Tag Archive for: Julie Fedorchak

Fedorchack, Cramer, and Hoeven sacrifice North Dakotans to pay for tax handout to the mega-wealthy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 3, 2025

FARGO – Today, the House passed the Senate version of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”

The North Dakota Legislative Council estimates that the House Republican version of the bill would result in North Dakota losing $1.42 billion in Medicaid funding over the next 10 years, and around 19,000 North Dakotans losing their health care coverage. The Senate Republican version has even steeper cuts to Medicaid.

North Dakota Democratic-NPL chair Adam Goldwyn said, “This is a scheme to steal from working North Dakotans, struggling families, and even from nursing homes to pay for a massive tax giveaway to the megawealthy like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. Fedorchak, Cramer, and Hoeven just voted to rip health care away from thousands of North Dakotans, take food from hungry children, and kill jobs across the country. This bill is as cruel as it is unpopular—even Republican voters do not like this bill. Our Republican lawmakers may have abandoned North Dakota, but we will continue to fight this and the many other cuts our state has been forced to suffer under Trump.”

We’re not alone in our concern for North Dakota:

Republican North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread sent a letter on behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to Congressional Leadership saying, “Policy changes embedded in the House-passed reconciliation legislation would have a significant
and ongoing negative impact on the health insurance markets we regulate and the health care
system as a whole. These changes will lead to fewer individuals covered and disruptions to markets as soon as 2026.” He later noted on KFGOthat their concerns “weren’t really well received.”

Brad Gibbens, a board member of the North Dakota Rural Health Association, said that cuts to the Affordable Healthcare Act and SNAP are a “real step backwards” and “there’s going to be a profound effect in rural areas.”

Across the state, North Dakotans sent letters to the editor about this terrible bill:

Barry Batcheller of Fargo wrote, “As of June 13, there are more than 185 judicial rulings against the blizzard of executive orders penned by this president. In numerous instances, the administration shows no intent to comply with these rulings. Our Republican Congress is asleep at the wheel and has ceded extraordinary overreach permission to this president while they nap. The citizens of North Dakota should not be OK with this.”

Per Ostmo of Grand Forks wrote, “A 15% loss in Medicaid revenue is equivalent to more than 21,000 full-time hospital employees across the country. In rural America, the loss of a single primary care provider can result in hospital closure, because that hospital may no longer meet minimum staffing requirements to remain operational. Make no mistake, cuts to Medicaid will result in loss of service, increase preventable deaths, and destroy rural economies.”

Dexter Perkins of Grand Forks, “North Dakota Rep. Julie Fedorchak is either ignorant or lying to North Dakotans. In her recent op-ed, she says that government spending has been out of control and needs fixing. But she supports the One Big Budget Bill that, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), will make things much worse. We here in North Dakota know that you should not spend money you do not have. But, if the bill passes, the CBO says it will be the largest deficit spending bill since World War II and will add trillions of dollars to the federal debt.”

Aunnah Shaw of Minot wrote, “I urge lawmakers to increase — not reduce — SNAP funding. Policy must reflect real-life complexity, not dehumanized or incomplete data. Cuts harm children, destabilize families, and punish those working to rise. We need data with context, funding with integrity, and leadership that applies social empathy and fully considers lived realities before making political decisions that directly affect whether families, children, and taxpaying citizens can eat, stabilize, or survive.”

Dr. Steven L. Johnson of Valley City wrote, “The bill’s name may be “beautiful,” but there is nothing beautiful about shifting the cost of essential services onto families and communities who can least afford it.”

Landis Larson the former president of North Dakota AFL-CIO wrote, “Cuts to Medicaid and other health care programs will strip health care away from 13.7 million workers. Not only that, but we will lose nearly half a million health care jobs across the country, mostly in rural areas, next year. This will be devastating to our rural communities as health care facilities dry up from lack of funding and providers. When people don’t have health insurance, we all pay for it anyway in higher health care costs for those with insurance.”

The Interfaith Alliance of North Dakota wrote, “‘The Big Beautiful Bill,’ however, is cruel and immoral. It would have us turn our back on the teachings that guide us. We hope our elected officials can build a budget that reflects our values of decency and compassion — a budget that is indeed a moral document for all of us.

