Plain Talk

The podcast delves into the challenges faced by public defenders in North Dakota, highlighting issues of insufficient funding and understaffing. It also covers the intense pressure on a U.S. House candidate to drop out of the race due to alleged threats. Additionally, the episode discusses negative campaign tactics in a heated gubernatorial primary race.

The North Dakota Republican Party will be holding what will be a very interesting event on April 5. Interesting in the conventional way in that it will be a showcase of (most) of the party's statewide candidates. Interesting also in that there is a divide among Republicans between those who think the party's most ardent activists, the one who fill up the seats at the party's conventions, are increasingly out of touch with not only the larger electorate, but rank-and-file Republican voters as well. I don't know that this convention will be the answer to that debate, but it will be informative. Talking about that issue on this episode of Plain Talk is NDGOP executive director Andrew Nyhus. "Rob, sometimes you make us money," he told me and my co-host Chad Oban, referencing my frequent criticisms of the party. "The checks come in," he claims. He also spoke to rumors that there may be an attempt to set aside rules at the convention to allow U.S. House candidate Rick Becker to seek the convention endorsement. Becker is from the MAGA wing of the NDGOP, and the conventions are his base of political power. In 2022, after losing the convention endorsement to U.S. Senate incumbent John Hoeven, he then challenged Hoeven in the general election as an independent. The NDGOP has a rule stating that any candidate who seeks office as an independent, or the candidate for another party, cannot seek the Republican endorsement for three political cycles. "If you say you believe in the rule of law, and you have rules...you can't really suspend the rules," he said of potential efforts to get Becker before the delegates. "Suspending the rules is not possible," he added, and defended the rule barring Becker from the endorsement. His challenge to Hoeven in the general election "could have cost us a win," he said. "A U.S. Senate seat." Nyhus also discussed divides in the party over the platform, and the role of the party in activism. Also on this episode, Chad and I discuss the recent polling in North Dakota U.S. House race released by Becker's campaign. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

There is a shift happening in North Dakota politics. Republicans are divided between Trump-style populists, and more traditional conservatives. The legislative primary in District 8 may well be a bellwether for the future of both North Dakota's dominant political party, and the way in which our state is governed. That jurisdiction is home to state Rep. Brandon Prichard, one of the most polarizing figures in state politics today, a young man just a few years removed from high school who has made a name for himself with vile and bigoted social media antics and professional activism aimed at defeating many of his fellow Republican lawmakers. Now, he's got primary challengers of his own. Mike Berg, the co-founder of an engineering firm in Bismarck, and Ken Rensch, who has a background in emergency medical response, have announced campaigns for the state House of Representatives in District 8. They'll be seeking the Republican nomination on the June primary, challenging Prichard and his fellow incumbent Rep. SuAnn Olson. "The people of District 8 could have people in the House of Representatives who represent them better," Berg said on this episode of Plain Talk. Also on this episode, we discuss politicians who say they aren't politicians, U.S. Rep. Kelly Armstrong's recent comments about double standards at a high-profile House Judiciary hearing this week, and Democrats making President Joe Biden apologize for saying "illegal immigrant." To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

"It's strategically dumb," says Sen. Kevin Cramer, referring to those who heckled President Joe Biden during the State of the Union address, and otherwise made a spectacle of themselves. Cramer joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss the president's speech, the Senate's GOP's progress toward picking a new leader, and the prospect for tackling border security during an election year. Cramer had tough words in his assessment of the speech -- “I thought it was the worst State of the Union address I have ever listened to or sat through," he said in his official statement -- but thought those who felt the need to shout at the president during the speech were "giving up the moral high ground." He said those who got up to antics -- such as Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene wearing a Trump campaign hat -- "have to trust the view public more." Cramer also acknowledged that Biden is conceding some points on border security to Republicans, and that he believes Republicans ought to press the issue. He said he'd be in favor of the Senate passing a border security bill through regular order and sending it to the House, even though former President Donald Trump opposes making progress on the issue before he's elected, and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has said that any such bill is "dead on arrival" in the House. Why, then, did Cramer vote against the border deal negotiated with Democrats by Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford? He says because it wasn't brought forward through regular order. As for the new leader for Senate Republicans, Cramer says that right now the race is between South Dakota Sen. John Thune and Texas Sen. John Cornyn, but that he expects a third name to emerge. He wasn't ready to say who he supports, and added that the election of a new leader will take place after the November election, the results of which will have a big impact on the choice. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

