he felt Stenehjem should have recused himself, and he was reticent to say yes. After a long pause, Wrigley said, "Everyone has to make their own assessment on that." "They were such good friends," he added, referring to Holmberg and Stenehjem, both of whom were from Grand Forks and represented that community in the Legislature. Wrigley also said Stenehjem's deputy, Troy Seibel, "didn't have a good answer" when asked about why Stenehjem didn't recuse. Wrigley also pointed out that the currently U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider, whose office is handling the prosecution of Holmberg, has recused himself because he served in the state Senate alongside Holmberg representing Grand Forks. As for why the case wasn't a priority? It "remained in the queue," Wrigley said, adding that it had "evidence that hadn't been analyzed." Also on this episode, co-host Chad Oban and I discuss long political shadow the Holmberg investigation has, and will, cast across North Dakota politics. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show wherever you get our podcasts, or click here for more information.

There has been turmoil in the North Dakota Republican Party this year, and it most recently manifested itself in the disastrous and hire of a South Dakota man, David Roetman, with a proclivity for misogyny and racism on social media. Levi Bachmeier, the chair of the NDGOP's District 13 committee, and one of the outspoken critics of Mr. Roetman's hire, joined this episode to discuss what's going on in North Dakota's dominant political organization. "It really didn't sit well with me," Bachmeier said of Roetman's hire. We also discussed the growing disconnect between the priorities of some NDGOP officials and North Dakota voters, as well as the attitude from some party leaders that the NDGOP should be enforcing ideological discipline on its candidates.

Congressman Kelly Armstrong hasn't been able to get back home to North Dakota for nearly two months thanks to chaos in Washington D.C. Chaos that included a pitched battle within the Republican caucus over who the Speaker of the House would be. Now that the House has a Speaker again, Armstrong is home in North Dakota again, and on this episode of Plain Talk, called that protracted imbroglio "the biggest self-own in the history of partisan politics. And, he added, if in-fighting among House Republicans walks them into another government shutdown in the coming weeks, "that will also be the biggest self-own in the history of partisan politics." To subscribe to the Plain Talk podcast, search for it on platforms like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

North Dakota lawmakers are wrapping up their work at a special session that was convened thanks to the state Supreme Court striking down a catch-all budget bill that violated the state constitution. Some surprise topics came up during the closing hours, including an effort to kill a major audit review of State Auditor Josh Gallin's office, as well as an effort to put stiff enforcement behind a ban on accommodating trans students in public schools. On this episode of Plain Talk, Wednesday co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss.

Next week North Dakota's lawmakers will convene in a special session, and it's hard to know what's going to happen. Gov. Doug Burgum called lawmakers into special session with an executive order asking that they limit themselves to five days, but lawmakers aren't obliged to follow that order. Once they're in session, they're in session. Could we see a situation where legislative leaders can't get the special session closed? State Rep. Josh Boschee, a Fargo Democrat, joined this episode to discuss that question and other issues surrounding the special session. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on your favorite podcast service, like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

You wouldn't normally expect to use an interview with a United States Senator to talk about what's going on in the House of Representatives, but that's what we did on today's episode of Plain Talk. Even though Sen. Kevin Cramer is a former member of the House, and knows a thing or two about how that chamber operates, he isn't currently a member. Still, the drama in the House, which is currently paralyzed for want of the leadership of an elected Speaker, is impacting his job as a Senator. Congress can't do anything if one of its component houses cannot do its work. Cramer also talked about the ugly new war between Israel and Hamas, how America should respond to it, as well as to criticism he's received from an anti-marijuana group over his support for the SAFE Banking Act. Also on this episode, Wednesday co-host Chad Oban and I discussed the most recent Supreme Court ruling on a major spending and policy bill which has been declared unconstitutional. The court has refused to give lawmakers more time for a special session to address the situation. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show on your favorite podcast service, or click here for more information.

"My opinion is there will be no delayed bills introduced," House Majority Leader Mike Lefor, a Dickinson Republican, said of the upcoming legislative session on this episode of Plain Talk. "Get in and get out," he added. The special session is necessitated by a state Supreme Court ruling which found that the Legislature violated the state constitution's prohibition on multi-issue bills. Now, lawmakers must come back into session and split a massive catch-all bill passed at the end of the legislative session into separate, single-issue bills. But the larger context is a running feud between lawmakers and Gov. Doug Burgum, who have passed pension reform, and the leaders of the Public Employees Retirement System, who are hostile to that reform. It was PERS that filed the lawsuit creating the need for the special session. "I've been tremendously disappointed in the actions of the PERS board," Lefor said, referring to efforts to marginalize legislative appointees to that board. He also said that he supports Burgum's request that the chair of the board, Mona Tedford Rindy, who lobbied lawmakers to defeat pension reform during the legislative session earlier this year, resign. "I think the governor was absolutely correct to call for her resignation," Lefor said. Tedford Rindy refused to resign when asked by Burgum, and that's something Lefor would like to see changed during the upcoming session. "I believe the governor should have the authority to remove those he's appointed," he said. Lefor also answered questions about the recent controversy around a member of his caucus. Rep. Brandon Prichard, a Republican from the Bismarck area, has been making bigoted and homophobic posts on social media, and has been caught lying about his attendance at the University of Minnesota's law school. "He's on his own," Lefor said. "He's an adult. He has to answer to his constituents." Lefor said he does plan to sit down with Prichard to try and understand better what's motivating his recent behavior, but he also said he's admonished his legislative colleagues to stay off of social media. "I no longer have a Facebook account," Lefor said. "Id on't know of anything positive or constructive coming out of Facebook."

