We're in holiday mode here at Plain Talk, so we thought we'd bring you some reruns of a few of our best interviews from 2024.

This interview with Rebecca Binstock, the executive director of the North Dakota Ethics Commission, was originally published on July 26, 2024.

"Ethics commissions alone do not create ethical government," Binstock told us, adding that it also requires a robust news media and an engaged electorate. Binstock also noted that, while complaints filed with the commission tend to get the most attention, her goal is to reduce the number of complaints filed by holding seminars and information sessions to prevent them from happening in the first place.

The voters created the ethics commission on the ballot, and since then it's become a larger part of North Dakota government. And, unfortunately, politics. This election cycle we saw multiple incidents of politicians and activists announcing that they had filed ethics complaints against individuals on the ballot, with a clear intent to manipulate voters, even though the complaints are officially confidential, and those they're filed against are prohibited by law from speaking about them.

We hope you enjoy this rerun, and enjoy your holidays.

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