Port: For North Dakota’s legislative leaders, a lesson from Washington
MINOT, N.D. — If we were to do a ranking of the most Trump-toadying Republicans, Rep. Kevin McCarthy would have to be near the top. Yet, as I write this, McCarthy is fighting the most Trump-aligned of his caucus members to become speaker of the house.
There’s a lesson there for North Dakota’s legislative leaders.
In 2016, as disgraced former president Donald Trump won one Republican primary after another, McCarthy was caught on tape telling colleagues that he thought maybe the man was on Vladimir Putin’s payroll . But when Trump won the presidency, McCarthy didn’t allow these qualms to be an obstacle to a close relationship with the man. McCarthy picked out Trump’s favorite Starburst flavors for him . Trump called him “my Kevin.”
The overtures of ownership in that endearment shouldn’t be lost on us.