For people of a certain age, who entered adulthood around the turn of the last century, the music of Five for Fighting is a cultural touchstone. The song, "Superman (It's Not Easy)" was an anthem post 9/11. John Ondrasik, the man who is Five for Fighting, performed it at the 2001 Concert for New York. Ondrasik, who will be playing the Fargo Theater in Fargo on March 26, accompanied by a string quartet, has never been shy about tackling controversial issues with his music. He wrote a song critical of the way American troops were ordered to depart Afghanistan. He wrote a song in support of Ukraine in their fight against the bloody, revanchist aggression of Vladimir Putin's regime. Most recently, Ondrasik has weighed in on the war between Israel and Hamas. Called "OK," it juxtaposes images of the Hamas terror attack on Israelis, and Hamas sympathizers here in America supporting it, with a call for moral clarity on the issue. Ondrasik joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss the song, and the dangers of artists taking on touchy political issues. "I think it's the right thing to do," he said when I asked him why he would take the risk of releasing these songs. "If I was 22 years old and trying to have a career in the music industry would I still be writing these songs? I don't know," he said. "I hope so." He noted that these issues -- Ukraine, Israel, Afghanistan -- are not necessarily partisan. Actor Debra Messing, an outspoken liberal, and right-wing talk radio host Mark Levine agree on Israel, he pointed out. The positions on Ukraine don't break down neatly along ideological or partisan lines either. Ondrasik said he doesn't consider the politics of these situations when he chooses to write about them. "OK" is a moral message, not a political one, he claims. But he did say there is an overall leftward bias in his industry. "If Donald Trump had been responsible for that Afghanistan disaster I'd probably have a Grammy in my hand." If you interested in attending Ondrasik's show in Fargo, you can purchase tickets at FiveforFighting.com or on the website for the Fargo Theatre. Also on this episode, my co-host Ben Hanson and I discuss Gov. Doug Burgum's refusal to say whether he'd certify the 2020 election, and the recent NDGOP presidential caucus vote. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

As someone who has worked as a reporter in this state for more than two decades, who has broken a very large number of stories based on records requested from various government entities, I know a thing or two about North Dakota open records laws. When a prosecutor says that criminal charges can't be brought in a case where a staffer ordered the deletion of the emails of a deceased state official -- explicitly stating that the deletion was so that members of the public couldn't request them -- because it's not clear that emails are considered a government record in state law, I can't help but feel there are shenanigans afoot. My co-host Chad Oban and I discussed the matter on this episode of Plain Talk. Also on this episode, David Banks, a climate policy advisor to former President Donald Trump joined to discuss the Prove It Act. This bipartisan legislation, sponsored by North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer, would begin to collect data on the environmental impacts of American-made products. The goal is to develop trade policy that takes into account the difference in environmental standards between America and the countries it trades with. It's one thing to set environmental standards for American companies making goods and providing services from within our borders, but what good are those standards when companies operating in other countries, like China or India, who do not meet our standards, can undercut American companies? American companies should absolutely have to compete with companies in other countries. That's good for Americans, and good for the world. But American companies shouldn't have to compete against companies can abuse the environment, and their labor forces, in aways that are proscribed by our laws. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

We talk a lot about political leaders and activists who do stupid things. Ugly things. Cynical and self-serving things. But what about those who are standing up for what's right? On this episode of Plain Talk, co-host Chad Oban and I discussed Sec. of State Michael Howe, North Dakota's top election official who has, despite the partisan pressures coming from his office, has maintained that the 2020 election was not stolen, and has consistently defended the integrity of North Dakota's voting process. Also, on this episode, we discuss the chair of the North Dakota Republican Party is slamming Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller for not bringing her gubernatorial campaign to the party's state convention, the politicians on the North Dakota Industrial Commission approving a controversial contract to market carbon capture that pays a talk radio host who also covers said politicians, the upcoming presidential primary vote, and what it will take for the depressing political trends we're all living through to change. Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

