07/15/25: Joel Heitkamp is joined in the KFGO studio by Mark Friese, a North Dakota CJA (Criminal Justice Act) Panel Representative, and on the phone by Jason Tupman, the Federal Public Defender for the Districts of South Dakota and North Dakota.

The U.S. Constitution protects criminal defendants’ right to an attorney. When federal defendants can’t afford a lawyer, they are typically assigned a federal public defender. About 40% of the time, however, federal defenders must pass the case to a private lawyer due to a conflict of interest, according to the judicial branch.

But the federal judiciary says that as of July 3, it has no more money to pay outside attorneys for these services. The judicial branch has asked Congress for roughly $116 million to sustain the program until the fiscal year turns over on Oct. 1.

(Joel Heitkamp is a talk show host on the Mighty 790 KFGO in Fargo-Moorhead. His award-winning program, “News & Views,” can be heard weekdays from 8 – 11 a.m. Follow Joel on X/Twitter @JoelKFGO.)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

07/16/25: Joel Heitkamp is joined by Reid Epstein, a political reporter from the New York Times. Some of his recent articles cover the current perspective on the Democratic Party, and what the future for it could hold. He and Joel dive into the leaders of the party, what former President Obama had to say to Democrats, and what the "big, beautiful bill" did for Democrats.

(Joel Heitkamp is a talk show host on the Mighty 790 KFGO in Fargo-Moorhead. His award-winning program, “News & Views,” can be heard weekdays from 8 – 11 a.m. Follow Joel on X/Twitter @JoelKFGO.)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

07/16/25: Terry Marohl is the Dean of Transportation at NDSCS and Kyle Armitage is the Dean of Career and Technical Education at NDSCS. Joel Heitkamp is joined by both of them in the KFGO studio to learn more about NDSCS and what they offer to students.

(Joel Heitkamp is a talk show host on the Mighty 790 KFGO in Fargo-Moorhead. His award-winning program, “News & Views,” can be heard weekdays from 8 – 11 a.m. Follow Joel on X/Twitter @JoelKFGO.)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.