Plain Talk

Forum Communications Co.
Forum Communications Co.
  • 3.8 (85)
  • Politics
  • Updated Daily

Plain Talk is a podcast hosted by Rob Port and Chad Oban focusing on political news and current events in North Dakota. Port is a columnist for the Forum News Service published in papers including the Fargo Forum, Grand Forks Herald, Jamestown Sun, and the Dickinson Press. Oban is a long-time political consultant.

  1. 1d ago ·  Video

    726: 'We are defending people who don't deserve to be defended' (Video)

    On this Plain Talk, recorded live from TedXFargo, me and co-host Chad Oban talked about the rationalizations and excuses we make for ourselves in politics. Which also just happened to be the subject of my talk at the event. The decisions we're making politically — who we vote for, who we give money to, who we oppose — are what's driving what's happening to our country. But when things go poorly, we like to blame others. The lobbyists. The billionaires. The media. I'll not defend those things, but we also have to look in the mirror. We have to point the finger at ourselves. We are defending people who don't deserve a defense. We are attacking people who don't deserve to be attacked.  Also on this episode, we interviewed Jen Burgard, founder and executive director of Haven, a Fargo-based nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting families navigating pregnancy or infant loss. Burgard was also a speaker at TedXFargo, and talked about her group's efforts to guide families through loss and grief. She also discussed the way her organization was victimized by a woman who faked a pregnancy, and the loss of an infant, and embezzled a significant amount of money, something Burgard chronicled in her blog False Hope. That incident nearly ended Haven, but Burgard kept it alive. "I decided that if this organization was going to fail, it wasn't going to be because of her," she said. "That's it. If it fails, it fails. Just like any business, right? Sometimes things don't work out. But it was not going to be because of her." If you want to participate in Plain Talk, just give us a call or text at 701-587-3141. It's super easy — leave your message, tell us your name and where you're from, and we might feature it on an upcoming episode. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts. #northdakota #tedxfargo

  2. 1d ago

    726: 'We are defending people who don't deserve to be defended'

    On this Plain Talk, recorded live from TedXFargo, me and co-host Chad Oban talked about the rationalizations and excuses we make for ourselves in politics. Which also just happened to be the subject of my talk at the event. The decisions we're making politically — who we vote for, who we give money to, who we oppose — are what's driving what's happening to our country. But when things go poorly, we like to blame others. The lobbyists. The billionaires. The media. I'll not defend those things, but we also have to look in the mirror. We have to point the finger at ourselves. We are defending people who don't deserve a defense. We are attacking people who don't deserve to be attacked. Also on this episode, we interviewed Jen Burgard, founder and executive director of Haven, a Fargo-based nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting families navigating pregnancy or infant loss. Burgard was also a speaker at TedXFargo, and talked about her group's efforts to guide families through loss and grief. She also discussed the way her organization was victimized by a woman who faked a pregnancy, and the loss of an infant, and embezzled a significant amount of money, something Burgard chronicled in her blog False Hope. That incident nearly ended Haven, but Burgard kept it alive. "I decided that if this organization was going to fail, it wasn't going to be because of her," she said. "That's it. If it fails, it fails. Just like any business, right? Sometimes things don't work out. But it was not going to be because of her." If you want to participate in Plain Talk, just give us a call or text at 701-587-3141. It's super easy — leave your message, tell us your name and where you're from, and we might feature it on an upcoming episode. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts or use one of the links below. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Pocket Casts | Episode Archive

  3. 4d ago ·  Video

    'Somebody has to lose, and nobody wants to lose' (REPLAY) (Video)

    While Rob and Chad are at TEDxFargo this week, we're revisiting one of our most talked-about conversations. North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread joins Plain Talk to discuss the future of health insurance subsidies, what happens if Congress fails to extend them, and why rising healthcare costs remain one of the biggest challenges facing families in North Dakota and across the country. He also shares why he believes lawmakers need to act now and what long-term reforms could help bring costs under control. Rob and Chad also discuss ongoing issues at the North Dakota Commerce Department, the federal government shutdown, and other political headlines from around the state and nation. We'll be back next week with new episodes from TEDxFargo.

