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During the 69th Legislative Assembly, North Dakota Democratic-NPL Insider will provide updates and calls to action each day of the regular session. If you would like to have something added to the newsletter, email us at [email protected]. Spread the word of our newsletter by sharing our sign-up link today: https://demnpl.com/join-our-newsletter/.
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What happened today?
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Rep. Mary Schneider's (D-21) bill (HB 1567) proposing a legislative management study to improve access to dental and oral health care for low-income children, Native American children, and individuals with disabilities will head to the governor’s desk to be signed!
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Rep. Liz Conmy (D-11) presented HB 1596 which would reduce the penalty for possessing small amounts of marijuana from an infraction to a noncriminal citation in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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What's coming up?
Sen. Michelle Axtman’s (R-7) bill (SB 2241) to make charter schools legal in North Dakota is on the House Calendar for a vote. 25% of charter schools close within 5 years of opening. Our tax dollars shouldn’t be diverted from traditional public schools (especially rural public schools).
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Her bill SB 2400 is an attempt to establish an education savings account program, which would give public funds to private schools! This bill is not on the House Calendar yet, but it will come up soon!
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Tell your Representatives to vote NO on SB 2241 and SB 2400!
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Democratic-NPL Bills
Rep. Lisa Finley-DeVille (D-4a) will present HB 1581 to fund Department of Commerce tribal tourism grants in the Senate Appropriations - Government Operations Division at 2:00.
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Follow Along!
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Did you know you can watch along with these hearings or watch them later on your own time?
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Help us spread our message—share these recent posts!
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Crowd gathers near North Dakota Capitol as part of nationwide day of protest against Trump
Kody and Andee Conlan traveled from Herreid, South Dakota, where they have a small farm, because they said Saturday’s protest in Bismarck was the closest one to them. Kody Conlan carried a sign that read, “Farmers Against Facism.”
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‘Hands Off’ rallies held all over the nation and in North Dakota
Groups around the nation gathered at different locations, including the North Dakota Capitol, to participate in “Hands Off” rallies.
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More than a thousand people gathered at the Capitol Saturday to call upon the Trump Administration and DOGE to keep their hands off the jobs of millions of people around the nation, and programs like Social Security and Medicaid.
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Letter: Elon Musk is the head of DOGE
Despite this requirement in law, and our Constitution, and our current administration's failure to conform to law, DOGE is destroying thousands of people's lives, robbing social security, deleting records, robbing the elderly and the poor and disabled veterans and robbing American human beings (of benefits and income and more).
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ND Legislature votes to strengthen Human Trafficking Commission, raise awareness following Holmberg case
While introducing the bill to the Senate on Friday, Sen. Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, pointed to Ray Holmberg, the former state senator who pleaded guilty to engaging in child sex abuse abroad during some of his 45 years in office. Holmberg represented parts of Grand Forks County from 1977 to 2022.
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"Many of us have had to reflect, over the past several years, on our own interactions with a former colleague (Holmberg)," he said. "While we can't change the past, we know we must do more; be more proactive and vigilant going forward."
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Thousands in Fargo-Moorhead protest Trump administration during 'Hands Off Day of Action'
"We the people are saying to Elon Musk and Donald Trump to take their hands off our democracy and follow the rule of law," she said. "We all want a more efficient government, but this is not the way to do it."
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USDA cuts hit small farms as Trump showers billions on big farms
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture grant program that allowed schools and food banks to buy fresh products from small farms helped her forge new business relationships. It allowed her to spend more with local feed mills and butchers, and was starting to build a stronger supply chain of local foods.
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But now that the Trump administration has yanked the funding, she worries that rural economic boost might end too.
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“With the razor-thin margins on both sides, those partnerships are just really hard, if not impossible, to sustain,” she said.
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Letter: Trump administration changes are harmful across many sectors
Cuts to Social Security services and staff will hurt seniors in North Dakota. Tariffs and cuts to USAID will hurt our farmers. Cuts to the IRS mean that billionaire businessmen will continue to cheat and avoid paying taxes, while honest North Dakotans pay their fair share. And cuts to veteran services will harm former servicemen who put their lives on the line to defend our freedoms.
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McFeely: Doug the diva? Burgum accused of making Interior staff members cry
"Two people said political appointees in Burgum's office have been seen crying because of the demands placed on them," according to Atlantic writer Michael Scherer.
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Some of the concerns have been elevated to top White House officials, according to the article.
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"One person familiar with the behavior described Burgum as 'Doug the diva,'" the article said.
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Check out these posts from the national Democratic Party
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Photojournalist witnesses Venezuelan migrants' arrival in El Salvador: "They had no idea what was coming"
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Romero's lawyers told 60 Minutes that he is a 31-year-old gay makeup artist with no criminal record in the United States or Venezuela.
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"He was being slapped every time he would speak up… he started praying and calling out, literally crying for his mother," Holsinger told Overtime.
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"His crying out for his mother really, really touched me."
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The Real Power of This Weekend’s Anti-Trump Protests
The protests will not change this administration overnight. But that’s not the point. Pressure is the point. Changing the social climate is the point. Creating a sense of social obligation to resist tyranny is the point—in a functional democracy, that’s a basic obligation. Liberals are about as well-positioned here as we can be. This is not a case of an authoritarian leader grabbing power and then maintaining it because, well, at least the trains run on time. This is an authoritarian leader who has managed to make life worse for Americans by nearly every measure: losing them their money, taking away many of the basic services they rely on, making many of the basics they buy more expensive. Trump’s agenda is a radically unpopular one, rivaled only by its implementation. At their best, protests give voice to those fighting the powerful and nefarious—and in this case, the anti-Trump protests gave voice to a majority that had previously been cowed into stunned silence.
