Tariff Backlash Grows in Upper Midwest as Local Farmers, Tribes Push Back
MIKE MOEN PRAIRIE NEWS SERVICE
New tariffs imposed by the Trump administration last week have triggered swift and widespread backlash across the Upper Midwest, with regional farm groups and tribal communities voicing alarm over economic damage
ranchers rely heavily on strong export markets and are especially vulnerable to retaliatory tariffs,” Watne said.
The sweeping tariffs, part of a broader “reciprocal trade” effort championed by the Trump administration, have already caused significant market disruptions. Soybean prices have dropped as China prepares to implement a 34% retaliatory tariff on U.S. goods, including soybeans, effective April 10. In 2024, the U.S. exported nearly $13 billion in soybeans to China, a figure that could drop sharply if the tariffs remain in place.
In Fargo, farmers like Chris-
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Seven Candidates File for WBSD#7 School Board
Election
WILLISTON GRAPHIC
Seven candidates have filed to run in the upcoming Williston Basin School District #7 school board election, scheduled for June 10.
Six candidates are vying for three at-large positions: Jeremy Brenner, Brittany Kilgore, Samuel Johnson, David Rodriguez, Diane
Schmidt and Katie Zufelt.
Dennis Nehring is the sole candidate running for the single seat representing voters outside Williston city limits.
Candidate profiles will be available on the district’s election webpage by April 10. More information is available at willistonschools. org/election.
Mill and Overlay Project to Begin April 14
CITY OF WILLISTON
Knife River is scheduled to begin the mill and overlay project on 26th street from University Avenue to 1st Avenue west on April 14.
The work will start with concrete removals and replacements along 26th street, then transition into the mill and overlay portion of the project. During the concrete portion of the work, construction traffic control will be established along 26th street, which may result in lane transitions due to lane closures and reduced speeds to protect the construction workers.
The traveling public
should expect delays until the traffic control is removed from the project.
Once the concrete work is completed, Knife River will perform the mill and overlay work at night from May 5-8.
This will result in a full closure of 26th street from the hours of 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. during those activities, including the approaches into the existing buildings along that stretch of 26th.
The frontage road is not expected to be closed at this time. Street access will be resumed each morning at the conclusion of work activities.
The traveling public should expect to follow the signed detour routes around the project.
Williston Community Library to host 5th Annual Community Egg Hunt April 16th
WILLISTON
COMMUNITY
LIBRARY
Dust off your baskets once again for the Community Egg Hunt scheduled for Wednesday, April 16, at the Williston Community Library.
The Community Egg Hunt will be divided into two-time slots: from 11a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 to 6 p.m. This event is free and open to all ages.
“This year’s hunt is going to be even bigger and better,”
stated Library Director Andrea Placher. “The mission of any event we host is to promote literacy in our community, our library’s many resources, and of course a love of reading. This event is special because we can join forces with so many community organizations to bring awareness to their missions as well. We are excited to see families coming together, playing outdoors, and having fun!”
Attendees will receive a bag to fill with eggs, which can be exchanged for a free book.
In addition to the egg hunt, visitors can play a round of mini golf, as well as meet the bunny and take photos, courtesy of the Williston CVB. Community agencies will be scattered throughout the library with goodies and handouts, and there will also be golden eggs every hour, which can be exchanged for local business gift cards.
For more information, please contact Placher at 701774-8805 or andreap@ci.williston.nd.us.
Williston State College FBLA— Collegiate Launches Student-Managed Vending Machine To Support Fundraising And Practical Learning
WILLISTON STATE COLLEGE
Williston State College’s FBLA—Collegiate chapter has introduced a new vending machine in the Western Star CTE Building, blending business education with hands-on experience while supporting fundraising efforts for the organization.
Dr. Maren Furuseth, DBA, CPA, Professor and Program Coordinator of Accounting, and Leah Windnagle, Associate Professor of Business and Business Program Coordinator, as advisors sought an innovative way to raise funds while ensuring students had ample time to prepare for their competitive events at the State and National Leadership Conferences.
“Students spend a significant amount of time on fundraising activities. While those activities are important, we also want students to have the time to prepare for successful performance at their competitive events in the spring,” said Windnagle.
