There’s a dog that’s not barking in District 24
MINOT, N.D. — In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Adventure of Silver Blaze,” everyone’s favorite Victorian-era detective solves the case of the missing racehorse by noting “the curious incident of the dog in the night-time.”
What did the dog do in the night? It didn’t bark.
In District 24, home to the latest front in the NDGOP’s civil war between the self-styled conservative paragons of the Bastiat Caucus and the party’s successful moderate majority, there’s a dog that’s not barking.
The Bastiats are aiming to recall state Rep. Dwight Kiefert.
The recall campaign’s organizers – led by the treasurer of the District 24 NDGOP – claim that it’s about his “failing to meet the standards of a Republican representing District 24.” A more likely explanation is that they’re ticked about Kiefert voting to expel disgraced former lawmaker (and Bastiat Caucus member) Luke Simons over accusations of sexual harassment. The guy who is leading the recall campaign, who claims unconvincingly that it’s not affiliated with the Bastiats, also led an effort to censure Kiefert, and force his resignation, over the Simons vote earlier this year.
That’s certainly what Kiefert thinks is motivating them. He said as much during a recent interview with me on Plain Talk Live, calling the recall campaign “dishonest and underhanded” and motivated by revenge for Simons.