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy has been sent packing by a vote initiated by a minority of his own Republican caucus. Now the House of Representatives is tasked with picking a new Speaker, and Rep. Kelly Armstrong, North Dakota's at-large Congressman, says the price of his vote is a rule change to ensure the next Speaker won't suffer the same fate. Otherwise, the House of Representatives risks becoming "just the same clown car with a different driver." Armstrong, who was an outspoken supporter of McCarthy and voted to keep him as Speaker, said he's not interested in the job, saying he doesn't believe he has enough tenure in the House yet to lead it, and that he has young children at home. Although he didn't name names, he did say there were two candidates running to be Speaker, and perhaps a third he believes will run. But whoever is elected will have to contend with a noisy minority of Republicans who aren't motivated by a desire to govern the country, Armstrong said, adding that "far too many members of our caucus" have "no incentive" to make serious policy. Armstrong was also critical of Democrats, saying he doesn't want to hear them complain about extremism in the Republican caucus. "You just voted with the eight most extreme members of our caucus. You can pound sand," he said. As to rumors that Rep. Matt Gaetz, the MAGA Republican from Florida who led the charge to take down McCarthy, could be expelled from Congress based on an upcoming ethics report about his activities at the heart of a now-concluded federal sex trafficking investigation, Armstrong said that sort of talk was inappropriate. All the more so because the House Ethics Committee hasn't even issued a report. He believes people like Gaetz, and Democratic Congressman Jamaal Bowman who is also facing calls for expulsion after he pulled a fire alarm during a vote to keep the government open, have a right to be in Congress even if he doesn't personally like or support either of them. "They got elected by 750,000 people," Armstrong said. "Those 750,000 people have a right to a voice in Congress." Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss the recent controversy over bigoted social media messages posted by state Rep. Brandon Prichard, a Bismarck Republican, as well as the death of Sen. Doug Larsen, a Republican from Mandan.

A ruling from the North Dakota Supreme Court, part of an on-going spat between lawmakers, Gov. Doug Burgum, and the Public Employees Retirement System, has created the need for a new legislative session. State Rep. Corey Mock, a Democrat from Grand Forks and former leader of the minority caucus, joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss it. He estimates that lawmakers will meet again sometime in mid-November to take on the job of disassembling an ominbus budget bill that the court ruled unconstitutional and pass it as individual, single-subject pieces of legislation. Though looming over that process is a seemingly unquenchable thirst among some lawmakers for culture war battles. Mock said that if lawmakers are "disciplined" they could complete their work in a week, but that if things get chaotic it could take much longer. Also on this episode, Brian Lunde, a long-time political advisor now working with the North Dakota News Cooperative, talked about what that organization is doing to address the shortage of public polling in our state. The co-op is launching what they're calling the 'North Dakota Poll' which will cover everything from issue and consumer opinions to candidate polling and job approval ratings for elected officials. He said the plan is for the results to be released quarterly, starting next year.

Should people who aren't from North Dakota be allowed to help put proposed laws on North Dakota's ballot? That's the question asked in a lawsuit filed by proponents of a constitutional amendment implementing age limits for North Dakota's congressional delegation. That measure, if passed, was probably already headed for litigation as U.S. Supreme Court precedent has held that state-level requirements for service in Congress are unconstitutional. But, apparently, the proponents want to use their measure to try and remove North Dakota's limitations on who can circulate petitions for signatures. Sec. of State Michael Howe, whose office oversees the ballot measure process, joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss. Also on this episode, co-hosts Chad Oban and Ben Hanson join me to analyze and react to the GOP's second presidential debate, where Gov. Doug Burgum had a tough time getting a word in edgewise.

Earlier this year, the Legislature passed a bill to outlaw gender care — both surgeries and medicinal treatments — for minor children who are transitioning. Now, a group of North Dakota parents are working with a group called Gender Justice to sue over the legislation, arguing that it's illegal. Devon Dolney, a Fargo parent to a trans son, and Brittany Stewart, an attorney for Gender Justice, joined this Plain Talk episode to discuss their case. Stewart said the legislation presents equal protection issues, as well as constitutional protections for life, liberty, and parental rights. Also, on this episode, Sen. Kevin Cramer joined to discuss the Senate dress code and a potential federal shutdown. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk are published? Search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

The North Dakota Republican Party, without quesiton the dominant political organization in state politics, is currently charting its way through some choppy waters. Controversial new leadership has alienated some of the party's donors. Local NDGOP district leaders are targeting their own incumbent Republican lawmakers. The party's fundraising is showing signs of cratering. Now the party's executive director, Samantha Holly, who has only served in that position since January, has resigned. "I've always prided myself on being fair to everyone," she said on this episode of Plain Talk, telling me and my co-host Ben Hanson that she didn't see it as her job to be involved in ideological debates. "I am happy to work with whoever," she said. But things under new party chair Sandi Sanford, who was narrowly elected with support from the aforementioned populists, became untenable. "You can call for unity all you want," Holly said, referencing Sanford's calls to unite the party even as her supporters work against elected Republicans. "They only want it when it works in their favor." One of the trends under Sanford's leadership has been struggles with fundraising. She's only been in charge of the party for a few months, and Holly pointed out that it isn't unusual for political parties to run in the red for short periods, particularly in non-election years. Still, she said, there are troubling signs. "It worries me that it's September and not of the major donors have been contacted," she said. Adding to the party's financial challenges were contribution refunds requested by several large-dollar donors shortly after Sanford's election. "Even knowing that they probably won't give," Holly said in the context of those refunds, "they should still be contacted," she said. The implication being that the party isn't even bothering to ask for support from donors who aren't perceived as being on Sanford's team. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on podcast platforms like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

"I'm not interested in doing this simply to make our base happy," Congressman Kelly Armstrong said of new efforts to impeach President Joe Biden over his involvement with his son's business deals and other matters. Armstrong talked at length about the dichotomy among Republicans in their push for accountability for Biden, while simultaneously attacking efforts to bring the same to former President Donald Trump. He acknowledged that much of it is caught up in partisan politics, with people evaluating the legitimacy of an inquiry based on how they feel about its subject. When will that end? "No side is going to unilaterally disarm," he said. "That's just not how partisan politics works. Armstrong also spoke about his work on a deal to avoid a government shutdown. He noted that he's one of the few members of the House of Representatives who have remained in Washington D.C. to get something done, though he was tight-lipped about what's being discussed. Speaking out about it now could make a deal more difficult. "Everybody wants to see their names in a Politico story or a Punchbowl story," he said. "I just don't care about that." How likely is a deal to get done? "I'm more optimistic this morning than I was yesterday morning," he said, though he tempered optimism later in the interview with this: "I'm not confident we don't end up in some sort of a shutdown." Armstrong was also asked about Gov. Doug Burgum's campaign for the presidency, which hasn't gained much traction since he announced it. Should the governor pull out? "The longer his voice is in this conversation the better it is for the country," Armstrong said. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show on podcast services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