Mark Watne of North Dakota Farmers Union wrote, “This approach of reconciliation rather than the regular order of drafting a farm bill, where the merits and challenges of programs are debated, misses the point of a government of and for the people. It risks everything we have built as a nation – from leading the world in food production to the U.S. becoming a residual supplier of food for the world. It takes the U.S. further down the path of becoming a food importer rather than having a surplus in agricultural trade. This is a poor choice when it comes to logical food policy for our nation, for farmers and consumers.”

Hoeven, Cramer, Fedorchak, and other Congressional Republicans are putting North Dakotans’ health care, food assistance, and jobs on the chopping block:

  • At least 1 in 4 nursing homes will have to close their doors, and over half of nursing homes will be forced to cut staff
  • Unions are warning this is the “biggest job-killing bill in the history of the country.”
  • If this bill is signed into law, it will threaten 1.75 million construction jobs and 2 million energy jobs
  • This bill cuts $1.3 trillion in food assistance and health coverage while giving the wealthy that exact amount in tax breaks
  • 45,000 North Dakotans on the ACA marketplace will face higher premiums
    Around 27,000 in rural areas
  • 48,700 North Dakotans are at risk of losing food assistance, forcing working families and children to go hungry
  • This will increase North Dakotans energy bills by hundreds of dollars
  • It will add $3.25 trillion to the national debt, while revenues fall by $4.47 trillion

Big, ‘beautiful’ bill is a bad deal for North Dakota

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 30, 2025

FARGO – The U.S. Senate is currently debating amendments to the “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act”, which if enacted, will be the largest cut to Medicaid in history. The North Dakota Legislative Council estimates that the state will lose $1.42 billion in Medicaid funding over the next 10 years.

North Dakota Democratic-NPL chair Adam Goldwyn said, “Hoeven, Cramer, and Fedorchak could stock up on all the lipstick in the world, and there still wouldn’t be enough to make this pig of a bill look beautiful. They can obfuscate, they can equivocate, and they can lie, but we know the truth. Nearly two-thirds of Americans know this bill is bad. North Dakota is still reeling from Trump-Vance storm of cuts to mental health care and FEMA grants, and we’re bracing for more. Every billionaire who attended Jeff Bezos’ $50 million dollar Venice wedding this weekend is set to get an extended tax handout paid for on the backs of working North Dakotans. Why on God’s green Earth would they vote to cut $1.42 billion in Medicaid for North Dakotans? When the Great Plains Food Bank is pleading with them to stop the cuts to SNAP, why are our lawmakers ignoring them?”

North Dakota House Minority Leader Zac Ista (D-Grand Forks) said, “Where’s Senator Hoeven? Where’s Senator Cramer? Where’s Congresswoman Fedorchak? Stand up for North Dakota. Our state will lose nearly $1.5 billion in Medicaid funding in the next decade if this bill passes, and some 19,000 North Dakotans will lose their health care coverage. That’s more people than live in Jamestown dropped from their health insurance thanks to our Republican senators and congresswoman. North Dakota taxpayers will be left holding the bag when our elected officials rubber stamp this disastrous bill.”

Don’t just take it from us:

Budget and Fiscal Policy Organizations
North Dakota Legislative Council reported, “An analysis of the Congressional Budget Office estimates by the Kaiser Family Foundation indicated North Dakota’s share of this reduction would be approximately $1.42 billion, or 12 percent of projected federal Medicaid spending in the state, compared to baseline projections. The provisions currently in the bill are estimated to reduce Medicaid enrollment in North Dakota by 18 percent by 2034, compared to baseline levels. Approximately 45 percent of the funding reduction would be attributable to a mandatory work requirement of 80 hours per month for able-bodied adults aged 19-64 without dependents, beginning December 31, 2026, for Medicaid expansion enrollees.”

Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget wrote,“The Senate bill would borrow almost $1 trillion more than the House bill. It would also fail to comply with the House reconciliation instructions requiring $2 trillion of gross spending cuts or offsetting tax cuts changes, falling nearly $500 billion short. Even these numbers understate the potential costs of the bill, since the legislation relies on a number of arbitrary expirations. Borrowing could rise by another $1 trillion – to $5 trillion or more – if temporary provisions were made permanent. The Senate should reject this bill and work toward a fiscally responsible alternative that reduces rather than explodes our high and rising debt.”

