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North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum may not be the most well-known candidate in the GOP presidential field, but he’s working to change that. Burgum’s campaign has spent more than $5 million on ads since he jumped into the race last month, outspending every other campaign or outside group on the airwaves during that time.
Burgum sat down with “Meet the Press” in Fargo, N.D., to talk about his White House run. Here are some of the takeaways:
On Trump: Asked if he would do business with former President Donald Trump, Burgum, a former software executive, said, “I don’t think so,” explaining: “I just think that it’s important that you’re judged by the company you keep.”
On the culture wars: “Where I’m at is I believe in states’ rights, and I believe that the president of the United States has got a defined set of things they’re supposed to work on, and it’s not every culture war topic. These are things that are left to the state. As president, things that you’re supposed to focus on, things like the economy, like energy policy, which is completely tied to national security, and part of national security is the border.”
On China: “We are in a cold war in China, we just won’t admit it,” Burgum said, later describing Chinese President Xi Jinping as a “brutal dictator.”
On abortion: “I support the Dobbs decision, and this is the decision that should be left to the states. And what’s going to pass in North Dakota is not ever going to pass in California and New York, and wouldn’t even pass in the state of Minnesota. I — that’s why I’m on the record saying that I would not sign a federal abortion ban.”
On picking Supreme Court justices: Burgum noted his work vetting own judicial appointees in North Dakota and said, “And we don’t have litmus tests. We try to find the people that are most qualified to do the job, and I think that, again, if there is any kind of litmus test, it’s are they going to follow the Constitution and follow the law, and not legislate from the bench?”
On Ukraine: “We have to win the war in Ukraine.”
Check out the full interview here.
In other campaign news…
Party time: NBC News’ Matt Dixon details how DeSantis’ presidential bid is giving new energy to the Florida Democratic Party, which has struggled in recent election cycles.
Trump travels: Roger Stone joined Trump on his plane to Las Vegas over the weekend, NBC News’ Vaughn Hillyard reports. Trump also chatted with Stone and actors Mel Gibson and Mark Wahlberg at a mixed martial arts event in Vegas, per Hillyard and NBC’s Jake Traylor.
Taking on Trump: A new group tied to the conservative Club for Growth is launching a $3.6 million ad buy hitting Trumpin Iowa and South Carolina, per Politico.
All eyes on Iowa: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds called a special session starting this week to pass new abortion restrictions. Reynolds has been in the spotlight as presidential hopefuls have traveled to the early caucus state. And though she has said she won’t endorse in the primary, the Trump team believes she is favoring DeSantis, per the New York Times.
Backing Biden: New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in a podcast interview that she will support Biden’s re-election bid.
Abortion politics: Democrats are eager to run on the abortion issue, and they are already targeting some likely GOP Senate candidates on the issue, even though those candidates aren’t officially running yet, NBC’s Adam Edelman reports.
Rolling the dice: Republican Sam Brown announced Monday that he is running against Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen, and he quickly earned an endorsement from National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Steve Daines. Brown made an unsuccessful run for Senate last year, losing the GOP primary to Adam Laxalt.
Big Sky bucks: Republican Tim Sheehy is hitting the airwaves in his Senate bid, launching a $28,000 cable buy on Fox News, per AdImpact. Top Republicans have continued to coalesce around his bid, with GOP Rep. Ryan Zinke recently endorsing the former Navy SEAL.
Raskin passes on MD-SEN: Democratic Rep. Jaime Raskin Raskin announced that he will not run for Maryland’s open Senate seat.
Roland’s running: Texas Democratic state Sen. Roland Gutierrez announced Monday that he is launching a run against GOP Sen. Ted Cruz. Gutierrez gained national attention as a legislator representing Uvalde, where 19 students and two teachers were killed in a mass shooting at an elementary school last year.
House re-runs: Some House candidates who lost last year announced recently that they are running again, including former New York Democratic Rep. Mondaire Jones, who lost a crowded primary last year, and Democrat Tony Vargas, who is taking on Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. Republican Tom Barrett, who lost to Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin, announced that he is running for her open House seat.
A Grace-ful exit: Rep. Grace Napolitano, D-Calif., announced that she is not running for re-election, and she endorsed state Sen. Bob Archuleta to replace her in Congress, per the Los Angeles Times.