Tag: politics

Becker calls for big budget cuts

One of North Dakota’s two Republicans seeking the nomination for governor said Saturday in Dickinson that the state’s next leader will be faced with cutting $1.5 billion in appropriations spending out of its general fund.

State Rep. Rick Becker speaks to a crowd at the Astoria Hotel and Event Center in Dickinson on Saturday.
State Rep. Rick Becker speaks to a crowd at the Astoria Hotel and Event Center in Dickinson on Saturday.

State Rep. Rick Becker pointed to declining oil revenues and low, stagnant agriculture commodity prices for what he feels is a massive spending cut looming in the 2017 legislative session.

“We find ourselves in a situation where the status quo of what we’ve been doing and our level of spending isn’t going to work anymore,” Becker told about two dozen people who gathered for a town hall campaign stop at the Astoria Hotel and Event Center in Dickinson

Becker, a Mandan plastic surgeon who was elected to the state House of Representatives in 2012, spoke for an hour about why he should be North Dakota’s next governor. He said he views himself as an “underdog” and a “non-establishment” candidate compared to state Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, who announced his candidacy in November and is viewed by most Republicans as the favorite to not only win their nomination, but also next November’s election.

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Stenehjem makes campaign stop in for Dickinson

0114 Blog - wAYNE

North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem touted his nearly four decades of political experience working with the state’s agriculture and energy industry Wednesday in Dickinson as part of his campaign seeking the Republican nomination for governor.

Stenehjem geared much of his 20-minute speech to a small but friendly crowd gathered at the West River Community Center around topics important to western North Dakotans — agriculture, oil and education.

“We also have to emphasize that North Dakota, more than ever, is truly a part of a global marketplace,” Stenehjem said. “We must redouble our efforts to secure global sales of all of our farm and energy commodities. If there is one thing we’ve learned, it’s the importance of diversifying our economy. We’re doing that in marvelous ways and we can do more.”

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Editorial: The long rejection for Keystone XL  

Why did it take President Barack Obama seven years to reject the Keystone XL pipeline?

We’ll never know the answer to that question.

What we do know is that the president seemed pretty happy with himself Friday when he finally took a knee holding the political football he’d seemingly been playing keep-away with since his first term began.

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Convenience concerns: Rep. Cramer works register, hears issues at The Hub

0114 Blog - Cramer

The new guy working the register at The Hub convenience store on Monday took a few customers by surprise.

Rep. Kevin Cramer said this wasn’t his first time working at a gas station — he ran a bulk fuel truck at a co-op in Kindred for one summer during his college years — and the North Dakota Republican took to the challenge just fine.

“He actually caught on really well,” said Melanie Stradling, The Hub’s new assistant general manager.

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Former legislator James Kerzman of Mott dies in farm accident

Jim Kerzman, a former state legislator from Mott, holds a lamb on his farm in this undated photo. The state representative of 20 years who also farmed near Mott for a half-century died Saturday in a tractor accident on his farm. (Submitted Photo)
Jim Kerzman, a former state legislator from Mott, holds a lamb on his farm in this undated photo. The state representative of 20 years who also farmed near Mott for a half-century died Saturday in a tractor accident on his farm. (Submitted Photo)

MOTT — Jill Kerzman said her husband wasn’t perfect — but he was close.

Now, as she prepares to say goodbye, she said she’ll forever remember how he tried to treat others with care and help those who were less fortunate.

James Kerzman, a state legislator of two decades who farmed near Mott for a half-century while raising 10 children, died Saturday in a farm accident involving one of his tractors. Details of the accident have not been released by the Hettinger County Sheriff’s Department.

“He was one of the kindest men I will ever know in my life,” Jill Kerzman said in a phone interview. “He was a humble, hard-working man who really got into his life and got dirty.”

Kerzman, 68, was a Democrat who represented District 31 from 1990 to 2010. After his political career ended, he stayed busy as a member of the Slope Elective Cooperative and the North Dakota Farmers Union boards, and was an active member of St. Vincent’s Catholic Church in Mott while also being heavily involved in the Knights of Columbus.

“His heart was as big as the prairies of North Dakota, but it was also as gentle as the little lambs he raised on his farm,” said Aaron Krauter, a former Democrat state senator from Regent.

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