Taxpayers for Common Sense President Stephen Ellis wrote, “With this year’s deficit expected to approach $2 trillion and the national debt already at $36.2 trillion—up more than $30 trillion since 2000—we simply cannot afford to pile on trillions more. We urge you to reject this legislation and pursue a fiscally responsible approach to the expiration of tax provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.”

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities President Sharon Parrott said, “Proponents of this destructive agenda have tried every trick in the book to claim falsely that the deep and harmful cuts to food assistance and health coverage would somehow not hurt people. They’ve done all they can to portray the people it would hurt as anything but who they are — people in communities throughout the country who need help to afford the basics, most of whom work or are children, seniors, or people with disabilities. Despite obfuscation, the truth is clear — this bill will hurt people in every state if enacted.”

Advocacy Groups
AARP said, “More than 9 million Medicaid enrollees ages 50 to 64 would likely be subject to the work requirements, an analysis by the AARP Public Policy Institute (PPI) estimates, and could be at risk of losing their health insurance. And it’s not because enrollees can’t meet the standards — 92 percent of enrollees to whom the House’s requirements would apply are either already working or would likely qualify for an exemption, the health policy nonprofit KFF found — but because proving compliance could be too complex. As the coauthors of the AARP PPI analysis put it, ‘Work requirements will tangle older adults in red tape.’”

The American Association of People with Disabilities wrote, “the proposal’s requirement that Medicaid recipients re-certify their eligibility every six months is a particularly burdensome barrier to care. Many people with disabilities lack consistent access to the identification and medical documents needed to meet such requirements. Additionally, many Medicaid recipients do not have a computer, smartphone, broadband internet, or reliable transportation to assist with navigating complex administrative systems. These requirements will lead to widespread disenrollment from Medicaid, not because people are no longer eligible, but because the system makes it too hard to stay enrolled.”

The Arc CEO Katy Neas said, “For millions of people with disabilities, Medicaid and SNAP aren’t just safety nets—they’re survival. New administrative barriers aren’t about stopping waste, fraud, and abuse. They are about denying access to essential health care to as many people as possible. Families will skip check-ups, critical surgeries, and medications. Parents will go hungry so their kids don’t have to. People will be forced to choose between paying rent or seeing a doctor. This is the brutal reality for the millions who will lose health coverage and food assistance under this plan.”

Health Care Associations
National Rural Health Association said, “The unprecedented cuts in Medicaid coverage and financing in Congress’ reconciliation proposals, will have a major impact on rural communities—on the people covered by Medicaid, the rural health providers who serve them and the rural communities that will see more health facilities close, with associated impacts on access to care and local economies.”

Children’s Hospital Association President and CEO Matthew Cook said, “Cutting programs that support the health of our next generations does not reduce spending. It borrows from tomorrow and ensures that today’s kids will need more care down the road. That’s an expensive bet, and it only kicks the costs to the next generation.”

The National Association of Community Health Centers said, “Even a small shift in patients from Medicaid to uninsured status could force clinics to reduce services or close locations, jeopardizing access to cost-effective primary care and medical services in communities. Rural communities would lose critical access points for primary care, dental services, and behavioral health. When CHCs close, communities lose not just healthcare but also jobs and economic stability. Terminating Medicaid coverage for gig workers, freelancers, caregivers, and those who have been laid off will not only compromise their health but also make it harder for them to work.”

American Medical Association President Bobby Mukkamala wrote, “By changing Medicaid and CHIP eligibility criteria, reducing their funding, and eliminating the Medicare payment provision included in the House-passed reconciliation bill, this legislation risks making matters worse for an exceptional number of people including seniors, pregnant women and persons with disabilities. Limiting access to a physician does not make patients healthier; in fact, it increases the risk of turning acute, treatable issues into costly chronic conditions. As work continues on this bill, we urge senators to listen to patients and physicians before making changes that reduce access to care.”

American Hospital Association President and CEO Rick Pollack said, “This legislation will put at risk the 72 million Americans who rely on Medicaid for their health care and jeopardize the hospitals that serve them. It will adversely impact critical care for children, pregnant women, the elderly, disabled and millions of working Americans. The sheer magnitude of these cuts, the largest ever proposed by Congress, will dramatically increase the number of uninsured and undermine the ability of hospitals across America to provide critical services to everyone. We are disappointed that the Senate bill goes in the wrong direction and is substantially worse than its House counterpart.”