If constructed, the Midwest Carbon Express, a carbon pipeline project pursued by Summit Carbon Solutions, would gather carbon emissions from ethanol plants across the upper midwest and bring it to North Dakota for storage. Controversy around the pipeline, particularly from some landowners and farmers who say their land will be stolen through eminent domain, or that the pipeline itself is dangerous, has made headlines. But two North Dakota lawmakers with deep ties to agriculture in the state are pushing back. Sen. Terry Wanzek and Rep. Mike Brandenburg, both Republican members of the North Dakota legislature, recently wrote a letter to the editor arguing that "the future is here, and it demands that we incorporate innovative solutions like carbon capture and storage to ensure the continued prosperity of our leading industries." Rep. Brandenburg joined this episode of Plain Talk to explain his argument. "It's time we start talking about the positive things with this pipeline," he said. Brandenburg says 100 miles of Summit's pipeline run through his legislative district, where he also farms. He initially didn't like the way Summit approached landowners. He said they hired contractors who bullied landowners. "We had a meeting with them and told them they have a bunch of crooks out here," Brandenburg said. Summit has since fired those contractors and fixed the problems, he continued. Meanwhile, he argued, new economic realities are setting in. Canada, a major importer of American ethanol, has implemented new emissions standards, and without carbon capture, American farmers and ethanol producers will be at a disadvantage. "A year ago this time, corn was $2 higher," he said, attributing to fall to competition from farmers in places like Brazil which he says are ahead of the curb on capturing carbon. Brandenburg also said that North Dakota farmers are being misled by people such as Darryl Lies, the president of the North Dakota Farm Bureau who uses his Bismarck-based talk radio show to inveigh against carbon capture and Summit's pipeline. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

When it comes to criminal justice policy, and more specifically, the sort of policy that deals with incarcerating people, the most important thing for us to remember is that most people who are put in prison will eventually get out. According to a public-facing data dashboard from the North Dakota Department of Corrections, about 64% of people incarcerated in our state spend less than a year there. About 92% spend 3 years or less behind bars. If those folks are eventually going to be in our communities again, if they're going to be our neighbors and customers and coworkers, then shouldn't we want to make sure we're doing everything we can to ensure they're ready to be out of prison again? That's what we talked about on this episode of Plain Talk. The data dashboard I just used to bring you those statistics was developed by a nonprofit called Recidiviz. They were founded by Google engineers, and developed for North Dakota a criminal justice data system that allows our state to better organize our corrections resources. In fact, North Dakota was the first state the organization worked with. Dave Krabbenhoft, the director of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and Lily Fielding, a state engagement director for Recidiviz, joined this episode of Plain Talk to talk about the cutting-edge work they're doing. Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I talk about how North Dakota taxes are always going up, and never down, and what that might mean for our debate about eliminating property taxes. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Click here for more information.

MINOT — As North Dakota braces itself for another debate about abolishing property taxes - a new ballot measure to do so is being circulated for signatures, and it will likely be on the ballot next year - local governments are busy raising property taxes. It almost seem like the locals want to get rid of property taxes. One local leader, Grand Forks Mayor Brandon Bochenski, joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss it. Bochenski pointed out that his jurisdiction has been cutting taxes, not raising them. He said his city has just completed its fourth straight cut in property taxes mills, but that's also one of the most confounding things about property taxes. Even if one local government is keeping taxes down, that can be overshadowed by other local governments. When people in Grand Forks get a property tax bill, they aren't just paying the City of Grand Forks. They're also paying Grand Forks County, and their school district, and the park district, etc. It's that way all over the state. But would Bochenski vote to abolish property taxes? He says he's undecided - "I don't think there's enough information" - but on the whole he seems largely against it. He doesn't like the idea of putting local governments relying so much more on state lawmakers in Bismarck to fund their needs, especially with a new term limits amendment ensuring that the folks serving in Bismarck aren't very experienced. Also joining this episode was U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer, who talked with co-host Chad Oban and I about everything from Donald Trump's legal problems to Gov. Doug Burgum's presidential campaign Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's health struggles. Asked if he feels Burgum, who has struggled to gain traction in national polls, should drop out of the race, Cramer said, "Doug maybe along with some others." Cramer said that consolidating the non-Trump candidates is going to be "important" for those looking to move on from the former president. Still, that doesn't mean Cramer isn't behind Burgum. "I'm with him until he makes the decision himself," Cramer said.

Grand Farms is an agriculture research site west of Fargo, and on today's episode of Plain Talk, we talked about what a big deal it is with Grand Farms board chair Greg Tehven and state Rep. Cindy Schreiber-Beck. It's a big deal, because I'm not sure how many non-farming citizens understand how much bleeding-edge technology is involved in modern farming. From drones and autonomous machinery to planting techniques, human ingenuity is pushing to keep farmers in a position to feed the world even as the world's population gets bigger. Also on this episode, Wednesday co-host Ben Hanson and I break down a new ballot measure that would do a lot of harm to North Dakota's political process, from opening up elections to endless audits and objections to turning the initiated measure process into a completely unaccountable process through which anyone with some money can put their issue on the ballot. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show on platforms like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Perrie Schafer likes Gov. Doug Burgum. He says they worked together in recent years "hand in hand" during his stint as chair of the North Dakota Republican Party. But on this episode of Plain Talk, he said Burgum didn't make a big impression during the first presidential debate. "I think Doug is going to have to make a decision," Schafer said during the show with co-hosts Chad Oban and Ben Hanson chiming in as well. "There's a point where there's good money after bad," he added, saying the candidate has to ask himself of saying in a crowded GOP field, "Is it worth doing?" He said Burgum's recent injury, playing basketball the day before the debate, isn't helpful. "He's got an Achilles problem as well," Schafer said. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show on popular podcast apps like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Gov. Doug Burgum was injured in a pick-up basketball game just hours ahead of a pivotal national debate where he desperately needs to make a good impression with a national audience that, for the most part, doesn't know him. So of course we spent this episode of Plain Talk discussing a parking dispute in West Fargo. I'm kidding. Sort of. We talked about Burgum's injury, but we also interviewed West Fargo City Commissioner Mark Simmons about the controversy around the city's West Fargo Events non-profit and the parking dispute between two of the city's major developers. We were also joined by Sen. John Hoeven for an update about the potential for the Dakota Access Pipeline being shutdown, and the struggle to build pipeline infrastructure. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show on podcast services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