Rep. Scott Louser, a Republican from Minot who also recently announced a campaign for the local school board, has a big proposal aimed at school funding and North Dakota's seemingly intractable property tax problem. He has organized it into a draft bill for the 2025 legislative session. But does that mean he thinks a proposed ballot measure to abolish property taxes won't pass? "Dr. Becker is leading the charge and also running for Congress," Louser told my co-host Chad Oban and I on this episode of Plain Talk. He's referring to former state lawmaker Rick Becker, a Bismarck plastic surgeon organizing the petition drive behind that measure who has also announced a campaign for the U.S. House. Louser seems skeptical about Becker keeping his eye on the ball. "I don't know if it gets on the ballot," Louser, who has endorsed Becker's House campaign, told us. "I don't know if it passes." Louser says his proposal, which would increase state-level funding for schools in exchange for caps on mill levies, is not intended to "derail" Becker's proposal. Louser's draft bill, which you can read below, also includes new funding for private schools. Also on this episode, we discuss gubernatorial candidate Tammy Miller's decision to skip local NDGOP party events in the early days of her campaign -- we're not sure we understand the strategy -- as well as the controversy surrounding the departure of a prominent supporter of Miller's rival in that race from Gov. Doug Burgum's administration. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.

No, the Republican presidential primary is not over yet. And yes, North Dakotans, you will have a chance to vote in it and make a difference. Bob Harms, who is running the NDGOP's presidential caucuses, joined this episode of Plain Talk to discuss the process. He talked about how to vote, and where to vote, and how those votes will be counted and reported. You can click here for more information. Joining me as co-host on this episode is Michael Bell, host of Dakota Talk, which airs out of Bismarck on KFYR AM550 from 9-11 am on weekdays. Michael and I talked about the national presidential primary, the Republican gubernatorial primary between Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller and U.S. Rep. Kelly Armstrong, and the Republican House primary between Public Service Commissioner Julie Fedorchak, former state Rep. Rick Becker, and former state Sen. Tom Campbell. Want to be notified when new episodes of Plain Talk are published? Search for the show and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for a full listing of episodes, and information on how to subscribe on specific platforms.

Why did Public Service Commissioner Julie Fedorchak opt to run for the United States Hosue of Representatives? "I don't like the state of our country," she told me and my co-host Chad Oban on this episode of Plain Talk. Fedorchak is a long-time member of the policy-intensive PSC, and thinks she can take what she learned from administering the complicated to the point of being arcane regulatory process around things like pipelines and transmission lines to Congress. "This is what we do," she said of her work on the commission. "We work through controversial issues." She said her energy expertise, in particular, could be useful in Washington were she said there is a "fundamental lack of understanding" of that policy area. "We're basically committing energy suicide in our country," she said, noting America's abundant resources. "There is no reason we should ever run short." Fedorchak said she'd also like to help move the nation's budgeting process out of the grips of two-year election cycles toward a longer-term commitment to an 8 to 10 year plan. She also said there needs to be a "return to order" on the border, and a focus in general on "policy" instead of "personalities." As for other hot-button policy areas, Fedorchak declined to say whether she would have voted for the recent bipartisan budget bill that was tanked by Republicans at the behest of former President Donald Trump -- she said she didn't know enough about it -- and added that while she's pro-life, she thinks the federal government should leave the abortion issue to the states, and that Congress should focus more on policies that "help women choose life." Also on this episode, incumbent state Rep. Jon Nelson, a Republican, joined to discuss why he and his fellow District 14 incumbents opted to skip their party's local endorsing convention. He decried an "eat your own" mentality in the NDGOP today. "We don't have a discussion," he said. "We're preached to." He also had some sharp words for some of his fellow Republican lawmakers, like Minot Rep. Dan Ruby and Bismarck Rep. Brandon Prichard, who funding and managing efforts to target Republican incumbents like himself. He accused Prichard, specifically, of spreading false information about his votes. "Unlike Rep. Prichard, I actually care about being accurate," he said. Nelson added that he's choosing to seek another term in the House because "as long as I'm able to make a difference, I want to try." To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or click here for more information.