America’s Essential Hospitals President and CEO Bruce Siegel said, “This bill would destabilize hospitals across the nation, jeopardizing the health of millions of Americans. We urge the Senate to strengthen and support our hospitals, not destroy them.”

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network said, “Research consistently shows that access to health insurance coverage through Medicaid increases cancer screenings rates, early-stage cancer diagnoses, and improves access to timely cancer treatment and survival rates. Further, access to health insurance coverage is one of the most significant determining factors in an individual’s chance to survive cancer. Medicaid protects individuals and families from medical debt, helps keep rural hospital doors open, creates jobs in our communities, and helps our nation become healthier and more prosperous. The result of these proposed Medicaid cuts will be devastating – lives will be lost, and state economies will suffer greatly. ACS CAN urges members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee to vote against these shortsighted, life-threatening cuts to Medicaid, regardless of the form they are presented in. There is simply too much to lose for the millions that rely on Medicaid to prevent, detect, treat and survive cancer.”

The Association of American Medical Colleges said, “The proposed policies do not exist in silos. Many patients beyond Medicaid enrollees would be affected by these actions. Patients would experience the consequences of intensifying the physician shortage by limiting access to student loans, not just medical students. These policies would put undue pressure on the ability of our nation’s academic health systems, teaching hospitals, and medical schools to perform their core missions: providing patient care, educating and training the next generation of physicians and other health professionals, conducting life-saving medical research, and strengthening their communities. Additionally, these policies would undermine institutions’ ability to continue driving local economic growth and employing millions of people nationwide. Those enrolled in Medicaid and many more would feel those effects.”

Food Security Organizations
Melissa Sobolik, CEO of the Great Plains Food Bank said, “The state of North Dakota for instance could have to pay an additional 11 million dollars a year or more just to cover 10 percent of the SNAP costs in our state.”

Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot said, “Based on preliminary estimates, the proposed cuts would reduce critical SNAP support by up to 6 billion to as much as 9 billion meals each year. By comparison, the entire Feeding America network of over 200 food banks and 60,000 faith-based and charitable partners provided 6 billion meals last year. Additionally, Medicaid cuts could leave 8 million people without health care, potentially resulting in 800,000 more people without adequate resources to access enough nutritious food.”

Farming Organizations pushing for a bipartisan, comprehensive Farm Bill

Mark Watne President of North Dakota Farmers Union wrote, “The demise of the Farm Bill began when we chose to extend it, not only once but twice. As a result, we are seeing a bill drafted through a reconciliation process that only allows changes pertinent to a partisan push. Cutting SNAP and small enhancements to the farm safety net while leaving most other programs in limbo will widen the rural-urban divide and make the bill less bipartisan. This approach of reconciliation rather than the regular order of drafting a Farm Bill, where the merits and challenges of programs are debated, misses the point of a government of and for the people. It risks everything we have built as a nation — from leading the world in food production to the U.S. becoming a residual supplier of food for the world. It takes the U.S. further down the path of becoming a food importer rather than having a surplus in agricultural trade. This is a poor choice when it comes to logical food policy for our nation, for farmers and consumers.”

National Farmers Union said, “But this is not the best way to produce a meaningful farm bill. Our members know that the process matters. Pitting farm and nutrition priorities against one another creates unnecessary division and weakens the broader effort. A strong farm bill—however it comes together—must reflect the full scope of challenges facing agriculture and rural communities, and it must work for everyone it touches: farmers, ranchers, and families across the country.”

National Corn Growers Association President Kenneth Hartman Jr. said, “NCGA’s farmer leaders have long stood on the policy position that farm bills should be comprehensive and bipartisan, and that they should include farm programs and nutrition programs. Given that budget reconciliation provides only a partial pathway for select components of the farm bill, we would like return to a bipartisan, comprehensive approach to future farm bill debates.”

Trade Unions
North American Building Trades Union President Sean McGarvey said, “If enacted, this stands to be the biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country. Simply put, it is the equivalent of terminating more than 1,000 Keystone XL pipeline projects. In some cases, it worsens the already harmful trajectory of the House-passed language, threatening an estimated 1.75 million construction jobs and over 3 billion work hours, which translates to $148 billion in lost annual wages and benefits. These are staggering and unfathomable job loss numbers, and the bill throws yet another lifeline and competitive advantage to China in the race for global energy dominance.”