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‘Fundamental misunderstanding’ of ‘global trade’: Economist on Trump tariff tactics
Professor of Economics and Public Policy at University of Michigan Justine Wolfers, Reuters White House Correspondent Jeff Mason, NBC’s Christine Romans, and NBC’s Gbe Gutierrez join Christina Ruffini on MSNBC to consider the ‘turbulent’ tariff war fallout.
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Freedom of speech is shifting under the Trump administration. We're exploring how
Our reporting found that scientists are scrubbing reports and federal grant applications of words the Trump administration has banned. Some student activists are afraid that participating in protests could lead to deportation. Teachers are nervous about a new online portal where students or parents can file complaints about diversity, equity and inclusion lessons in class with the U.S. Department of Education.
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‘This is a Path of Perfect Lawlessness’: Court Condemns Trump Over Wrongful Deportation
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“There is no question that the government screwed up here,” Circuit Judge Harvie Wilkinson, who was appointed by former President Ronald Reagan, wrote. “The withholding of removal order was country specific; it banned the government from removing Abrego Garcia to El Salvador and El Salvador only.”
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Wilkinson said granting the Trump administration’s request would create a loophole through which it could “whisk individuals to foreign prisons in violation of court orders and then contend, invoking its Article II powers, that it is no longer their custodian, and there is nothing that can be done.”
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“It takes no small amount of imagination to understand that this is a path of perfect lawlessness, one that courts cannot condone,” Wilkinson said.
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Over the weekend, Trump endorsed sending U.S. citizens to El Salvador prisons.
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Nicolle Wallace on Trump: ‘They are looking for the hostage taker to find a dignity saving off ramp’
Stephanie Rhule, Host of the “11th Hour” on MSNBC and David Gura, Bloomberg News Anchor and Correspondent join Nicolle Wallace on Deadline White House with continued reaction the stock market free fall and what comes next as the Trump Administration remains adamant that the President’s tariff plan is not negotiable, even as Americans rich and poor continue to worry about the future of the global economy.
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US cancels visas for South Sudanese over deportation dispute
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It comes as fears grow that South Sudan may again descend into civil war.
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On 8 March, the US ordered all its non-emergency staff in South Sudan to leave as regional fighting broke out, threatening a fragile peace deal agreed in 2018.
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South Sudanese in the US were previously granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which allows them to remain in the US for a set period of time.
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TPS for South Sudanese in the US had been due to expire by 3 May.
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The Cabinet Secretary Who Wants His Cookies Freshly Baked
Some of the concerns have been elevated to senior White House officials, according to the sources. One person familiar with the behavior described Burgum as “Doug the diva.” Three people said the concerns have been widely discussed among lower-level staff at the Department of Interior. Two people said political appointees in Burgum’s office have been seen crying because of the demands placed on them.
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I was a Top Leader at the FBI. What I Saw This Year Was Deeply Worrying. It Should Concern You Too.
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Meanwhile, new leadership has cut staffing in an office focused on preventing domestic terrorism. Misplaced priorities like this do nothing to keep us safe.
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Employees who fearlessly investigated the events of January 6th 2021 now fear they’ll be fired for doing their jobs. I’ve listened as employees recounted harrowing moments when violent insurrectionists, within hours of release, called their homes and threatened revenge.
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These threats are real because Trump released 1,500 violent insurrectionists into our communities.
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Print Media to Mass Protests: “Please Turn to Page 18”
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The relegation of these protests to footnotes is more than just an editorial failure—it’s part of a broader pattern where establishment media normalizes extreme policies while marginalizing opposition. We saw it during Trump’s first term, and here we are again.
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If hundreds of thousands of people gathering across all 50 states to protest doesn’t make the front page, what would? What’s the threshold? Or is the real issue that these particular protests—against billionaire power grabs, against slashing social programs, against attacks on marginalized communities—make too many publishers uncomfortable?
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This isn’t about bias. It’s about basic news judgment. When print outlets bury one of the largest nationwide protests in recent memory, they’re not being neutral arbiters. They’re making a political choice about what deserves attention and what doesn’t.
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Committees
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Every bill is voted on in the North Dakota legislature, but first, it must go through a committee hearing. The committee will vote to give the bill a "Do Pass" or a "Do Not Pass" recommendation. Below is a list of Standing Committees this legislative session.
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Senate Standing Committee Members
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Monday through Friday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Desiree Van Oosting (R-36)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Desiree Van Oosting (R-36)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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House Standing Committee Members
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Gretchen Dobervich (D-11)
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Cynthia Schreiber-Beck (R-25)
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Meets Monday through Friday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Cynthia Schreiber-Beck (R-25)
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Patrick R. Hatlestad (R-1)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Mike Motschenbacher (R-47)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Gretchen Dobervich (D-11)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Lisa Finley-DeVille (D-4A)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Lawrence R. Klemin (R-47)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Patrick R. Hatlestad (R-1)
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Lawrence R. Klemin (R-47)
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Mike Motschenbacher (R-47)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Lisa Finley-DeVille (D-4A)
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The Century Club supports our year-round work to build party infrastructure supporting candidate recruitment, local district and regional leadership, issue-based education, and tools for Dem-NPL success.
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Help us elect great Democrats up and down the ballot!
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The North Dakota Democratic-NPL is launching a new grassroots program called “Neighbor to Neighbor” where volunteers will connect with voters in your community to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. As a volunteer, you will be responsible for connecting with voters in 25 homes in your neighborhood or friends and family to help elect Democrats up and down the ballot about 3-4 times this year.
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Grassroots organizers are the lifeblood of the Dem-NPL! Sign up to volunteer with the Dem-NPL!
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