Oliver County has become one of the epicenters in the fight over data centers in North Dakota, and county State's Attorney Patrick Waters has become a lightening rod in that fight.

His is a fascinating anecdote illustrating how overheated the data center debate has become.

"If you look at the data center issue in Oliver County, there are a couple Facebook pages that are solely designed to create a discourse about data centers," he said on this episode of Plain Talk. "On these Facebook pages, there is an unbelievable amount of threatening behavior going on."

"I am talking about people that are posting threatening to shoot people, threatening to attack workers who are working on the data center. Posting photos of firearms and of guillotines," he continued. "And these people have become so emboldened that they think that this is appropriate behavior."

Waters denounced these behaviors, and the invective and name-calling in these debates, but has also used some of his own. When controversy came up over his stepson, and employee, operating a purported news website that has published articles about his private practice client, and data centers, he called the critic in an email to the newsmedia a "cowardly, anonymous, unscrupulous, bent, keyboard warrior."

He also called them a "sub-creature" and a "timid and gossip-ridden snake."

Asked about that language, in the context of his own criticism of intemperate behavior, Waters said it was justified by what he perceived as an attack on his stepson, particularly because the critic brought up his stepson's criminal record.

"People are free to have their own opinions about anything. People are free to report things to the media and people are free to ask difficult questions. And I respect that," he said. "What I don't respect is this idea that because I'm unpopular in Oliver County because I advise the county commissioners to follow the law that they can then do everything that I do and say becomes a target of attack. And by bringing my family into this, I thought that that was low."

Waters is also the subject of a removal petition that is currently under investigation by Attorney General Drew Wrigley's office. Wrigley will send a recommendation on removal to Gov. Kelly Armstrong when that process is completed.

"The petition to remove me is full of lies," Waters said. "I fully expect the governor to to clear me, and I suspect that there'll be a decision made this week."

Also on this episode, co-host Chad Oban and I discuss the beginning of this week's special legislative session, including the debate over banning kratom, banning nondisclosure agreements for data center projects, and unwinding the financial mess around a stalled military museum project.

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