The vending machine project provides students
STUDENTS POSE NEXT TO VENDING MACHINE | SUBMITTED PHOTO
with a unique opportunity to apply classroom knowledge in a real-world business setting. “Owning and managing a vending machine gives students a practical way to apply financial literacy, marketing strategies, inventory management, and customer service skills. It bridges the gap between theory and practice, showing students the relevancy of their classes and how they directly translate to the real world,” said Furuseth.
In May 2024, Furuseth and Windnagle presented the idea to WSC President Dr. Bernell Hirning, who was highly supportive of the initiative.
FBLA members began researching vending machines in September 2024, and after purchasing one, they took charge of stocking it with in-
ventory. The vending machine made its debut in the Western Star CTE Building in February 2025, thanks in part to the generous support of the WSC Foundation.
“A vending machine was placed in this building because of student demand identified in a Principles of Management class. The business students have always been passionate about ensuring WSC students have food access while also fundraising for their student organization,” noted Windnagle.
FBLA President Alicia Miller emphasized the longterm impact of the initiative: “This vending machine is our way of leaving a legacy for the future members of Williston State College’s FBLA. Our student-run business ensures the satisfaction of our customers and the success of passive fundraising for our organization.”
The vending machine is now fully operational and available to students, faculty, and staff, providing convenient snack options while contributing to the development of WSC’s future business leaders.
TARIFFS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
tie Jaeger of Esmond, N.D., are bracing for the fallout.
“When it’s such a big hit, like a tariff on products that we normally sell overseas … it really makes one wonder how things are going to go this fall financially,” she told InForum.
NDFU has thrown its support behind the bipartisan Trade Review Act of 2025, introduced in the U.S. Senate. The legislation would limit presidential authority to impose trade tariffs without congressional approval, restoring oversight as outlined in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. The act would require the president to notify Congress of any tariff action within 48 hours, followed by a 60-day review period.
“This administration’s ap-
proach to tariffs has created a huge amount of confusion and uncertainty,” Watne said in the press release. “We need Congress to step up and exercise its constitutional authority.”
In Montana, legal challenges have also emerged. In a lawsuit filed April 4 in federal court, Blackfeet tribal member Jonathan St. Goddard and state Sen. Susan Webber, D-Browning, argue that the tariffs violate the 1794 Jay Treaty, which guarantees the right of Indigenous people to cross the U.S.-Canada border and trade without taxation. The suit claims that emergency orders used to justify the tariffs exceed presidential authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
“The executive orders do not address the differential or attempt to target the harm,” the lawsuit states. “They simply impose blanket tariffs on
North Dakota
all borders … functioning like sanctions.”
The Montana Farmers Union submitted a declaration supporting the lawsuit, warning that the tariffs could devastate cross-border trade relationships essential to rural economies.
“This will hurt farming, ranching, tourism and construction,” said Walt Schweitzer, executive director of the Montana Farmers Union. “Montana’s short growing and travel season can’t survive such unpredictable policy shifts.”
This article was written with information from a press release by the North Dakota Farmers Union on April 8, a Daily Montanan article by Darrell Ehrlick on April 7, an InForum report by Hunter Schwartz published April 7 and background from an Associated Press article on recent reciprocal tariff actions by the Trump administration.
Door to Door Service
Nervous Senators from Both Parties Press Trump Trade Rep on Tariffs as High as 104%
ASHLEY MURRAY
NORTH DAKOTA
MONITOR
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer defended the Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs Tuesday as he faced senators from both sides of the aisle who relayed their constituents’ economic anxiety.
Democratic and Republican senators alike questioned how the policy will affect their states’ industries in the coming months.
“Whose throat do I get to choke if this proves wrong?” asked GOP Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
Greer told members of the Senate Committee on Finance that President Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration to trigger steep worldwide import taxes is “common sense.”
“Our trade deficit, driven by these non-reciprocal conditions, is a manifestation of the loss of the nation’s ability to make, to grow, and to build,” Greer said.
“The president recognizes the urgency of the moment. On the first day of his second term, President Trump issued a comprehensive memorandum setting out his trade policy direction. No other president has done this,” Greer continued in his opening statement.
Responses from around the world range from all-out retaliation to negotiation to capitulation. Chinese officials, who could see tariffs reach 104% after Trump threatened Monday to pile more on, said Tuesday they will “fight to
the end.”