A shooter who opened fire on police officers in Fargo had mass casualties on his mind. Attorney General Drew Wrigley, who joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss the release of harrowing police-worn body camera footage of the terrible incident, said we may never find out much more than that about the shooter's motivations. "I'm going to lower people's expectations on that," he said, noting that more information from the shooter's computers and other devices would be made public in the future. "We can't find anything." Wrigley also covered the controversy over the binary trigger the shooter used to accelerate his rate of fire toward the officers. State lawmakers have passed specific protections for that trigger, and Wrigley said he's received some blowback from critics for bringing the issue up. Wrigley said he's talked about it because it's a central part of the Fargo incident, and because he even he, a gun rights supporter, thinks the triggers should be illegal. "We don't see automatic weapons fire as part of the 2nd amendment protections," he said. "Wouldn't it be nice if [binary triggers] weren't established in North Dakota law?" he added. Also on this episode, co-host Chad Oban and I talk about the impact culture warrior leadership has had on fundraising for the North Dakota Republican Party, as well as next week's GOP presidential debate, where Gov. Doug Burgum will be competing. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on podcast services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Is a government-backed nonprofit called West Fargo Events too close to a developer, property management, and event-booking company called EPIC Companies? That's a philosophical question, but it manifests itself in a practical way in the relationship between West Fargo Events and another developer, Jim Bullis. "How can you trust West Fargo when they're playing favorites with developers?" he asked on this episode of Plain Talk, where we discussed the years-long dispute he's had with EPIC Companies and West Fargo Events over parking. "It's three years this has been going on," Bullis said, adding that the relationship between EPIC Companies and West Fargo Events "seems to be a conflict they do not have a way to get around." Also, on this episode, my co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss the property tax hikes that are taking place in local government jurisdictions around the state, and what impact that might have on a new ballot measure campaign to eliminate property taxes entirely. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on your favorite podcast service, like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Toward the end of my two days covering Gov. Doug Burgum's presidential campaign at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines I was able to get some one-on-one time with the candidate. This isn't to say that I didn't get plenty of time with the candidate before that. He had a sweaty, sunburned press scrum surrounding him everywhere he went at the fair, and it was easy enough to ask him questions when they occured, but the governor was gracious enough to make a half hour available for me for an uninterrupted conversation. I chose, as the venue, a park bench in the middle of the fairgrounds, just around the corner from the famous "soap box" stage sponsored by the Des Moines Register. With people walking by -- including another Republican candidate, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who greeted Burgum warmly -- I interviewed the governor of North Dakota, who aspires to be leader of the free world. We covered everything from how Burgum entertains himself on the campaign trail to what he's hoping to accomplish at the GOP's first presidential debate later this month in Wisconsin. If you want to subscribe to Plain Talk, so you're notified when new episodes drop, search for the show on your favorite service, like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

On this episode of Plain Talk, recorded by your sweaty and sunburned correspondent in his hotel room at the Embassy Suites in Des Moines, Iowa, my co-host Ben Hanson and I interviewed Sen. Kevin Cramer. Cramer had some unique insights into the peculiar role Iowa plays in presidential politics, his having been a former chair of the North Dakota Republican Party. He also weighed in on Gov. Doug Burgum's issue platform and other issues around his campaign from a congressional perspective. In the second half of the show Ben and I were joined by my other co-host, Chad Oban, to talk about Burgum's performance in Iowa. We discussed everything from the candidate's taxpayer-subsidized security detail to his substantive policy arguments to his annoyance about constantly being asked about Donald Trump. Want to subscribe to the podcast? Search for the show on platforms like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information on how to get the show on the podcast service of your choice.

"This is not going to solve the problem," Rebecca Pitkin, the executive director of North Dakota's Education Standards and Practices Board, said on this episode of Plain Talk. She was talking about her board's recent request of Gov. Doug Burgum to issue an emergency order setting aside some teacher licensing requirements so that student teachers can run classrooms without supervision. "This is a band-aid," she told me and my co-host Chad Oban (full disclosure, his day job is at North Dakota United, the state teacher and public worker union). Pitkin answered questions about how student teachers might react to being asked to run classrooms without oversight, and why more hasn't been done prior to this immediate crisis to address what is a long-standing problem in our state. I also asked Pitkin about this tweet from Rep. Zac Ista, a Democrat from Grand Forks, who complained in a post on X that the ESPB board opposed his proposal to remove relicensing requirements from long-term teachers. Also on this episode, we discussed the latest from Burgum's presidential campaign, including the mystery donor to a Burgum-aligned super PAC, and some fake news from Fargo television station Valley News Live about a Trump attack on Burgum that never actually happened. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Collin Peterson represented western Minnesota's 7th Congressional District for 30 years, and during that time got a reputation for blunt talk. He hasn't changed much. As we discussed Peterson's efforts to develop an agriculture policy at North Dakota State University, an entity that will help inform and guide politicians, he shared an anecdote from a recent trip to Iowa. He said he found himself among the Republican presidential candidates when "this Vivek guy" came up to him. "I didn't have any idea who the hell he was," Peterson said on this episode of Plain Talk. "I thought he was running for Congress." That "Vivek guy" was Vivek Ramaswamy, a tech industry multi-millionaire who, as I write this, is currently in third place in the GOP primary according to the RealClearPolitics.com polling average. Can we blame Peterson for not recognizing him? There are currently 13 Republicans officially running for President, a field that runs the gamut from former President Donald Trump to former Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton (no, really). How does someone like Peterson keep a hugely important but, we must admit, somewhat prosaic topic like agriculture from becoming collateral damage to our nation's dumpster fire politics? He says he works to keep it "low profile" and "bipartisan." Peterson talked about how agriculture is home to some of America's most bleeding-edge technology, including carbon capture, which he described as the most important issue for ethanol and farming going forward. Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I discussed the likelihood that Doug Burgum will qualify for the GOP's second presidential debate, and my upcoming trip to Iowa to cover the governor's campaign there.

