North Dakota 2.0 Should Be Dismissed As Bad Data

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Written By:
Rob Port

Jun 21, 2012
12:42pm

Over the last year or so Obama-appointed USDA Rural Development Director (and rising star in the state Democrat party) Jasper Schneider has been touring the state holding meetings and polling citizens about their policy preferences.

This is so far outside the job description of Mr. Schneider’s office that in a perfect world he would be censured, not applauded, for this effort. But North Dakota’s left-leaning media is, of course, eating it up.

“North Dakota legislators and other policymakers would do well to take a close look at statistical data compiled in “North Dakota 2.0,” a study by USDA Rural Development,” writes the fawning Fargo Forum in an editorial. “The result is an impressive compilation of new data that reflects the changing economy and provide insights into how North Dakotans view the change.”

If that statement were true, it might make sense to pay attention to the North Dakota 2.0 data, but the problem is that we can’t trust the data, and this quote from a Grand Forks Herald report on the survey tells us why:

The 12-city tour follows a survey format, with predetermined questions and multiple-choice answers. Participants use electronic devices to submit their answers, which are calculated almost instantly on a video screen.

This survey doesn’t represent the spontaneous, unprompted opinions of North Dakota residents. It represents citizens picking only from the answers provided to them.

Given that Schneider, who ran this charade, is a committed leftist and ambitious Democrat politician (check out his smiling face featured prominently on the North Dakota 2.0 website), that the results are skewed is a given.

We have a governor we elect every four years. We have a legislature that we can change every two years. We have all manner of local elected officials. These are the leaders of North Dakota, not some federally-appointed bureaucrat and a bunch of myopic newspaper editors who like his schtick.