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers President Kenneth W. Cooper said, “This budget reconciliation bill is a direct attack on working families, shoveling tax breaks to the rich while turning its back on the people who power this country.”

AFL-CIO Government Affairs Director Jody Calemine wrote, “Beyond working moms and dads losing their jobs, it should be noted that the SNAP and Medicaid cuts hit working class children hard. Half of all children with working parents who never got a college degree are served by these programs. The bill’s purported ‘work requirements’ are in essence ‘paperwork requirements,’ needlessly complicating the process so that eligible people have a harder time obtaining benefits and simply give up. In other words, savings comes from using red tape to frustrate working people’s attempts to access the programs.

Faith Leaders
The Interfaith Alliance of North Dakota wrote, “Teachings across our faiths encourage us to help the least among us, care for those who are sick, shelter the homeless, welcome the stranger, and feed those who are hungry. Ideally, our federal budget reflects these priorities and our country’s shared moral values. That’s how programs like Medicaid and CHIP started – we sought to help those who needed a little help through our government. The “big, beautiful bill,” however, is cruel and immoral. It would have us turn our back on the teachings that guide us. We hope our elected officials can build a budget that reflects our values of decency and compassion – a budget that is indeed a moral document for all of us.”

Through the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio wrote, “As Pope Leo XIV recently stated, it is the responsibility of politicians to promote and protect the common good, including by working to overcome great wealth inequality. This bill does not answer this call. It takes from the poor to give to the wealthy. It provides tax breaks for some while undermining the social safety net for others through major cuts to nutrition assistance and Medicaid. It fails to protect families and children by promoting an enforcement-only approach to immigration and eroding access to legal protections.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America said, “Proposed adjustments to SNAP and hunger programs could cause many low-income households to lose essential food assistance without improving their employment prospects. We are concerned by proposals to limit the Thrifty Food Plan, and to force states to shoulder benefit costs, which would hinder the future financial prospects of many families. Local food pantries and meal programs—many operated by Lutheran congregations—have indicated they are already stretched beyond capacity without any changes. Rather than reducing food assistance, we should be strengthening these vital programs.”

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) said, “The bill passed by the House does not promote fiscal responsibility. Instead, it sacrifices the well-being of our neighbors on the altar of political expediency and economic inequity. Its economic impacts — delayed until after next year’s midterm elections — will reverberate for years, especially among those who rely on these essential services. As Presbyterians, our social witness policy affirms that balancing the federal budget on the backs of the poor while preserving tax advantages for the wealthy is morally indefensible. Access to food, health care, and shelter is not a privilege for the few, but a fundamental human right.”

Republicans
Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) said, “I did my homework on behalf of North Carolinians, and I cannot support this bill in its current form. It would result in tens of billions of dollars in lost funding for North Carolina, including our hospitals and rural communities. This will force the state to make painful decisions like eliminating Medicaid coverage for hundreds of thousands in the expansion population, and even reducing critical services for those in the traditional Medicaid population.”

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) said, “You cannot take away health care from working people. And unless this is changed going forward, that is what will happen in coming years.” <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/12/opinion/josh-hawley-dont-cut-medicaid.html"Earlier, Hawley also said the bill is “both morally wrong and politically suicidal.”

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
[email protected]

Dem-NPL Chair Statement ahead of Donald Trump’s Joint Address to Congress

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
March 4, 2025

FARGO, ND – After firing thousands of federal employees—including North Dakotans—with no regard to public safety, Donald Trump will deliver a joint address to Congress this evening.

Democratic-NPL Chair Adam Goldwyn said, “Trump’s only priority right now is to rig the economy for the ultra-rich and giant corporations by ripping away our health care and raising costs on working families. Whether it’s the price of eggs to housing, Trump’s policies are already making life more unaffordable for North Dakotans, and this will only get worse. Medicaid, which covers 2 out of 3 people in nursing homes, is first on the chopping block, and Elon Musk just called Social Security a ‘Ponzi scheme’—they’re going to steal from you and your grandma to pay for tax cuts for out-of-state billionaires.”

