North Dakota attorney general defends tweets including challenge, name-calling

Wrigley in an interview defended his tweets, which referred to as retiree Henry Lebak a “dirtbag” and informed him to “be a person” and “drop by my workplace.” Wrigley stated the tweets weren’t an invite to a confrontation or bodily altercation.

Wrigley was deputy chief of workers for Hoeven from 2000-01 when Hoeven was governor. Each are Republicans.

Lebak in his tweet about Wrigley’s daughter questioned, “Now, how did she ever get her internship? Hmmmmm!” He continued to boost the difficulty throughout the trade.

Wrigley defended his daughter, telling Lebak, “If you wish to query (her {qualifications}) in any means, you dirtbag, I counsel you present up at my workplace any day … Present up in particular person, and have the heart to say something derogatory about any of my children to my face. Title the day.”

Lebak and Wrigley tweeted Tuesday and once more Wednesday. Wrigley informed Lebak, “Be a person. Drop by my workplace and communicate to me straight. Any day. You received’t tho. You don’t have that degree of guts. You will have Twitter guts.”

Lebak, 71, of Bismarck, informed Wrigley to “management your mood. It isn’t changing into of an AG,” and instructed “espresso at some impartial place.” Wrigley instructed espresso within the Capitol Cafe, and gave Lebak his workplace telephone quantity.

Wrigley, 56, informed the Tribune he “will not step again from these feedback” and he does not “withdraw one syllable” of his tweets.

“I’ve accomplished this ever since I have been in public life when folks name and depart a message on the answering machine at work and say what an fool I’m or no matter, and I at all times name them again and inform them they’re free to … come by and say to me in particular person, and I nonetheless haven’t had an individual come by and do it,” he stated.

Wrigley stated Lebak’s “completely inappropriate” tweet “actually does rankle me,” and that Wrigley’s “dirtbag” remark in response was “what I consider a man who goes after a public particular person’s little one in that means and makes it a remark like that.”

“What I’m is prepared to place my presence, join my presence with the phrases that come out of my mouth,” Wrigley stated.

Lebak informed the Tribune that he thinks Wrigley’s daughter’s internship is a nonissue and that “I simply made a remark of it.” He stated he was stunned by the lawyer basic calling him a reputation however didn’t take Wrigley’s tweets too critically. 

“Nah, I am not frightened about him. He has a mood, and I simply was commenting on his stuff,” stated Lebak, who added that he additionally feedback on different state officers’ tweets. 

Wrigley, a former lieutenant governor and former U.S. lawyer, is operating for a full time period as lawyer basic after Gov. Doug Burgum appointed him in February to serve out the remaining months of longtime officeholder Wayne Stenehjem’s time period. Stenehjem died Jan. 28 at age 68 from cardiac arrest. 

Democrat Tim Lamb, of Grand Forks, is also operating for lawyer basic.