North Dakota is on the bleeding edge of carbon capture and storage technology, but when the news media reports this, we're often treated to a litany of pessimism from environmental activists. Case in point, a recent news article produced by North Dakota News Cooperative reporter Michael Standaert which was long on nay-saying and short on affirmative arguments in favor of using carbon capture and storage technology to keep our state's coal industry relevant. Jason Bohrer, president of the Lignite Energy Council, which represents our state's coal interests, says knee-jerk opponents of this nascent technology are "ignorant" and "uninformed." "Either it's coming from a place of igorance or it's disingenuous opposition," he said on this episode of Plain Talk, arguing that much of the antagonism is rooted in the belief that there is no place for coal power in future energy production. Bohrer, as you might expect, doesn't see it that way. He acknowledges that humanity, and in particular carbon-heavy industries like coal, oil and gas, ethanol production, and concrete manufacturing, have an impact on our climate. As we read news reports about record-setting temperatures, he thinks humanity needs to act in ways that go beyond trying to make us dependent on energy sources like wind and solar which, so far, have not proven that they can carry the load. Also on this episode, co-host Chad Oban and I discuss a controversial political raffle, North Dakota's too-lax campaign finance laws, and a new ballot measure aimed at setting an age limit on serving in Congress, and by extension challenging U.S. Supreme Court precedent holding that such state-based prerequisites are unconstitutional. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here to learn about other ways to subscribe.

Do you know with FirstLink was? If you'd asked me that question before our interview on this episode of Plain Talk with Jennifer Illich, the executive director of the group, my answer would have been...sort of? I knew FirstLink existed. I knew it handled calls from people in distress. I mostly thought of it as a suicide hotline. What I learned during our interview is that this group is doing profound work. In 2022, they handled 85,681 contacts to their 211 and 988 hotlines from people in crisis in various ways, from needing to be connected with assistance programs because they can't pay their heating bill to people who need emergency intervention because they're on the verge of suicide. That's an average of 234 calls per day. Astoundingly, they handled almost 54 calls per day just relating to suicide. FirstLink got a big boost in funding from the North Dakota legislature this year, and it's money well spent, not just because of the work the organization is already doing, but also the work they will be doing. One of the new initiatives Illich told me they're working on is coordinating with the 911 call centers to transfer calls about suicide to them. Currently 911 operators almost always dispatch law enforcement to these calls, but many times that's not necessary or even helpful. The folks at FirstLink are trained to handle those calls and can take work off the backs of law enforcement officials who can then use those resources elsewhere. As you listen to our interview, remember that if you need help, whether it's with thoughts of suicide, or financial problems, or employment problems, you can call or text 211 or 988 (it doesn't matter which) and get help. Also on this episode, we talk about some rank hypocrisy with broadband funding in North Dakota, as well as Gov. Doug Burgum qualifying for the RNC's first presidential debate in August.

Doug Burgum is selling $20 gift cards for $1 each. Is that legal? Is it ethical? As a campaign tactic, will it work? My co-host Ben Hanson and I discussed it on this episode of Plain Talk. Also, there's a fight between lawmakers and the executive director of the Public Employees Retirement System. The Legislature changed the makeup of the PERS board, adding more legislative appointments, and they begun a transition away from a defined-benefit pension to a defined-contribution model. Scott Miller, the executive director of PERS, doesn't like either of these changes. Meanwhile, the change in leadership of the North Dakota Republican Party - recently-elected Chair Sandi Sanford is an ardent culture warrior elected by the MAGA-faction of the party - continues to have ramifications for fundraising. The party's fundraising was in the red after big refunds to major donors. Finally, Minnesota has passed a free tuition program to address flagging enrollment numbers at that state's institutions. Should North Dakota emulate them? To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Lawmakers in Minnesota have created a new tuition program, called North Star Promise, which will give an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 students from households with income levels at $80,000 or less free tuition at the state's institutions of higher education. North Dakota State University President David Cook said that situation has "catastrophic" potential for our state's campuses. He joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss why, and what can be done about it. "The Legislature was very good to us," he said, adding that the universities are "working hard, doing our do diligence" to put a proposal they feel will keep North Dakota competitive with Minnesota. Cook answered questions about whether North Dakota should consolidate some of its 11 campuses or take other steps to find efficiencies that might, in turn, allow the state to be more generous with admissions. Also on this episode Christopher Dodson, who for 28 years has been the voice of the Catholic Church in North Dakota's halls of government, talks about his decision to step down amid health challenges. He has stage-4 prostate cancer, and he opened up about it on the show. He also spoke about some of his successes in policy areas, some of the issues where the Cahtholic Church doesn't get enough credit, how politics in our state has changed over the nearly three decades he's worked here, and what it was like to help guide his church through the challenges of sex scandals. "The clergy abuse crisis hit us hard," he said. "It's been very hard to be the face of the church after this evil," he added. He said politics in North Dakota, like the rest of the nation, has become less civil in recent years, though he argued that our state is much more optimistic than it was in the 1990s when he began. To subscribe to the Plain Talk podcast, search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information. "

