Plain Talk

The Administrative Rules Committee approved a ban on LGBT conversion therapy asked for by the North Dakota Board of Social Work Examiners, which oversees licensing for social workers. Some Republican lawmakers resisted the change. Was it the right move? I'll talk about it with former Democratic-NPL executive director  Chad Oban on this episode of Plain Talk. This episode of Plain Talk will also fe...

"Rural America gets bad vibrations from Big Wind," Robert Bryce wrote recently in the Wall Street Journal. He notes that President Joe Biden's administration is pushing for "tens of thousands of wind turbines," but asks, "where, exactly, will all those turbines be built?" It's a good question. Many Americans, even those who support the concept of wind energy, may not realize just how thoroughly we...

Coal Creek Station is North Dakota's largest coal-fired power plant and, for a while, it was slated for closure, thanks to a long-running political campaign to tilt the energy markets away from coal, with environmental activists and political partisans cheering its demise. Then, a reprieve. Current owner Great River Energy is close to a deal with a buyer that would continue to operate the plant. Y...

"I would like us to get the smile back," Sen. Kevin Cramer  said in a recent interview . "I mean, we still are the greatest experiment in political world history. Self-governance requires people of virtue, as Os Guinness puts it, and our virtue needs to be demonstrated in our personalities, not just in our ideals. If I grieve anything, it's that we've become too angry," he continued. How does  Cra...

Earl Pomeroy  served in the North Dakota House of Representatives from 1980 to 1985, as state Insurance Commissioner from 1985 to 1992, and as the state's at-large member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 2010. He knows a thing or two about state politics. And national politics. He joins this episode of Plain Talk Live to talk about the state of national politics, the rise of the T...

Public health officials and other policymakers have been working hard to persuade people to get a COVID-19 vaccine, but one group of citizens in two North Dakota counties are being denied that opportunity. Williams and Burleigh counties — the former in the heart of North Dakota's oil fields, the latter home to the state capital — are  refusing to provide COVID-19 vaccines  to their jail inmates ci...

Earlier this year North Dakota's lawmakers approved a bill that prohibited institutions in the state's university system from working with groups that promote abortion. The bill, as passed, also included a financial penalty, denying matching state fundraising dollars for campuses that ran afoul of the provision. The impetus for the legislation was a long-standing grant relationship between Planned...

You're probably hearing a lot about  cryptocurrency  these days. Dogecoin . Bitcoin . The businesses you patronize are telling you they accept it. Heck, here in North Dakota, the City of Williston has begun accepting it as a payment option. But what is it? How do you use it? And given the headlines we see about the rollercoaster values of cryptocurrencies, is it a safe place to put your money? Jac...

Rob and Jay talk about UFOs.

It used to be, if you started talking about aliens and UFOs, most people would write you off as a crackpot. That's changed. High-ranking military officials, and even a former President of the United States, Barack Obama, are acknowledging that there are things flying around in our skies that even our best scientific and military minds can't explain. What's happening? And why did it become ok, all...

A company or organization wants to start some project with economic development assistance from the government. They make applications to state boards or local governments, and in those applications they make promises. They'll create jobs, they say. They'll generate tax revenue. And when the tax breaks or subsidies are approved, the politicians doing the approving typically take a victory lap. But...

Some of the biggest investors in the green energy space are major players in the fossil fuel industry. Meanwhile, Ford has announced an electric version of its hugely popular F-150 pickup. In North Dakota, where oil and gas is a huge contributor to the statewide economy, Governor Doug Burgum just announced a goal of being carbon neutral by 2030. What's going on? Rob Port and Jonah Lantto from the...

In April, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum signed a bill that aims to protect school districts from liability for posting the 10 commandments. "School boards are already required to develop a policy for the proper display of any religious objects or documents," Burgum said in a statement announcing his signature on the bill. "This law supports local control and gives school districts full control...

First, it was economic stimulus checks. Then it was multiple-round pandemic relief payments and expanded unemployment benefits. Now President Joe Biden's administration, acting on a part of the Democrats' nearly $2 trillion pandemic relief package, is set to send Americans with children hundreds of dollars every month. Kids under 6 are worth $300 each, while kids age 6 to 17 are worth $250. That a...

The world of North Dakota politics, in the current moment, is one in which Republicans can't get along, and Democrats can't win. A faction of the North Dakota Republican Party, deeply aligned with former President Donald Trump, has launched a largely unsuccessful campaign to take over the state party. Yet though they've fallen short, their actions at local district meetings, including censuring si...

Should the State of North Dakota invest Legacy Fund dollars in a theme park venture in Jamestown? The proponents of the Buffalo City Park want the State Investment Board to approve a $60 million investment for the proposal. Lt. Governor Brent Sanford chairs the State Investment Board, and he joins this episode of Plain Talk Live to discuss the amusement park proposal as well as new legislation dir...

Rob and Jay talk about the impact of expanded unemployment benefits on our economy. People aren't going back to work, and why would they when they can make the equivalent of $15.00 per hour staying at home?

Is recreational marijuana inevitable in North Dakota? The Biden administration announced a loan forgiveness program for farmers, but not white farmers. Is that fair? A Wahpeton school teacher has been suspended after a classroom discussion about George Floyd and the Derek Chauvin trial outraged students (or, perhaps more accurately, their parents). Rob Port and Jay Thomas, talk radio host for WDAY...

Rail shipments are hugely important to North Dakota's economy. Framers and ranchers depend on the railroad infrastructure to bring their crops and livestock to market. The state's manufacturers receive shipments of raw materials, and send out finished products, by rail. The energy industry, too, depends on rail. The fraught political debate over pipeline infrastructure has often squeezed the capac...

A Fargo/Moorhead mosque was vandalized with racial slurs and Nazi imagery recently. That and other incidents have led for some to call for new hate crime policies in North Dakota. Fargo City Commissioner Arlette Preston is calling for a new ordinance. The editorial board of the Fargo Forum has also called for new statewide policies. But do these policies work? Do they actually deter hate crimes? W...

Ed Schafer helped usher in the current era of Republican dominance in North Dakota when he was elected Governor back in the early 1990s. How does he feel about the Trump era, and the strife and faction now dividing his party? We'll talk about it on this episode of Plain Talk Live. Also, the Governor weighs in on the just-completed legislative session, the battles between the legislative branch and...

Some Republicans in the U.S. House want Rep. Liz Cheney, the GOP's conference chair and the third-ranking Republican in the chamber, to go over her criticism of former President Donald Trump. Trump supporters are even attacking House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, pointing out his living arrangement with prominent consultant Frank Luntz. Is any work getting done in the House amid all this in-figh...

Rob and Jay talk headlines including COVID-19 vaccines and what happened at the Legislature

Do vaccination selfies, or other types of posts people make on social media indicating they've received a COVID-19 vaccine, bother you? Some are irate about them. Some want them to stop. Rob and Jay Thomas, talk show host for WDAY AM970 in Fargo, talk about that and other headlines and issues heading into a new week.

The North Dakota Republican Party is, without question, the dominant political organization in the state. The Democrats hold no statewide offices. They haven't held a majority in either of the Legislature's chambers since the Clinton administration. They haven't held a statewide executive branch office since the dawn of the Obama administration. Starting in 2010, the Democrats began losing their c...