MINOT — “I’m sympathetic to what they’re doing while recognizing there’s a better way to do it.”

Those are the words of Jason Bohrer, president of the North Dakota Lignite Energy Council, an advocacy and lobbying group that represents the state’s coal industry. He was speaking on this episode of Plain Talk about the Midwest Carbon Express pipeline proposed by Summit Carbon Solutions. That project has no ties to the coal industry. Rather, it seeks to bring carbon emissions gathered from ethanol plans across the upper midwest to North Dakota where it would be buried underground.

Bohrer joined the program to discuss the controversy around the North Dakota Republican Party’s resolution branding carbon capture as “fascism.” The resolution appeared to pass at the party’s state convention earlier this month, but after a recount,

it turns out it failed.

But Bohrer says Lignite’s larger concern is that public backlash against Summit’s project may turn into generalized opposition against the concept of carbon capture.

“An individual project differs from a technological opportunity,” he said.

“We’re going to take a long-term view,” he added.

Also on this episode, two board members from the North Dakota Association for Justice joined to discuss consternation in North Dakota’s legal circles over Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller’s gubernatorial campaign saying some ugly things about lawyers.

“Politicians and trial lawyers often struggle with the truth,” is a quote Miller spokesman Dawson Schefter gave me for

an article about their campaign ad

attacking their opponent in the Republican primary. “Kelly Armstrong is both, so it’s no surprise he lies about his opponent and his opponent’s ads.”

The NDAJ fired back,

calling those comments “ill-informed and ignorant.”

Then Schefter came back again. “It’s no surprise lawyers and politicians are sticking up for each other,” he told me in response to the NDAJ’s statement. “While Kelly Armstrong was raking in cash defending drug dealers, a man who beat his wife unconscious, and a man who attempted to suffocate his daughter — Tammy Miller was growing a company and creating thousands of jobs. Job creator or trial lawyer is an easy choice.”

“Frankly, we were offended,” attorney Tatum O’Brien said.

“She probably has a failing campaign,” attorney Tim O’Keefe added by way of explaining why Miller’s campaign would launch the attack.

Both O’Brien and O’Keefe are board members of the NDAJ and say attorneys do important work defending the rights of citizens in court, from Fourth Amendment protections against illegal search and seizure to the Seventh Amendment right to seek a jury trial in matters of civil law.

Want to subscribe to Plain Talk? Search for the show wherever you get your podcasts, or

click here

for more information.

Last turkey season we were in the thick of the newborn stage. I was lucky to get out a few times, but it was a lot more abbreviated than I’m accustomed to. After another long, albeit mild, winter riddled with daycare illnesses, I found myself dreaming of turkey season. I was manifesting calm, sunny weekends and a stretch of household health to get us through.

Come opening weekend, Grandma and Papa arrived and the weather part was just as planned, if anything, maybe too warm. We dusted off the Kelty and pitched it in a familiar piece of grasslands. However, my cozy night under the stars was quickly interrupted with a nightlong bout of vomiting in the buffaloberry bushes. I’m still not sure if it was due to our Mexican food date night in Dickinson or yet another stomach bug but seemed par for the course these days. I almost opted to stay back that morning, but I had waited too long for this.

Our tags were left unfilled, and a bitter taste lingered for days on a weekend I had envisioned going so much differently.

Fast-forward to the following weekend and we planned on taking turns. Scott headed west after bedtime Friday, and by the time Fisch was enjoying his usual scrambled eggs Saturday morning, we received a text that Dada had sealed the deal and would be heading home soon. As readers know by now, turkey nuggets for dinner.

Sunday was my turn and I opted to hunt my leftover unit alongside Jackie, Department marketing specialist and turkey hunting novice.

BISMARCK, ND — A North Dakota state agency has been awarded just over $5 million to address housing challenges in the state.

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines (FHLB) Member Impact Fund awarded a multi-million-dollar grant to the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency (NDHFA), according to a release from the North Dakota Industrial Commission.

“The availability of affordable housing continues to be a long-standing challenge,” said Dave Flohr, NDHFA executive director. “Through addressing the housing needs of our most vulnerable residents, we strengthen and stabilize North Dakota communities.”

Included in this $5.1 million grant, the NDHFA will receive a $1.28 million funding match from Bank of North Dakota (BND) capital.

These funds will be spent to bolster existing NDHFA programs to obtain housing for workers who earn low to moderate wages, aging North Dakotans, people with disabilities and those at-risk of homelessness.

“Affordable housing is a key component of economic development,” the release said. “It plays a critical role in attracting workforce talent and is one of the highest priorities of people moving to our state.”

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.