Earlier this year North Dakota lawmakers tried to pass two - yes, two - book bans. One, House Bill 1205, was slightly less odious than the other, Senate Bill 2360, in that it didn't seek criminal penalties for librarians and educators. Both bills did pass the Legislature, though Gov. Doug Burgum only signed the House bill into law, He vetoed SB2360, and lawmakers failed to override the veto. So now that HB1205 is law, how will it impact our state's libraries? Kerrianne Boetcher, the administrator of the Ward County Public Library and the current president of the North Dakota Library Association, joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss. She talked about what it was like to go through an ugly debate that featured completely stupid and unfounded claims about librarians and educators exposing children to pornography - "It was very hard not to take a lot of it personally," Boetcher told us - as well as what librarians will have to do to comply with the new law. Also on this episode, Wednesday co-host Ben Hanson and I talk about the cynical attitude many Americans have about public service, and what impact that's having on the way in which we're governed. To subscribe to the Plain Talk podcast, search for the show on popular podcast services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down some significant rulings recently, and Sen. Kevin Cramer likes what he's saying. "The decision was a strong one, and a good one," he said on this episode of Plain Talk, discussing the recent opinion striking down President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness program. He also acknowledged that student loan debt is a real problem that members of Congress and state leaders should address. "We're going to have a border war with Minnesota over tuition," he said, referring to North Dakota University System officials firing up the klaxons over a free tuition program implemented by our eastern neighbor's lawmakers. "I'm glad I'm not in charge of making those decisions," he added. "I'm sure the college presidents are glad I'm not as well." On this episode Cramer also discussed Gov. Doug Burgum's presidential campaign, which Cramer said he supports wholeheartedly. Asked about what advice he'd give Burgum to break through in a crowded field of candidates where he's consistently in last place, Cramer said he'd advise Burgum to do what he's doing, which is focus on the early voting states. And how should Burgum take on Donald Trump, who enjoys a prohibitive lead in the polls despite a swamp of legal problems? "You're really not running against him until you're #2 in the polls," Cramer said. But when the time comes, he thinks Trump's handling of classified documents would be an important issue for Burgum to note. "Can we all admit that taking classified documents when you leave the presidency...you don't do it," he said. Burgum's current term as governor is up next year. If he doesn't run, would Cramer be interested in the job? "There was a time when I would have loved to be governor," he said, and while he warned that "smart politicians never say what they're never going to do," he thinks there will be good candidates who seek that office, "and they aren't me." Cramer also took questions about the political attacks on the legitimacy of the Supreme Court as well as the Project Tundra carbon capture project entering its final stage. To subscribe to the Plain Talk podcast, search for the show on services like Spotify and Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Earlier this year a long-simmering feud between Auditor Josh Gallion, members of the Legislature, and local government officials burst into the public's eye. The dispute is over what the latter two groups say are sensationalized audits and skyrocketing audit costs. That situation prompted lawmakers to put in place some new accountability measures for Gallion, including new legislative oversight, and an extensive performance audit of his office. Rep. Emily O'Brien, a Grand Forks Republican and one of Gallion's sharpest critics in the legislature, is now the chair of the legislative committee overseeing those initiatives. She joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss her expectations of Gallion, and the audit of his office. Also on this episode, Tax Commissioner Brian Kroshus discussed the potential implications of a ballot measure aimed at abolishing property taxes. "It's a big decision," he said. "It's a big bite out of the apple." One facet of the debate that Kroshus flagged is that North Dakota has "one of the highest rental rates in the country," he said, which also means that our state has one of the lowest rates of home ownership. People who rent are less impacted, at least directly, by property taxes. How will that impact how the state votes if, and almost certainly when, this measure is put on the ballot? Subcribe to the Plain Talk podcast by searching for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here for more information.

Allow me to pull back the curtain, for a moment, to give you a look behind the scenes at what it's like to be a podcaster and political columnist in North Dakota at this time, in the political cycle. When the legislative session is over. And election season is still months away from starting. And it's summer time. And Friday. It's kind of hard to book a guest. This is why, on this episode of Plain Talk, it's just me and my co-host, Chad Oban, talking politics. Which isn't to say that we didn't cover a lot of interesting stuff. We went from Congressman Kelly Armstrong and his struggles to follow his conscience under intense pressure from the far-right to Doug Burgum's presidential campaign to cryptocurrency. That last may have been ill-advised since neither of us knows a whole lot about it, but we do know that it seems to be a less-than-stable industry at the moment, and the struggles a crypto business - one touted by Burgum - is having in Williams County are very interesting. And you don't really have to be a crypto expert to understand that. To subscribe to the Plain Talk podcast, search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here to find out how to subscribe on the podcast platform of your choice.

Minot, N.D. — "The history of this in other states hasn't been good," Pat Finken said on this episode of Plain Talk. Finken is a long-time Republican strategist who has consulted and managed campaigns for candidates like Sen. John Hoeven, and Sen. Kevin Cramer and worked before for and against ballot measures. He joined this episode to discuss the recent takeover of the North Dakota Republican Party by populists, or culture warriors, or the MAGA movement, depending on your preferred nomenclature. He argues that similar takeovers of Republican politics in places like Arizona, and Minnesota, have resulted in the states moving farther left. The same could happen in North Dakota, depending on how the new party leaders conduct themselves. If they start to censure sitting Republican incumbents, if they recruit extreme candidates for the ballot, we could start to see Republicans lose ground in elections. Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss the recent controversy at North Dakota Right To Life, and a voting analysis of the North Dakota legislature from a Minnesota-based group that is premised on the idea that a Republican ever, under any circumstance, voting with a Democrat is a bad thing. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here.

The new chair of the North Dakota Republican Party, Sandi Sanford, doesn't like Republican Congressman Kelly Armstrong very much. She has called for a primary challenger for the incumbent over his vote to codify same-sex marriage in federal law. Does Armstrong now regret that vote? "I do not," he said when asked on this episode of Plain Talk. As for the potential for his own party to become an obstacle to his own re-election, he didn't sound seem concerned. "I'm on the ballot every year," he said. "We'll either get help from the party or we won't," he continued. Armstrong also expressed his support for Gov. Doug Burgum's presidential campaign, saying he's 100 percent behind him, and has donated to his campaign. Burgum's term ends next year, and if he's running for president, he may not seek a third term as governor. Would Armstrong be interested in that office? "Yes, I would certainly look at it," he said. Armstrong also addressed his vote against censuring Rep. Adam Schiff, which earned him the ire of some far-right activists on social media, and commented on the federal indictment of former President Donald Trump. "You have to be thoughtful about this stuff," Armstrong said. "You can't be raging toward whatever gets you the most clicks." Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on services like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the platform of your choice.

The North Dakota Republican Party is fractured. Whatever happens at their upcoming reorganization meeting, where leadership from traditional Republicans is under a challenge from populist culture war activists, there's no question that the party has shifted away from what it's been during the last three decades that it has stood astride state politics. Can the Democratic-NPL, which holds no statewide offices, which has withered to superminority status in the state Legislature, take advantage? Adam Goldwyn, the newly-elected chairman of the party, joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss it. Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss the latest from the presidential campaign trail. Gov. Doug Burgum's entry to the race has gone pretty well, so far, but he's still at the bottom of the barrel according to the most recent national polls. What does he need to do to distinguish himself? If you want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish, search for the show and subscribe on services like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Amazon, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the platform of your choice.