Tariffs launch just after midnight
The previously scheduled hearing on Trump’s trade agenda came less than a week after the president used his emergency powers to unveil new import taxes on products from nearly every country around the world.
Trump’s tariffs will begin just after midnight, hitting major exporters to the United States as well as poor and developing nations. They range from a 46% tax on Vietnam, whose major exports to Americans include tech products, to a 50% tax on Lesotho, a small African nation that exports diamonds to U.S. jewelers.
Claims from the administration that dozens of governments have reached out to negotiate buoyed U.S. and world markets Tuesday after three days of turbulence erased trillions of dollars in wealth.
Trump’s baseline 10% tariffs launched Saturday on trading partners, including allies who import more American goods than the amount of their own products they export to the U.S.
The tax on allies with a trade surplus drew the ire of Sen. Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat. “Why did they get whacked in the first place?” he asked Greer, raising his voice.
Trump has exempted pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, critical minerals, and semiconductors from his new levies. Those imports are worth $665 billion, according to an analysis from the Atlantic Council, a think tank focused on U.S. foreign relations.
The levies come on top of Trump’s previously enacted 25%
national security levies on foreign steel and aluminum, and foreign cars, as well as emergency tariffs at 20% on Chinese imports and 10% to 25% on products from Canada and Mexico.
‘Aimless, chaotic tariff spree’
Sen. Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the committee, announced at the hearing that he plans to fast-track a resolution “to end the latest crop of global tariffs that are clobbering American families and business members on both sides of the aisle.”
“Donald Trump’s aimless, chaotic tariff spree has proven beyond a doubt that Congress has given far too much of its constitutional power over international trade to the executive branch. It is time to take that power back,” the Oregon Democrat said in opening remarks.
Committee Chair Mike Crapo expressed some optimism that Trump’s tariff agenda would eventually boost American industries.
“Members and the public have questions and concerns about the recent tariff actions. That’s ok. We should think about tariff impacts and ask questions,” said Crapo, an Idaho Republican.
Once people “contextualize” Trump’s tariffs, “the real headline then becomes the fundamental shift in trade policy since President Trump’s inauguration — where the United States actually plans to do trade again,” Crapo said.
Oklahomans worried
But other senators wanted more assurance for small business owners who are contacting them for answers about the sudden economic turmoil.
Sen. James Lankford told
CLUES ACROSS
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Simpler 18. Cavities containing liquid 19. Large fish-eating bird
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Icelandic poems
Pop
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Almost last
Greer he’s heard from a constituent in Oklahoma who switched purchasing from China to Vietnam after Trump’s first administration targeted China with tariffs. Now, the company worries about the 46% tax it will have to pay on imports from Vietnam.
“Is there a timeline you’re dealing with?” the Republican asked Greer.
The trade representative said more than 50 countries, including Vietnam, have reached out to strike new trade agreements.
“We don’t have any particular timeline set on that,” Greer said. “What I can say is I’m moving as quickly as possible.”
“The time piece does matter to them,” Lankford said.
Lankford then asked if any industries, including garment manufacturers in Oklahoma, can apply for an exemption from import taxes on products they can only purchase from abroad.
“I know long term the hope is to have a more diversified (market). In the short term, they don’t have another option. How do you plan to handle that?” Lankford said.
Greer replied: “Senator, the president has been clear with me and with others that he doesn’t intend to have exclusions and exemptions, especially given the nature of the action. If you have Swiss cheese in the action, it can undermine the overall point.”
Warner grew heated during questioning with Greer, saying he’s hearing from Wall Street that business people viewed the U.S. market recovery Tuesday “as a good day in hospice.”
“We have 800,000 small busi-
52. Astronomer Carl 56. Small horses 58. A slender tower with balconies 60. A disrespectful quality 62. Fully shaded inner regions 63. Short convulsive intake of breath CLUES DOWN
1. Popular Sunday dinner option
Oil cartel
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Greek goddess of discord
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nesses in Virginia. These tariffs are going to wallop them,” Warner said.
EU, other nations react The European Union is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a list of targeted American imports the bloc of 27 nations plans to tax in response. Trump unveiled a 20% levy on EU products as part of his “Liberation Day” plans.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is staring down a 17% tariff from Trump, promised during an Oval Office meeting Monday that his country will “very quickly” even out trade with the U.S.
