Governor Doug Burgum pledges no new taxes if elected president; Campaign works to meet criteria for third debate

(Fargo, ND) -- North Dakota Governor, and presidential hopeful, Doug Burgum has signed the Americans for Tax Reform’s “Taxpayer Protection Pledge.” 

The pledge is a written commitment to U.S. Taxpayers to oppose and veto any tax increases.  According to an ATR press release, “Candidates often make campaign promises not to raise taxes, only to abandon taxpayers once elected.  The Taxpayer Protection Pledge requires candidates to put their commitment in writing, making it harder to reverse course.”  

“I strongly applaud Doug Burgum for taking a principled stand and signing the Taxpayer Protection Pledge,” said ATR President Grover Norquist.  “By making this commitment, he has exhibited a true dedication to fiscal responsibility and pro-growth tax policy. This Pledge is a powerful symbol of his unwavering support for hardworking taxpayers and their right to keep more of their hard-earned money,” said ATR President Grover Norquist.

ATR reports that Burgum has signed a previous pledge before; doing so as the current governor of North Dakota.  

Meanwhile, Burgum’s presidential campaign, Doug Burgum for America, has released its quarterly financial report for the period ending September 30.

The campaign reported more than $3 million in donations and entered the fourth quarter of the year with more than $2 million in cash on hand available for the 2024 primary.

“In just over four months, Doug Burgum has established himself as a national candidate, amassing 80,000 donations and qualifying for two national debates while maintaining footholds in Iowa and New Hampshire,” said campaign spokesman Lance Trover. “As we enter the fourth quarter, additional time and attention will again be invested in the early states that will begin to determine the Republican nominee.”

Burgum is also weighing in on the conflict in the Middle East.  

The Washington Times reports that in an appearance at the Hudson Institute in Washington D.C., Burgum called for a freeze in U.S. funding for Iran, in reaction to the recent Hamas attack on Israel.  

Burgum also called for the full deployment and enforcement of economic sanctions, while declaring that Hamas’ war on Israel is “war on America.”

“Hamas is a proxy of Iran,” said Burgum.  “We need to put an end to Joe Biden’s Iran appeasement by immediately locking down all the money he’s made available to Iran over these past few months and fully enforce our Iran oil sanctions.”

As president, Burgum said, he would “put an end to Biden’s attempts to undermine Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem” and the Golan Heights, and would work to root out “Iran’s terrorist structure” around the world.  

Burgum’s plan would also, according to the Washington Post, put pressure on Qatar and Turkey, which reportedly have hosted, and may currently host, key Hamas leaders and infrastructure.

“Rule number 1: Don’t negotiate with terrorists. Could anyone have ever imagined that we would have a president paying $6 billion on top of a deal releasing five Iranians for five American hostages?” said Burgum. “That’s $1.2 billion per hostage. A new price tag put on every American student, tourist and professional traveling or living abroad. But we know there are billions more being funneled for Iran’s use — $10 billion freed up from Iraq, and even more money on the way.”

The third Republican GOP primary debate is scheduled for November 8 in Miami.  As of press time, Burgum has not qualified.  

The Republican National Committee (RNC) is raising the threshold for candidates to qualify, in advance of the Iowa caucuses in January. 

Republican candidates will need to register at 4 percent or higher on two separate national polls or receive 4 percent support in one national poll and two different early state polls. 

Burgum has met the state polling criteria, hitting the 4% mark in one Iowa poll and one New Hampshire poll, however he still needs one national poll at 4%.  

In the last 10 national GOP primary polls, Burgum saw 2% support once, with the other 9 polls giving him either zero or one percent.  

Candidates also need to meet a donor threshold of at least 70,000 unique donors, including at least 200 from 20 different states.  

The third debate criteria is an increase from the thresholds for the second debate on Sept. 27 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif. 

In that debate, the polling threshold was 3 percent with a minimum of 50,000 unique donors required.

The political website thehill.com reports that candidates who say they have qualified for the second debate are Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.), former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.