Plain Talk With Rob Port

"It's one thing to think about Democrats in the abstract," U.S. House candidate Trygve Hammer, himself a Democrat, told co-host Chad Oban and I on this episode of Plain Talk. "It's another thing to meet a Democrat. Hammer has a strong military and labor background, and when he said that, he was responding to a question about how he, as a member of a party that in many ways has lost touch with blue-collar voters, can reconnect with that constituency. He also spoke about some of the recent scandals North Dakota Republicans have found themselves mired in, and suggested Democrats have some culpability as well. Not for the scandals themselves, but for not being more competitive with Republicans. "There is a little bit of Democratic responsibility for this," he said, adding that "it would be political malpractice in this cycle for Democrats not to bring this stuff up." As for his opponent, incumbent Congressman Kelly Armstrong, Hammer says he feels some empathy. "I sympathize with him," Hammer said. "He's been put