The Democratic-NPL encourages North Dakotans to contact Sen. Hoeven, Sen. Cramer, and Rep. Fedorchak to tell them to commit to protecting Social Security, fighting cost-raising tariffs, and ending the purge of federal workers.

Senator John Hoeven – 701-250-4618
Senator Kevin Cramer – 701-204-0500
Rep. Julie Fedorchak – 701-354-6700

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
[email protected]

Dem-NPL Chair urges North Dakotans to tell Fedorchak to reject House Budget Resolution

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 25, 2025

FARGO, ND – The House Republican budget resolution could be voted on as soon as this evening. To extend tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, this budget would bring about cuts to Medicaid, hot lunch programs, SNAP, and other agricultural-related programs, and would increase the national debt.

Democratic-NPL Chair Adam Goldwyn said, “The Republican budget robs from you, your children, your families, and your friends to give a massive handout to Elon Musk and the obscenely wealthy.

Democrats offered an amendment to protect Medicaid and House Republicans blocked it. A one trillion dollar cut to Medicaid would be devastating to North Dakota families. Over 112,000 North Dakotans are on Medicaid. Medicaid covers 2 out of 3 people in nursing homes; this would shutter rural nursing homes across our state. And even after they’ve gutted health care for seniors, kids, and American families to pay for these kickbacks to Trump billionaire backers, this budget will balloon our national debt by 4 trillion dollars. I called Rep. Fedorchak’s office today to ask her to vote no and not take health care away from us, our friends, our families, and our communities. I ask every citizen of this state to contact her as well.”

Fedorchak’s office can be contacted at (202) 225-2611 or https://fedorchak.house.gov/contact/email-me

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
(701) 566-0616
[email protected]

Trump Wrong on Wind Energy – ND Delegation must push back, says Dem-NPL Chair

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 7, 2025

FARGO, ND – Today, President-elect Donald Trump claimed that his administration would block any new wind turbines saying, “We’re gonna try and have a policy where no windmills are being built.”

North Dakota Democratic-NPL Chair Adam Goldwyn said, “He’s not even President yet, and Donald Trump is already putting the livelihoods of hundreds of North Dakotans at risk by demanding that the important work they do be completely stopped. Wind is the second largest electricity-generating source in North Dakota.

Wind turbine service technician is the fastest growing job in the United States, and North Dakota has the most wind energy-related jobs per capita in the country. Barring North Dakota landowners from building wind turbines would block them from potentially life-changing income and trample on their freedoms.

North Dakota’s congressional delegation, particularly new Energy and Commerce Committee member Julie Fedorchak, must defend these valued folks and the jobs they hold. The North Dakota congressional delegation, including Senators Hoeven and Cramer, like to talk a big game about having influence in the new administration. Now is the perfect time for them to prove it by publicly stepping up and loudly proclaiming that Donald Trump is wrong for wanting to destroy the lives of hundreds of North Dakotans.”

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
[email protected]

Dem-NPL Chair slams Hoeven and Cramer for voting against Right to IVF Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 13, 2024

FARGO – Today Senators John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer voted against the Right to IVF Act. This comes after the Alabama Supreme Court effectively outlawed IVF until the legislature amended its anti-abortion law.

North Dakota Democratic-NPL Chair Adam Goldwyn said, “The Democratic Party is the party of families and family values, and we’ve proven it again today. The Right to IVF Act would protect the freedom to access IVF nationwide, ensure North Dakota doctors have the freedom to provide IVF, and lower the cost for treatments. IVF has helped thousands of North Dakotans create the families they want and deserve. The Dobbs decision has had far-reaching ramifications that have made it harder and more dangerous to become pregnant. There is a nationwide effort to rip away access to reproductive health care—including contraception and IVF—if given the chance, and Hoeven and Cramer are complicit in that. That’s why we are asking all pro-family North Dakotans to support Katrina Christiansen for Senate and Trygve Hammer for House, to protect our fundamental rights from Republican big-government interference in our families.”

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
(701) 566-0616
[email protected]

Mystery disinformation texting campaign “blatant attempt to deceive North Dakotans” says Democratic-NPL

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 11, 2024

FARGO – Yesterday, many North Dakotans received a bizarre text message reading “thousands of Democrats are now pulling a Republican primary ballot and voting for Dr. Rick Becker. This is our JFK moment. Vote Rick Becker in the GOP primary tomorrow.” Today—Election Day—another text went out falsely claiming that GOP candidate Julie Fedorchak had dropped out of the race.