Trump wrote on social media Tuesday morning that he held a “great call” with South Korea’s acting president Han Duck-soo. Trump imposed a 25% tariff on South Korean exports into the U.S., which largely include cars, auto parts and electric batteries.
“Their top TEAM is on a plane heading to the U.S., and things are looking good,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The comments came a day Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he would lead negotiations with Japan, which faces a 24% levy. Americans mainly import cars, auto parts and construction vehicles from Japan.
The prospect of negotiation brought Japan’s stocks up overnight after flagging upon tariff uncertainty.
This article first appeared on the North Dakota Monitor website on April 8, 2025. To read the original please visit www.northdakotamonitor.com
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27. Deferential
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37. Starchy dish of dried tubers
38. Type of acid
40. Partner to "Ma"
43. 16 ounces
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48. A well-defined track or path
50. Substitution 51. Defined period
53. Group of toughs 54. Region
55. Famed Scottish Loch
57. Blood relation
58. Not around
Recipe measurement 61. Father to Junior
Nationwide 'Hands Off!' Protests Draw Millions in Opposition to Administration Policies
WILLISTON GRAPHIC
On April 5 millions of Americans participated in over 1,300 "Hands Off!" protests across all 50 states, voicing opposition to policies enacted by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, head of the Department of Government Efficiency. Organized by more than 150 groups—including civil rights organizations, labor unions, LGBTQ+ advocates and veterans—the demonstrations took place at state capitals, federal buildings and city centers.
In Washington, D.C., tens of thousands gathered on the National Mall, where speakers such as Representatives Jamie Raskin, D-Md., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., addressed the crowd, denouncing what they described as authoritarian tendencies within the administration. Similar protests occurred in cities including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago
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and Anchorage, with participants expressing concerns over government downsizing, civil rights issues and recent tariff implementations.
While some view mass protests as symbolic and question their efficacy, proponents argue that such demonstrations are vital for raising awareness and influencing public discourse. Moira Donegan, writing for The Guardian, noted that despite past skepticism about the impact of protests, the "Hands Off!" rallies offered a renewed
sense of purpose and unity among diverse groups opposing the administration's agenda.
The "Hands Off!" protests underscore the deep divisions and active civic engagement characterizing the current political climate, reflecting widespread mobilization in response to the administration's policies.
This article was written with information sources from The Verge, AP News, Axios and The Guardian.
Proceeds in 2025 are going to Springbrook Bible Camp (formerly Camp UMM)
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Spirituality Through a Lutheran Lens
THE CONSEQUENCE OF ACTIVE FAITH: DISCIPLES, DIETRICH AND THE DAREDEVIL
PASTOR ZACH HARRIS
FIRST LUTHERAN CHURCH
The final song by Harry Chapin, in a little-known musical about the life of Jesus called “The Cotton Patch Gospel,” poses the following question:
Now if a man tried
To take his time on earth
And prove before he died
What one man's life could be worth
Well, I wonder what would happen to this world
The funny thing about those lyrics is that they are placed within an almost carnival-like tune, yet ask a sheering question that gets right to the heart of where my Lenten query has been leading. Our quest has been to journey through the fears that humanity has over death and loss that might overtake us, from the macro to the micro. What would it mean to face the death of the Universe itself, our planet, our country, our faith community, and this week has been the most tenuous: the fear of the death of our very selves?
In an unexamined and unrestricted, wholly Darwinian sense if you will, the fear of one’s own death leads to looking out for number one at the expense of everyone and everything else— even the whole world—just for survival. Unfortunately, that’s what seems to be a driving force leading to such societal negativity— primarily because such priorities have no morality as guiding principles. The “Thou Shalt Nots” of stealing, coveting, even murder seem to be just mere inconveniences on the way to self-fulfillment. [An apocalyptic scenario universally projected by my church group when asked what they thought would be the outcome if all faith communities ceased to exist.]
But, this week, the question is about the individual’s fear of death, and what that means for a person of faith who faces injus-
tice and evil in the world. On the fictional side, the title character on the Disney+ show, “Daredevil Born Again,” is a perfect modern image of this struggle. When not wearing the Daredevil vigilante mask, Matt Murdock is a lawyer who happens to be blind (like lady justice) but with heightened abilities. His nemesis, Wilson Fisk, the criminal Kingpin, has actually gotten himself legally elected as mayor of New York City. His Catholicism being a strong part of his character, Matt warns Fisk: “I was raised to believe in grace. That we can be touched by the divine and transformed into a better person. So, if you say to me that you're a new man, I say, ‘Fine’. But you should know, I was also raised to believe in retribution. So, if you step out of line, I will be there." His struggle is trying to live the morality of his faith with immoral leadership in his fictional world. Were it that such struggles were always fiction.
