Say Anything Blog

Bismarck Tribune - Ask Rep. Mark Dosch, R-Bismarck, about his recent trip to the tropical island of Antigua and he will tell you it could mean big things for North Dakota's economy, including hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue from Internet poker.

But to Democrats, the trip is an example of why campaign finance laws need to be changed. . . .

Dosch said they met with Antiguan officials about Internet poker, but the majority of the time was spent with the country's ministers of finance, tourism, education and agriculture.

"We hoped that we would have some R and R time, but as it turned out they had us going constantly,"Dosch said.

Antigua is a choice location for Internet gambling locations because they are not legal in the United States. The legislators who took the trip are interested in making North Dakota a place where Internet poker can be regulated, if the federal government allows it.

Rep. Steve Zaiser, D-Fargo, said he has already introduced a bill that will require disclosure of trips.

Current law requires legislators to disclose gifts of $60 or more, but nothing requires trips to be disclosed if they are not provided by registered lobbyists.

"Where do you draw the line between a registered lobbyist and someone who has an interest in what is discussed?"Zaiser said.

Zaiser said it is "ludicrous"for a handful of state legislators to discuss trade issues with another country without some accountability or approval.

Approval? Why should any legislator have to get approval before talking to people who have interests in our state? And as for accountability, that bit of non-sense is premised on the idea that this trip was somehow a secret. It wasn't. The Antiguan government issued a press release. Kasper and company were set to announce their trip and the progress they made after going over issues with some people who stayed behind.

Unfortunately, before Kasper got a chance to follow through with these intentions, the story was reported in an innuendo-filled article in the Fargo Forum and seized upon by partisans more interested in casting aspersions for political gain than actually discussing the issues surrounding the trip.

Do I think Kasper could have handled the situation better? Yes. I think he should have announced this trip before his group left, if only to defend himself from Democrat sucker punches.

Do I think Kasper and his group did anything wrong with their trip to Antigua? Absolutely not. This was a perfectly acceptable trip and I applaud these politicians for taking the initiative.