November. Another construction season has come and gone in North Dakota. It’s about the fourth construction season that Meridian Energy Group has promised (threatened?) to build an oil refinery three miles from Theodore Roosevelt National Park. So far, we’ve dodged a bullet. The company has been plagued by financial problems. They’ve had a two million … Continue reading Summer’s Gone, And Still No Refinery. Yay!

Here’s the thing about Governor Burgum’s move yesterday to jump in the middle of the bizarre District 8 Legislative mess and appoint a coal company executive to fill the vacancy left by the death and subsequent election of Dave Andahl: Right now, there’s no vacancy to be filled. By now all the papers are telling … Continue reading Vacancy? What Vacancy?

Here’s my short analysis of yesterday’s election results in North Dakota. There were 69 Legislative seats on the ballot across the state in 23 Legislative Districts. One Senate seat and two House seats in each district. Republicans won 65 of those seats. Democrats won 4. The absolute worst performance by a political party (excluding fringe … Continue reading Requiescant in Pace, North Dakota Democrats

Four years ago, a couple of days after the 2016 presidential election, when the results had sunk in and America realized what it had just done, I wrote: “Here’s what I think of the election. We got all dressed up to go to the ball, and we ended up at a rodeo.” Boy, was I … Continue reading I Think The Rodeo’s Over

I’ve known a lot of funny people in my life. Rodney Nelson was probably the funniest. A cowboy rancher from down in the Heart River Valley west of Mandan, Rodney succumbed to cancer yesterday. He was just 71 years old. Now 24 hour later, wherever he is, he’s making an audience laugh. You might remember … Continue reading Up Sims Creek Without A Paddle – So Long Rodney Nelson

I promise, I’m not making this up, because even someone with a mind as twisted as mine could not come up with a story this absurd. It’s the story of the race for the Legislature in North Dakota’s Legislative District Number 8. Yes, North Dakota’s Attorney General says to the voters of District 8, you … Continue reading Sweet Revenge

The five most dangerous words in the English language are “I’m not a lawyer, but . . .” More about that in a minute. Yesterday I wrote that Secretary of State Al Jaeger said it’s okay to vote for a dead Republican Legislative candidate, and if that dead candidate gets more votes than two other … Continue reading Now Just Hold On A Minute Here, Al . . .

As if this election year isn’t crazy enough already, in one of the most maudlin election tactics I’ve ever seen, North Dakota Republicans are urging voters to cast their ballots for a dead man. This bizarre recommendation comes from North Dakota Republican Party Chairman Rick Berg (not to be confused with Rick Becker, a real … Continue reading Dear District 8 Republicans: Please Vote For The Dead Guy

Let me tell you who really appreciated it when the Bakken Boom went bust—at least temporarily—in 2020. The critters. Whether it’s sharptails nesting, bighorn sheep lambing, mule deer fawning, elk calving, or foxes denning, they all appreciate being left alone at critical times of the year. The clanging of pipe on the drilling rigs, the … Continue reading The Critters Are Benefiting From The Oil Patch Slowdown

Earlier this week the North Dakota Supreme Court asked Fargo judge Frank Racek to hold an Evidentiary Hearing to help them determine whether North Dakota Rep. Terry B. Jones is a legal resident of North Dakota and can have his name remain on the District 4 ballot for re-election in November, after North Dakota Democrats … Continue reading Well, Then, Welcome To North Dakota, Mr. Jones