The day before this article is to be published is the 80th anniversary of the martyrdom of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. As one church resource summarizes: Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a Lutheran pastor and theologian, born in 1906. His writings on discipleship, grace and community have become classics. Apart from his theological writings, Bonhoeffer was known for his staunch resistance to Nazi dictatorship, including Hitler's genocidal persecution of the Jews. He was arrested in 1943 for ignoring the Nazi ban on his writing and speaking. Later, he was transferred to a German concentration camp where, after leading a worship service for the prisoners, was executed on April 9, 1945. Dietrich Bonhoeffer's execution took place just two weeks before the Allied liberation of the camp.
Bonhoeffer’s story has been preserved in copious works: some he himself wrote, some about him (the longest single volume I’ve ever read was the biography written by his best friend for a class in Seminary), and even movies— the latest being the one by Angel Studios this past fall: “Bonhoef-
fer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin” which ( since it’s a movie) makes some concessions for the vastness of material it tries to condense, but does a pretty good job of getting to the heart of his struggle. Though he did perform undercover spying, the “Assassin” designation is certainly sensationalized for a self-proclaimed pacificist who would not even hold a gun (despite marketing to the contrary). His subversion of the evils purported by the government was really in his preaching and teaching by what he participated in as the Confessing Church which chose to hold to Biblical principles rather than those of the Nazis. In the end, he could have escaped a couple of different ways, but didn’t: CHOOSING to be sacrificed so his life could be an example.
Bonhoeffer’s most famous quote is from his book, “The Cost of Discipleship”: “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” His theological emphasis was always on living and giving for the other person. My take in summary: Eternal Life may be self-is-hly just for you; but This Life is self-less-ly just for others.” This is why I refer to him as THE Lutheran pastor—he lived and died with his faith as an example. So, if you follow this through, Crucifixion is the ONLY outcome for those who follow the precepts of Jesus. Self-righteous anger against the Evil perpetrated against oneself or those one loves/supports/defends is STILL division fueled by hate. That is not to say, one does not act on behalf of those others. Indeed, that is the struggle for fictional Daredevil and Bonhoeffers of every age. But many times, sin cannot be avoided. It is either a sin of action or inaction, and as Luther himself said: “Sin Boldly!” This moral consternation brings a little death at every turn. And the true Christ-like response will always end up on a cross—total loss in earthly terms and patently unfair—you will lose your life. The person of faith reaches a point of simply saying “NO!” to the world, “THIS is who I am; what I
value, what I will and will not do; THIS is how I CHOOSE to act!”
And the balance of moral fiber is placed on the scales of justice with Jesus’ question: is it worth it to lay down your life for a friend?
In the life of the church, these existential questions are raw in the liturgical play we celebrate this coming week: Palm Sunday on April 13, Maundy Thursday, April 17, and Good Friday the 18. It’s an almost day by day, hour by hour depiction of Jesus’ last bit of earthly life and the reactions of those around him. That story is as dark a tale as the ones I have presented here. And were that all there is to be said—well, we would of all people most to be pitied!
Rather, one final snippet from that Bonhoeffer movie: it is a scene where Dietrich is very depressed that the Evil around him seems way more powerful
than the meager hope that he has fueled. He even reflects that even the students of the Confessing Church are no better off than the misfit disciples that Jesus had gathered who fell apart right when Jesus needed them most. However, like a good mom, his mother encourages by saying: “The Disciples scattered on Friday, but by Sunday they were on their way to changing the world!”
For all of us, at any hour, may we remember: it may be Friday—but Sunday’s coming. And, still: Well, I wonder what would happen to this world . . .
Pastor Zach Harris has been an ordained minister for 33 years and currently serves First Lutheran Church in Williston. His column, “Through a Lutheran Lens: A Pastor’s Perspective,” will appear regularly in the Williston Graphic.
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DIETRICH BONHOEFFER, 1924 | PUBLIC DOMAIN
