Back From Hiatus
ND NEWS
I've finally returned from my back and forth travel between Fargo and Omaha. As some of you know I'm going to dental school there next fall and got a chance to check out the city, found a place to live, and toured Offutt Air Force Base just south of the city.
Anyways, I missed out on blogging on some big stories out of North Dakota, but it looks like Rob did an excellent job covering the stories. I won't rehash everything all over again but I did want to get in a few quick takes.
BRAC List:
What a huge range of emotions in the state. Elation in Minot, despair in Grand Forks.
Minot, the smallest town with the largest base, absolutely needed to survive this round of cuts and they did. With many other northern border bases either shut down completely (i.e. Ellsworth in Rapid City) or downsized considerably (see Grand Forks below), Minot AFB is in great position to survive future cuts as well.
Basically there was no news for Fargo's Air Guard base. They knew the old F-16's were on the way out and that a new mission awaited the "Hooligans." BRAC only confirmed that.
And then there is Grand Forks AFB, set to lose 80% of its active personnel and 350+ civilian jobs---ouch. They now turn their attention on escaping the BRAC choke-hold once again. They have done it before (1995) and city leaders feel that they can do it again. I remain much more skeptical.
Hoeven Top Governor in Nation:
No surprise there. It seems every time I open a newspaper and see his name, nothing but good news seems to follow. He runs a tight ship over in Bismarck and has avoided almost any turbulence with the North Dakota taxpayers over 4+ years.
Since the Democrats took control of our Senate seats nearly 20 years ago, there has never been a potential challenger to the Democratic dynasty like the one Hoeven presents. Most of you know that he is seriously considering a run against Kent Conrad (D-ND) next year. As it stands now, he has all of the momentum in the world to pull off the upset. That and plenty of support (read: money) from GOPers on the national level. He hasn't announced anything yet, but behind the scenes he is wisely building the base for a successful run if he chooses to do so. Let's hope he does. Let's hope he wins.
I've finally returned from my back and forth travel between Fargo and Omaha. As some of you know I'm going to dental school there next fall and got a chance to check out the city, found a place to live, and toured Offutt Air Force Base just south of the city.
Anyways, I missed out on blogging on some big stories out of North Dakota, but it looks like Rob did an excellent job covering the stories. I won't rehash everything all over again but I did want to get in a few quick takes.
BRAC List:
What a huge range of emotions in the state. Elation in Minot, despair in Grand Forks.
Minot, the smallest town with the largest base, absolutely needed to survive this round of cuts and they did. With many other northern border bases either shut down completely (i.e. Ellsworth in Rapid City) or downsized considerably (see Grand Forks below), Minot AFB is in great position to survive future cuts as well.
Basically there was no news for Fargo's Air Guard base. They knew the old F-16's were on the way out and that a new mission awaited the "Hooligans." BRAC only confirmed that.
And then there is Grand Forks AFB, set to lose 80% of its active personnel and 350+ civilian jobs---ouch. They now turn their attention on escaping the BRAC choke-hold once again. They have done it before (1995) and city leaders feel that they can do it again. I remain much more skeptical.
Hoeven Top Governor in Nation:
No surprise there. It seems every time I open a newspaper and see his name, nothing but good news seems to follow. He runs a tight ship over in Bismarck and has avoided almost any turbulence with the North Dakota taxpayers over 4+ years.
Since the Democrats took control of our Senate seats nearly 20 years ago, there has never been a potential challenger to the Democratic dynasty like the one Hoeven presents. Most of you know that he is seriously considering a run against Kent Conrad (D-ND) next year. As it stands now, he has all of the momentum in the world to pull off the upset. That and plenty of support (read: money) from GOPers on the national level. He hasn't announced anything yet, but behind the scenes he is wisely building the base for a successful run if he chooses to do so. Let's hope he does. Let's hope he wins.
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