{"id":2284403,"date":"2024-06-27T06:45:02","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T10:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doug-burgum-desperately-needs-better-vetting\/"},"modified":"2024-06-27T06:50:23","modified_gmt":"2024-06-27T10:50:23","slug":"doug-burgum-desperately-needs-better-vetting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doug-burgum-desperately-needs-better-vetting\/","title":{"rendered":"Doug Burgum Desperately Needs Better Vetting"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdoug-burgum-desperately-needs-better-vetting%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2284403&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The text \u2063discusses concerns surrounding North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, who \u2064is considered a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fla-gov-ron-desantis-becoming-major-voice-for-gop\/\" title=\"Fla. Gov. Ron DeSantis becoming major voice for GOP\">potential vice presidential pick<\/a>\u200b for Donald Trump. Despite Burgum&#8217;s likeable public persona and success story, including selling his company \u2064to Microsoft for $1.1 billion, there are\u200b reservations about the thoroughness of his vetting process, which appears superficial to\u200b some critics. Additionally, there \u2064is disquiet about Burgum&#8217;s\u200b actions during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly his promotion of a tracking app in North Dakota, which may\u200c <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-jim-jordan-gives-ultimatum-on-the-upcoming-electoral-college-showdown-video\/\" title=\"WATCH: Jim Jordan Gives Ultimatum On The Upcoming Electoral College Showdown (VIDEO)\">raise concerns<\/a> about surveillance.<\/p>\n<p>Burgum&#8217;s independent political \u200capproach is also highlighted. He\u2062 has eschewed traditional endorsement processes \u2064at state Republican conventions, opting instead to go directly to the primary\u2014a move that some see as bypassing grassroots political processes and relying heavily on media and advertising.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, despite Trump&#8217;s strong support in North Dakota, Burgamer was notably \u2062not chosen as the delegation chair for the state at the Republican National Convention, indicating possible internal reservations about his alignment\u200d with party values or his leadership style. \u200bThis \u2064choice \u200dreflects ongoing questions about his\u2064 fit for higher national office.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>I\u00a0haven\u2019t seen anyone asking\u00a0serious\u00a0questions about North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. Instead, those in charge of vetting Donald Trump\u2019s potential vice presidential pick seem to be relying\u00a0on voters\u2019 impressions of\u00a0an <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/16\/unlike-other-trump-vp-frontrunners-doug-burgum-radiates-likeability\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">affable Midwest guy<\/a>.\u00a0But some North Dakotans who know better can\u2019t stand the thought of Bill Gates\u2019 friend anywhere near the White House.<\/p>\n<p>To be fair, Burgum, a top\u00a0surrogate\u00a0for Trump, has a super cool self-made-man story. Chimney sweep, bet the farm and won, worked his way up and became friends with his boss at Microsoft, sold his company for $1.1 billion and stayed on to help things along. <\/p>\n<p>The problem is with the vetting. <\/p>\n<p>It\u00a0would be nice\u00a0to have confidence\u00a0that\u00a0the\u00a0vetting went beyond mere\u00a0Wiki searches and phone\u00a0calls to people who have been employed by the guy. <\/p>\n<p>He seems folksy. Genuine. He wore jeans to his inauguration and\u00a0emceed\u00a0the event himself like a Ted Talk. <\/p>\n<h2>Burgum\u2019s Record During Covid<\/h2>\n<p>But why doesn\u2019t anyone ask how he really did in his state during Covid? South Dakota and Florida governors\u2019 performances\u00a0were certainly pored over, but Burgum gets a pass.<\/p>\n<p>He financed and promoted a <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/WXp1x\">tracking app<\/a> for North Dakotans with Covid.\u00a0One month after the Covid panic hit the state, Burgum announced a partnership with the\u00a0North Dakota Department of Health\u00a0and an in-state\u00a0developer known for\u00a0creating\u00a0the Bison Tracker app. He\u00a0repeatedly\u00a0pushed the people of his state to use\u00a0Care19, an app that \u201cmore efficiently and effectively\u201d identified people who might have been in contact with others who had tested positive.<\/p>\n<p>I\u00a0doubt\u00a0President Trump would be thrilled\u00a0by these surveillance efforts.<\/p>\n<h2>Burgum\u2019s Lack of Endorsement<\/h2>\n<p>Burgum has always taken his own path. He\u2019s\u00a0definitely his\u00a0own man. He poured copious amounts of dollars into the media in the state, twice crafting his narrative and building his brand,\u00a0and it worked.