Steve Hallstrom is back in the chair after being gone yesterday, covering a wide array of topics for September 25, 2025. The show features economic news, local stories about West Nile virus and a controversial book pulled from a Moorhead school library, and national political debates including a potential TikTok sale and a lawsuit over voter registration data. Steve also introduces a new segment, "Let's Learn Together," to discuss North Dakota's Land Board investment strategy. Listeners weigh in on car sales, downtown consulting, and the use of taxpayer money.
The show began with a rapid-fire summary of the day's events, the Four O'Clock Wrap:
Weather: The temperature reached 74∘F , which is well above the average high of 68∘F for September 25th. The record high was 92∘F in 1885. The extended forecast looks nice, with a lot of sunshine.
Markets: It was a down day on Wall Street. The Dow was off
173 points , and the NASDAQ fell by 113 points.
Gas Prices: The national average for regular unleaded gas is $3.15 per gallon. North Dakota's average price is
$2.92.
Local News and Issues
West Nile Virus: Cases are rising across the region, making Minnesota and North Dakota a "hot spot". North Dakota has reported
78 cases so far this year , with Cass County leading at 16 cases. Minnesota has seen 70 cases.
Moorhead School Book Pulled: Moorhead Public Schools pulled a book titled Not My Idea, a book about whiteness from the library at Horizon Middle School. Superintendent Brandon Lunick stated the district needs to do a better job of
vetting books and is concerned about the book, which has only been checked out twice in two years.
Don's Car Wash Sale: One of Fargo's two Don's Car Wash locations, at 2552nd Avenue South, has been sold and is being rebranded as a Cenex store.
Fargo Downtown Amenities: The Downtown Community Partnership is seeking public input and hired a firm (Confluence) to look into refreshing and expanding public amenities like seating and signage. A listener text criticized this, arguing new benches would only lead to
"more maintenance costs for us to clean up the trash, urine, and feces that the homeless people who will be sleeping on them". Steve questioned the use of tax money to continually hire consultants for basic questions.
NDSU Enrollment: NDSU reports steady fall enrollment with 11,952 students, the exact number reported in both 2024 and 2023. Across the North Dakota University system, enrollment is up about 3.8 percent.
Hillsborough Dairy Farm: Riverview's proposed Hillsborough dairy farm received a concentrated animal feeding operation permit from the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality.
US Economic Growth: The US economy grew faster than previously estimated in the second quarter. Second quarter GDP saw a
3.8% increase over the first quarter, driven by strong consumer spending.
Unemployment Claims: Jobless claims were 218,000, down 14,000 from the prior week, which was significantly less than the estimated 235,000.
Car Sales: New car sales are getting a surprising boost heading into the fourth quarter, leading Cox Automotive to raise its 2025 new vehicle US sales forecast to $16.1 million. However, listener Tom said local sales were down, attributing it to farmers not selling their last year's crop, causing a ripple effect in the local economy.
North Dakota Land Board: The Land Board (made up of the Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, and School Superintendent ) voted to make its investment strategy more aggressive and infrastructure focused. They shifted the infrastructure investment target from 7% to 10%, while lowering real estate from 10% to 8%. This move preceded a $100 million commitment toward a data center fund managed by Cloud Capital. Listeners questioned this, asking why state money is going to corporations instead of to issues like teacher pay or farmer support.
President Trump approved a deal that would keep TikTok alive in the US. A new joint venture of American companies would oversee the US business, holding
80% of the equity, while the Chinese company, ByteDance, holds less than 20%. Steve felt better about the deal since the US government is
not involved in the new company.DOJ Sues Minnesota SOS: The US Department of Justice is suing Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon for refusing to provide a copy of the state's voter registration list. The DOJ wants the data to assess Minnesota's compliance with federal election law. Simon resisted, citing privacy concerns over personal data like full names, dates of birth, and last four digits of Social Security numbers. Listener Kevin argued this is a non-issue, saying the federal government likely has the information already and the refusal makes Simon look like he has "something to hide".
Steve revisited the ongoing public discussion about
Tylenol (acetaminophen) and its potential link to autism, following a press conference by RFK and Trump. An old social media post from Tylenol's X account (formerly Twitter), dated March 7, 2017, was shared online, stating: "we actually don't recommend using any of our products while pregnant".
Steve confirmed there were actually three studies in 2025 and two studies in 2023 suggesting a potential tie between acetaminophen and autism/ADHD.
Tylenol's manufacturer, Kenview (a former Johnson & Johnson division), is now clarifying that they do not broadly recommend against Tylenol during pregnancy. Their official position is that patients should "always talk to your doctor" , and they consider their product the safest option for pregnant women's pain relief.
The FDA notes "observational associations, not causation" between acetaminophen and autism and ADHD.