republicans – Page 2 – Dustin Monke

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: North Dakota governor’s race is going to be good

Gov. Jack Dalrymple’s announcement Monday morning that he won’t seek re-election in 2016 was shocking to many, including some members of his own party. But, unlike many states, it’s unlikely the governor’s decision is foreshadowing a vast political shakeup in North Dakota.

Instead, it’ll make for great debate into next year as to who is the best fit to replace him. The Republicans, led by Dalrymple, have an undeniably “deep bench,” as state Sen. Kelly Armstrong, the GOP chairman from Dickinson, told Forum News Service capitol reporter Mike Nowatzki on Monday.

Within minutes of Dalrymple’s announcement, Lt. Gov. Drew Wrigley and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem were on Republican’s lips as his potential replacement. Even Fargo businessman Doug Burgum said he’s “open minded” about considering a run for the office, despite having no prior political experience. Heck, we’ve even had people ask if Dickinson Mayor Dennis Johnson would consider running.

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If you want Trump to win, I can’t help you

Here’s some thoughts I had after watching the Republican presidential candidate debates on Thursday night:

— Jeb Bush is in the race because someone told him to be, though he looks like he’d rather be home watching TV.

— Rand Paul isn’t much of a hugger.

— Marco Rubio could likely be our first Latino president — just maybe not in 2016.

— There are 17 so-called Republicans who want to be president. Seventeen!!! It’s crazy. More than half of them should go home now because they can’t win, a couple of the underdogs should get more attention because they deserve it and there may actually be a president in the bunch. (Maybe.) That said …

— That potential president sure as heck isn’t Donald Trump — and the people who think otherwise are part of the problem we have with choosing leaders in this country.

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Sen. Kelly Armstrong of Dickinson elected chair of ND Republican Party

BISMARCK — The newest chairman of North Dakota’s Republican Party is from Dickinson.

Sen. Kelly Armstrong was unanimously elected by the party Saturday afternoon during a statewide GOP committee meeting at the Doublewood Inn.

Armstrong will serve a two-year term as he chairs the GOP’s executive committee. The position primarily takes the lead for Republican messaging and candidate recruitment in the state.

“I think I can bring some things to the table that help the Republican Party experience success in the future,” Armstrong said.

Former GOP Chairman Robert Harms announced to party officials Friday morning that he would not seek re-election to a second term.

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Wanted: Revolutionary politicians

Chris Christie was all the rage last week in the eyes of the national media’s political pundits. A Republican reclaiming his governor’s seat by a landslide in the blue state of New Jersey?

If he can do that, he may be the politician with enough moxie to unit a politically divided country, right? Well, at least he was on a single Tuesday night.

When the East Coast woke up the next morning, most media members realized they had actually championed and spoke highly of a Republican for a few hours and spent the rest of the day finding ways to poke holes in the Christie narrative.

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