\u00a0When bombarded with his messaging, North Dakotans took a chance on him\u00a0twice. <\/p>\n<p>Burgum\u00a0is about to complete his second two-year term\u00a0and is eligible to run for a final term, but\u00a0he announced early in the cycle\u00a0he is not running again as governor.<\/p>\n<p>Interestingly, he was never endorsed at a single North Dakota Republican convention. Few have asked why.\u00a0He not once but twice completely skipped the regular process of being nominated by his party at the state convention, opting instead to leap right to the primary. This is seen as an affront to Republicans who believe attending a convention is their opportunity to vet their candidates in person. It\u2019s the process as it is <em>meant<\/em> to be \u2014 and one could argue that by going right to the primary, you are signaling that money and advertising are more important than the constituents you serve.<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u00a0consistently\u00a0gets over 60 percent of the vote\u00a0in North Dakota. But,\u00a0tellingly, Burgum was\u00a0not chosen as the delegation chair from North Dakota for the Republican National Convention in July.\u00a0It is longstanding tradition that with convention delegations, the highest-ranking Republican is the individual voted <em>by the delegation<\/em> to be the delegation chair and the one to have the honor of being the face of \u201croll call\u201d for your state on television.<\/p>\n<p>State convention voters not only relegated\u00a0Burgum\u00a0to alternate status and seating at the convention,\u00a0but two U.S. senators and the state\u2019s single congressman preceded him on the alternate list.\u00a0He cannot be elected delegate chair by the delegation if he\u2019s not a delegate. <\/p>\n<p>Yes,\u00a0a sitting governor and former presidential candidate is not elected as a delegate by his own party to the 2024 national convention \u2014 and there is only silence on the matter.\u00a0This shows that Burgum is more popular with people who know little about him than the grassroots of the party in his home state.<\/p>\n<h2>Foreign Influence<\/h2>\n<p>One of the most troubling\u00a0lapses of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/usc-scandal-and-harris-dark-arts-strategists-obstacles-to-la-mayor-front-runner\/\" title=\"USC scandal and Harris 'dark arts' strategists obstacles to LA mayor front-runner\">vice presidential vetting process<\/a>\u00a0is\u00a0Burgum\u2019s\u00a0allowing\u00a0foreign influence in North Dakota. <\/p>\n<p>Burgum was in favor of placing a Chinese-owned wet corn milling plant (Fufeng) just 12 miles\u00a0away from a sensitive and strategically important North Dakota Air Force base in 2022. <\/p>\n<p>Then\u00a0he ran for president of the United States.\u00a0He\u00a0was all in for the economic development gains for the state until the political winds changed. Then he joined the citizens of Grand Forks and the rest of the state in calling for more vigilance at the local level. <\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s\u00a0still\u00a0all-in on the eminent-domain-for-private-gain scheme of piping other states\u2019 carbon dioxide emissions\u00a0deep into the North Dakota soil.\u00a0We\u2019re\u00a0used to pipelines here, but CO2 at 2,183 psi\u00a0in a 24-inch diameter pipe traveling 2,500 miles \u2014 built by a company new to such pipelines \u2014 is an asphyxiant of mammoth proportions, to say nothing of private property rights.  <\/p>\n<p>Economic opportunities appear to cloud\u00a0his\u00a0judgment on security\u00a0and safety.<\/p>\n<p>There are far more questions\u00a0that need to be answered. <\/p>\n<p>North Dakotans want\u00a0people to make their own decisions, but we should do some on-the-ground investigation before jumping\u00a0on the\u00a0Burgum\u00a0bandwagon.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Lori Hinz lives in North Dakota.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>No one is rigorously questioning North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum as Donald Trump&#8217;s potential vice presidential choice. The vetting process appears to depend on his image as a likable Midwesterner. However, some North Dakotans strongly oppose the idea of Bill Gates&#8217; associate nearing the White House<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3261,"featured_media":2284404,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/2048px-Doug_Burgum_53299093738-e1719437472280.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[32286,32984,32983,32985,32982],"class_list":["post-2284403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-doug-burgum","tag-leadership-qualities","tag-political-candidates","tag-public-scrutiny","tag-vetting-process"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/2048px-Doug_Burgum_53299093738-e1719437472280.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3261"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2284403"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284403\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2284404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2284403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2284403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2284403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}