There are two big stories in North Dakota politics. One you know about. Doug Burgum is running for president of the United States. He's just the second North Dakota resident to do so in the country's history. The other is flying under the radar of all but the wonkiest of state political observers, and it's what's happening to NDGOP. While Burgum seeks the White House, his state political party may well be taken over by people who don't like him very much. Current party chair Perrie Schafer, a Republican in the traditional mold, is facing a challenge from Sandi Sanford, who is not only an ardent culture warrior, but an outspoken critic of Burgum. And, to add an extra layer of intrigue, she's also the wife of his former Lt. Governor Brent Sanford, who left office late last year. Robert Harms, a long-time leader in the NDGOP, having served as treasurer and party chairman in the past, joins this episode of Plain Talk to discuss this turn of events with co-host Chad Oban and I. Also on this episode, state Sen. Sean Cleary, a Republican from District 35 and a former staffer for Burgum weighs in on his former boss's national campaign. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on services like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to find out how to subscribe on the platform of your choice.

In 2016, I covered the North Dakota Republican Party's state convention alongside reporter Dave Weigel, then of the Washington Post, who currently works for Semafor. Weigel and I watched a gubernatorial candidate and political newbie named Doug Burgum take third in the vote of convention delegates behind his fellow Republicans Rick Becker and Wayne Stenehjem. Burgum, of course, went on to shock North Dakota politics by upsetting Stenehjem in the June primary vote. On this episode of Plain Talk, Weigel recalled that convention, saying it proved to him that you don't bet against Doug Burgum, even when he's the underdog. Weigel and I discuss what Burgum has to do to move from being a little-known governor to a true contender in the GOP's increasingly crowded 2024 presidential field. "It's all about Iowa," Weigel said, noting that he also, at the very least, needs to qualify for the GOP's first presidential debate to be held in Milwaukee in August. Also on this episode, my co-host Ben Hanson, who attended Burgum's announcement in Fargo today, discuss the event. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on services like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the service of your choice.

You've all heard the term "clickbait" before, uttered derisively, and not always deservedly, toward online content designed to prioritize earning a click or view or listen, over everything else, including the truth. But how did things get this way? What's the history of clickbait? Ben Smith, one of the founders of a new news venture called Semafor, joined this episode of Plain Talk to talk about it. He's a pioneer of early blogging, a veteran of Politico and the New York Times, and he was the editor-in-chief of Buzzfeed News, a position from which he made the decision to publish the now-infamous Steele Dossier. Smith is also the author of a book called 'Traffic: Genius, rivalry, and delusion in the billion-dollar race to go viral.' It's a history book, of sources, spanning roughly the last two decades of internet journalism, from the Drudge Report to the Huffington Post, from Breitbart to Gawker, and how it was all shaped by a relentless drive for traffic. Attention. Clicks. If you want to buy Ben's book, you can do so here. If you want to subscribe to Semafor (I do), click here. If you want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish, search for the show and subscribe on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to find out how to subscribe on the podcast service of your choice.

When Andrea Rebson, a Bismarck citizen, came to the most recent session of the North Dakota Legislature, she had a deeply personal story to tell. She was sexually assaulted as a teenager and suffered years of harrowing mental health challenges afterward. Her issue, which she pursued at the Legislature, was with the statute of limitations for criminal and civil cases. She wanted the law to give victims like her more time to come forward. And she made some progress on that issue, but on this episode of Plain Talk, she talks about her experiences in the legislative process, which weren't positive. She says one lawmaker demeaned her, and misrepresented her arguments, and she's got the video and committee transcripts to prove it. She's even gone so far as to file an ethics complaint against a specific lawmaker. She argues that, while the democratic process is going to create disagreements, naturally, the citizens shouldn't have to fear humiliation for engaging in the process. Also on this episode, my co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss the on-going fight over control of the North Dakota Republican Party, which will come to a head next month, in June, when the party elects new leadership. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show, and subscribe, on services like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Stitcher, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the podcast service of your choice.

"I just think it's cool," Sen. Kevin Cramer said on this episode of Plain Talk when asked about the possibility that Gov. Doug Burgum might run for the White House. Would he support Burgum? Cramer demurred when asked. He said he's been courted by some of the GOP's 2024 players. "I haven't jumped on anyone's bandwagon yet," he said. "Doug gives me another reason to keep my powder dry." "It would be hard not to back the hometown guy," Cramer added, though later in the interview he made it clear that his Senate colleague, Tim Scott from South Carolina, has inspired him. "The guy who could heal the nation is Tim Scott," Cramer said. We also discussed the debate over carbon capture, which has created some strange bedfellows. Pro-fossil fuel advocates, who see carbon capture as a savior, are making common cause with environmentalists who want to decarbonize our economy, and they're facing off against climate change skeptics who don't see the need to capture carbon who are aligned with green energy advocates who want to see energy sources like coal driven from the marketplace. It's "one bias versus another bias" Cramer told me. He says that while he's backed tax credits for carbon capture, he's worried about federal and state governments creating conflicting incentives. We subsidize green energy, and we subsidize carbon capture so that it can compete with green energy. Cramer says he'd rather see source-neutral policies. "Set whatever your standards he," he said, and then let the various energy producers compete. Cramer also touched on some of Donald Trump's ongoing scandals, what possible outcomes we could see from debt ceiling negotiations, and what role permitting reform may play in that deal. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the podcast service of your choice.