  4. 4d ago

    'Somebody has to lose, and nobody wants to lose' (REPLAY)

    While Rob and Chad are at TEDxFargo this week, we're revisiting one of our most talked-about conversations. North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread joins Plain Talk to discuss the future of health insurance subsidies, what happens if Congress fails to extend them, and why rising healthcare costs remain one of the biggest challenges facing families in North Dakota and across the country. He also shares why he believes lawmakers need to act now and what long-term reforms could help bring costs under control. Rob and Chad also discuss ongoing issues at the North Dakota Commerce Department, the federal government shutdown, and other political headlines from around the state and nation. We'll be back next week with new episodes from TEDxFargo.

  5. Jul 24 ·  Video

    724: 'A healer instead of just a technician' (Video)

    The North Dakota Democratic-NPL had a strong recruitment season for legislative candidates. Among them is Dr. Chris Tiongson, a pediatrician seeking a seat in the state House of Representatives in Fargo-area District 41. Running for elected office is a daunting task. It's a lot of work and it comes with a public spotlight, and the public can be cruel, so why did Tiongson decide to take time away from his medical practice to run? "As I've seen over the years, almost 30 years in pediatrics now, there are so many things that are happening outside the exam room that parents and families really don't have control over that affect their health," he told us on this episode of Plain Talk. "Like pollution, poverty, housing insecurity, food insecurity, racism, bullying, all that kind of stuff. And I felt like I can have a greater impact helping the health of our community working on public policy as opposed to just one patient at a time in the exam room or one patient at a time in a in a hospital bed." But Tiongson says he understand the push and pull of governance, and that there "are costs to every sort of decision that you make." "What makes difficult decisions is when there are competing virtues that are both good, like being fiscally responsible as a government and providing for basic needs for people who need them," he told us. Also on this episode, guest co-host Rep. Zac Ista and I discuss the "brutal gauntlet" first-time candidates face as they enter the political arena and how many more of them will need to brave it as term limits for state lawmakers kick in. We also discuss Gov. Kelly Armstrong's decision to vote against the school meals constitutional amendment that will appear on the November ballot, despite backing similar statutory language during a special legislative session earlier this year, as well as the upcoming TedX event in Fargo next week. Plain Talk's schedule will be distrupted a bit next week. I'm speaking at the TedX event, but we'll also be recording an episode of the show from the venue in Fargo. If you want to participate in Plain Talk, just give us a call or text at 701-587-3141. It's super easy — leave your message, tell us your name and where you're from, and we might feature it on an upcoming episode. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts or use one of the links below. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Pocket Casts | Episode Archive

  6. Jul 24

    724: 'A healer instead of just a technician'

    The North Dakota Democratic-NPL had a strong recruitment season for legislative candidates. Among them is Dr. Chris Tiongson, a pediatrician seeking a seat in the state House of Representatives in Fargo-area District 41. Running for elected office is a daunting task. It's a lot of work and it comes with a public spotlight, and the public can be cruel, so why did Tiongson decide to take time away from his medical practice to run? "As I've seen over the years, almost 30 years in pediatrics now, there are so many things that are happening outside the exam room that parents and families really don't have control over that affect their health," he told us on this episode of Plain Talk. "Like pollution, poverty, housing insecurity, food insecurity, racism, bullying, all that kind of stuff. And I felt like I can have a greater impact helping the health of our community working on public policy as opposed to just one patient at a time in the exam room or one patient at a time in a in a hospital bed." But Tiongson says he understand the push and pull of governance, and that there "are costs to every sort of decision that you make." "What makes difficult decisions is when there are competing virtues that are both good, like being fiscally responsible as a government and providing for basic needs for people who need them," he told us. Also on this episode, guest co-host Rep. Zac Ista and I discuss the "brutal gauntlet" first-time candidates face as they enter the political arena and how many more of them will need to brave it as term limits for state lawmakers kick in. We also discuss Gov. Kelly Armstrong's decision to vote against the school meals constitutional amendment that will appear on the November ballot, despite backing similar statutory language during a special legislative session earlier this year, as well as the upcoming TedX event in Fargo next week. Plain Talk's schedule will be distrupted a bit next week. I'm speaking at the TedX event, but we'll also be recording an episode of the show from the venue in Fargo. If you want to participate in Plain Talk, just give us a call or text at 701-587-3141. It's super easy — leave your message, tell us your name and where you're from, and we might feature it on an upcoming episode. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts or use one of the links below. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Pocket Casts | Episode Archive

