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Transparency needed to reduce health costs

Healthcare prices are out of control. The average cost of a three-day hospital stay in the United States now exceeds $30,000. A simple MRI can cost $300 in one facility, or $3,000 in another – sometimes in the same city. For working families and employers, these numbers are not abstractions. They can mean the difference between financial security and debt. Over the past two decades, hospitals have effectively consolidated into powerful, regional monopolies – ”nonprofits” with billions in surpluses. All the while, they’ve expanded with enormous government subsidies – ...

ND’s justice system locks citizens out of courts

North Dakota’s Constitution guarantees openness. Article I, Section 9 promises that “all courts shall be open.” Article XI, Section 6 declares that “all records of public or governmental bodies … shall be public records, open and accessible for inspection.” Those words should ensure every citizen equal access to the justice system. In practice, however, North Dakota has built a two-tier court system, one for attorneys and government users, and one for the public that pays for it. Attorneys and state agencies use Tyler Technologies’ Enterprise Justice platform ...

ND voters deserve fairness, not division

In 2022, I was honored to be elected by the people of District 15 to serve in the North Dakota State Senate. Representing my community was one of the greatest privileges of my life, and I worked hard to uphold the trust voters placed in me. My four-year term was cut short — not by the ...

Voting Rights Act became law 65 years ago

August 2025 marks 65 years since the Voting Rights Act came into law and changed the course of history in communities of interest like tribes. For the first time, we had federal protections that ensured we could participate fully in elections and choose our own representatives. This is how I was elected. Under the Voting Rights Act, our tribal nations were protected from barriers that for generations diluted our votes and silenced our voices. It gave us the ability to elect people who understand our communities, our challenges, and our vision for the future. “Though we fall ...

Congress should not wreak havoc on public lands

As early as this week, the House of Representatives could vote on a plan that takes away the power of North Dakotans, undermines a system of balanced multiple use, and throws public lands management into chaos. You only need to look back at the past month to know how popular public lands are in this country. Proposals in Congress to sell them off were soundly defeated after millions of public lands users – especially hunters and anglers – spoke up. What Congress is attempting to do now – using a destructive, rarely used tool called the Congressional Review Act (CRA) – could ...

Energy future depends on building backbone

In towns across America, the lights still turn on each morning thanks to a grid built decades ago, some of it dating back to the 1950s. But that aging infrastructure, once the envy of the world, is now holding us back. If the United States is serious about reshoring manufacturing, revitalizing ...