North Dakota Democratic-NPL Spokeswoman Laura Dronen said, “This blatant attempt to deceive North Dakotans is disgusting. We don’t know who sent these messages, but as we move to the general election we all must be vigilant. In our digital age rife with deep fakes and AI-generated images, disinformation and lies spread like wildfire.”

Two Years After Dobbs Decision Leak, Reproductive Freedom Steamrolled in ND

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 2, 2024

Fargo – Today is the second anniversary of the leak of the Supreme Court’s decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which opened the floodgates to Trump’s extreme abortion bans across the country.

Democratic-NPL Chair Adam Goldwyn remarked, “Two years ago today, women across North Dakota learned that our trigger law would lead to a total abortion ban. Republican lawmakers are steamrolling reproductive freedom here. Drew Wrigley wants to know if you or a loved one have gone out of state to seek an abortion. Rick Becker and Julie Fedorchak want to take this national and rip away the rights of every woman in America. Some in the NDGOP even want to charge women with murder. Our Democratic NPL candidates want to restore and protect reproductive freedom and health privacy. Merrill Piepkorn, Katrina Christiansen, and Trygve Hammer believe medical decisions should be between patients and doctors, not politicians and their constituents.”

Dem-NPL Chair emphasizes full support of Trygve Hammer for U.S. House

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 9, 2024

FARGO – At the end of the filing deadline yesterday there were seven total candidates for running in the June 11 primary for the U.S. House—five on the Republican side and two on the Democratic-NPL ticket.

“After a unifying convention, Democrats stand strong with our endorsed candidates. We want to quash any notion that we support anyone other than Trygve Hammer. Trygve represents what is best about our Peace Garden State: he served our country in uniform, worked in the oil fields, and taught in our rural schools. He is also right on the issues: he is THE pro-choice, pro-union, pro-democracy candidate in this race. I am casting my vote in the June 11th primary and the November 5th general elections for Trygve, and I encourage not just every Democrat, but every Republican and independent who is tired of the anger and dysfunction in our politics to join me,” affirmed Democratic-NPL Chair Adam Goldwyn.

Originally from Velva, Hammer served as a helicopter pilot, a forward air controller, a Military attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Rome, and as an instructor and company officer at the U.S. Naval Academy. He deployed to Iraq in 2003 as an infantry officer and forward air controller. In 2010, he retired from the Marine Corps Reserve as a major.

In his civilian life, Hammer taught 7-12 grade science in Granville, worked as roughneck on oil rigs in the Bakken, and currently is a counselor for Job Corps in Minot.

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
(701) 566-0616
[email protected]

Dem-NPL Endorses Trygve Hammer for U.S. House

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 6, 2024

FARGO – The North Dakota Democratic-NPL has endorsed Trygve Hammer for the U.S. House.

“I promised you I would be back,” Hammer said of his previous run for Public Service Commissioner. Acknowledging dismissive pundits, who said Hammer can’t win because he is just a “North Dakota Democrat,” Hammer quipped, “D*** right I’m a North Dakota Democrat!”

Hammer continued, “Patriotism is more than just a flag pin on a lapel, and liberty is more than just a catch phrase.”

“Trygve Hammer is no stranger to hard work,” said Logan Longtin, who nominated Hammer.

Originally from Velva, Hammer served as a helicopter pilot, a forward air controller, a Military attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Rome, and as an instructor and company officer at the U.S. Naval Academy. He deployed to Iraq in 2003 as an infantry officer and forward air controller. In 2010, he retired from the Marine Corps Reserve as a major.

In his civilian life, Hammer taught 7-12 grade science in Granville, worked as roughneck on oil rigs in the Bakken, and currently is a counselor for Job Corps in Minot.

Hammer ended his riveting acceptance speech with, “I am a North Dakota Democrat, and I plan to win.”

When Chair Adam Goldwyn called for other nominations, a delegate excited about Hammer’s remarks jokingly shouted, “Who would dare!”

CONTACT:
Laura Dronen
Communications Director
(701) 566-0616
[email protected]