  7. Jul 22 ·  Video

    723: The young people want to rent, not own (Video)

    Housing issues may be among the most complicated and important issues policymakers face. In order for local economies to grow, they need workers, and those workers need places to live. And they can't just be any old place. They need to be places they can afford to live, and want to live. But that's not easy. A home or apartment building built today might stand for a century or more, but the housing expectations of the public shift from generation to generation. That's one point Adrian Cummings, president of the Grand Forks-based Forx Builders Assocation, made on this episode of Plain Talk. He pointed out that, while North Dakota isn't yet a state where most people rent, rather than own, their homes, we're moving in that direction, particularly among younger generations. Where older generations prioritized the traditional "white picket fence" dream of owning a single-family home, both as a place to live and a way to secure an asset that can provide financial security for later in their lives, younger generations invest for their future differently, and are trending toward eschewing the burdens of homeownership in favor of renting. "I think that, for a long time, your home was your investment policy, and it was your retirement policy, for particularly people even older than my parents," he said. "I think that there are other investment opportunities available to young professionals where they don't feel as large of a rush to get into a home as a retirement asset because they have other options." Cummings talked about the workforce and economic challenges builders are facing, and the struggle to build affordable -- he prefers the term "attainable" -- housing, and how he feels the state can help. He thinks a Bank of North Dakota program that facilitates the financing of development would go a long way to help, since one of the biggest friction points to development now is how cost-intensive it is. Also on this episode, guest co-host Rep. Zac Ista and I discuss President Donald Trump's renewed hostilities toward Canada and their potential impacts on North Dakota, and we respond to listener feedback. If you want to participate in Plain Talk, just give us a call or text at 701-587-3141. It's super easy — leave your message, tell us your name and where you're from, and we might feature it on an upcoming episode. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts or use one of the links below. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Pocket Casts | Episode Archive

  8. Jul 22

    723: The young people want to rent, not own

    Housing issues may be among the most complicated and important issues policymakers face. In order for local economies to grow, they need workers, and those workers need places to live. And they can't just be any old place. They need to be places they can afford to live, and want to live. But that's not easy. A home or apartment building built today might stand for a century or more, but the housing expectations of the public shift from generation to generation. That's one point Adrian Cummings, president of the Grand Forks-based Forx Builders Assocation, made on this episode of Plain Talk. He pointed out that, while North Dakota isn't yet a state where most people rent, rather than own, their homes, we're moving in that direction, particularly among younger generations. Where older generations prioritized the traditional "white picket fence" dream of owning a single-family home, both as a place to live and a way to secure an asset that can provide financial security for later in their lives, younger generations invest for their future differently, and are trending toward eschewing the burdens of homeownership in favor of renting. "I think that, for a long time, your home was your investment policy, and it was your retirement policy, for particularly people even older than my parents," he said. "I think that there are other investment opportunities available to young professionals where they don't feel as large of a rush to get into a home as a retirement asset because they have other options." Cummings talked about the workforce and economic challenges builders are facing, and the struggle to build affordable -- he prefers the term "attainable" -- housing, and how he feels the state can help. He thinks a Bank of North Dakota program that facilitates the financing of development would go a long way to help, since one of the biggest friction points to development now is how cost-intensive it is. Also on this episode, guest co-host Rep. Zac Ista and I discuss President Donald Trump's renewed hostilities toward Canada and their potential impacts on North Dakota, and we respond to listener feedback. If you want to participate in Plain Talk, just give us a call or text at 701-587-3141. It's super easy — leave your message, tell us your name and where you're from, and we might feature it on an upcoming episode. To subscribe to Plain Talk, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts or use one of the links below. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Pocket Casts | Episode Archive

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3.8
out of 5
85 Ratings

About

Plain Talk is a podcast hosted by Rob Port and Chad Oban focusing on political news and current events in North Dakota. Port is a columnist for the Forum News Service published in papers including the Fargo Forum, Grand Forks Herald, Jamestown Sun, and the Dickinson Press. Oban is a long-time political consultant.

Information

  • Channel
    Forum Communications Co.
  • Creator
    Forum Communications Co.
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    926
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    ©2026 Forum Communications Co.
  • Show Website
    Plain Talk

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