Rupak Gandhi, the superintendent of Fargo's public school system, has said recently that his schools will ignore a new law governing pronoun policies and bathroom use by trans students. So far, North Dakota's other school districts aren't following his lead, and his stand isn't sitting well with the two leaders of North Dakota's legislature. "What concerned me the most about his presentation...is there was an underlying sort of arrogance," Senate Majority Leader David Hogue, a Minot Republican, said on this episode of Plain Talk. He compared Gandhi to "educational leaders who think they can arm themselves with this compassion and this data and ignore the wishes of the parents." For his part, House Majority Leader Mike Lefor, a Republican from Dickinson, referred to Gandhi's claims that the North Dakota law may violate federal statutes. He said he'd be interested in a conversation with Gandhi about that. "I'm not really sure what the major concerns are," he said. Also, on this episode, Lefor and Hogue answered questions about the criticism this Legislature received (including from your humble correspondent) over a seeming obsession with transgender legislation and book bans, with Hogue specifically pushing back by arguing that the news media was a lot more focused on so-called culture war legislation than the Legislature was. "Every session, there is a hot-button issue," he said, citing past legislative sessions when gun laws would take up much legislative time. "We can walk and chew gum at the same time," he added. Lefor said that when he was touring the state, campaigning to be elected majority leader, he didn't hear a lot about bills dealing with transgender issues. It "wasn't even in our top 10," he said. Lefor says he met with some of the freshman lawmakers who were pushing the bulk of the legislation to tell them, "we have too many bills." He also said that "working groups" aimed at finding ways to combine bills covering the same topics "will be a focus" for him going forward. Speaking of which, in addition to covering topics such as the massive tax cuts bill lawmakers passed, both Hogue and Lefor said they would be seeking re-election to their leadership posts in the next legislative session, and that they would back every member of their respective caucus for re-election, despite a trend toward challenging incumbents with censures and primaries in some areas of the state. Senator Karen Krebsbach, who has been in office since 1988, and is one of the most influential lawmakers in Bismarck, was recently censured by her local NDGOP district, with her district chairman denouncing her as a Democrat. "We need to have more conversations than censures," Lefor said. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Stitcher, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the podcast service of your choice.

Rep. Claire Cory led the charge for a school choice bill that ultimately passed both houses of the legislature. In its final form, it would have appropriated $10 million toward providing up to a $3,000 per-child subsidy for parents choosing private schools, as long as they were below 500 percent of the federal poverty level. But Gov. Doug Burgum, despite having expressed support in the past for school choice legislation, vetoed the bill. On this episode of Plain Talk, Cory said she was "kind of disappointed in the governor's decision," though she added that she's "excited to work with the governor's office...to create a better bill" for future legislative sessions. Also on this episode, co-host Ben Hanson and I talk about the nature of leadership in this populist age where many connotate public service as doing whatever the loudest voices say. From national politics, where Republican politicians and right-wing media outlets like Fox News are terrified of Donald Trump's movement, to local governments, where part-time elected leaders get bullied by angry crowds, can you really say you're leading if you're just following the mob? If you want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish, search for the show on platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to find out how to subscribe on the podcast service of your choice.

"We haven't made any decisions yet about 2024," Gov. Doug Burgum said on this episode of Plain Talk. "We did have a great time in Iowa." His answer was in response to my question about whether Burgum is going to join the race for the White House next year. Back in March, I was the first to report that Burgum had been visiting Iowa, and apparently running polling there, but Burgum hasn't said yet whether he's running. There are two things to take away from his answer on today's podcast. The first, obviously, is that Burgum hasn't made a decision yet. Or, at least, not one he's going to share publicly. The other is that there is a possibility that he could launch a national campaign. Though, if he doesn't, would he run for a third term as governor? Despite expressing support for term limits in the past? "I think term limits work best when they work uniformly," he said. He pointed out that the term limits amendment which passed on the November ballot last year doesn't apply to state to other executive branch offices. "Governors can get termed out but other people can stay forever," he said, adding that certain "powerful lawmakers" can also stay in office for another eight years, as the amendment only started the clock ticking for current officeholders in January. "I support it," he said of the state's term limits amendment. "I don't think there's any value in applying it retroactively." As for the just-completed legislative session, Burgum said he's still not sure how to handle a drafting error in the Office of Management and Budget bill that led to lawmakers passing the wrong version of the bill. He did say there will be at least one more veto from his office coming concerning a bump in the formula for spending Legacy Fund revenues from the 7 percent he approved in a bill passed earlier in the session to 8 percent passed in "the wee hours of the last morning without any hearings or actuarial work." Burgum also expressed some frustration with lawmakers over the number of duplicative "culture war" bills they sent him that made "national news about things that may or may not be important to most North Dakotans." "They have 80 days and they have 81," he said, referring to the use this year of "fake" legislative days, "and still most of the most important business came at the end." But Burgum also touted a laundry list of accomplishments from this session he's proud of, including a new women's prison, progress on a new state hospital, a massive tax relief package, and end to the state's defined-benefit pension for public workers, and more. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk publish? Search for the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to learn how to subscribe on the service of your choice.

Attorney General Drew Wrigley is still fired up about a bill to implement mandatory minimum sentences for certain crimes - that was later amended to "presumptive minimums" - which was defeated in the state House of Representatives. There was controversy over how the bill was handled in committee and Wrigley's involvement in advocating for it, but on this episode of Plain Talk, Wrigley made it clear he is not backing down. "I'm going to talk about this stuff publicly," he said, committing to a campaign during the interim before the next legislative session to promote this issue. Wrigley said he wasn't intending to take a "personal swipe" at Rep. Shannon Roers Jones when he said her experience as a lawyer was strictly on the civil side of the law, though he added that the comment "was factual." He also took aim at some of his other legislative critics, including Rep. Landon Bahl, who he described as inexperienced - "it shows," Wrigley quipped - and Rep. Bernie Satrom, who he said was "slanderous" in his characterization of discussions about the bill. Former House Minority Leader Josh Boschee also joined the program, and answered questions about why he's suddenly the former minority leader at the end of this legislative session when typically that sort of change in leadership happens at the beginning of the session. Boschee said he felt it was time for his replacement, Rep. Zac Ista, to get experience in the role. Boschee is up for re-election next year, and when asked if he'll seek another term, gave an answer that leaves some wiggle room. "I have every intention of running, but we'll see how things play out over the next year," he said, though he also joked that it was a poor question to ask a lawmaker just after the end of a grueling session. Speaking of which, Boschee also gave some reflections on the just-concluded session, arguing that the Republican majority in the House didn't have good leadership. He said former Rep. Al Carlson, the majority leader when Boschee was first elected, would tell his caucus that they could only introduce so many controversial bills per session. "He had control of his caucus," Boschee said. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk drop? Search for the show on services like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher, or click here to find out how to subscribe on the podcast platform of your choice.