MINOT — The fringe populist faction of the North Dakota Republican Party, which has captured control of the party's leadership positions, is struggling to raise money, as I reported last month. But party Chairman Matthew Simon really doesn't want you to know about it.

My previous reporting was based on a combination of public campaign finance filings and minutes from the NDGOP's committee meetings, which multiple sources within the party provided to me. It's that last bit that has Simon steamed. The draft minutes for the most recent meeting of the party's executive committee on Nov. 10 indicated that Simon "discussed the ongoing issue of internal communications being leaked to the press."

"Should this continue, measures may need to be taken to determine who is leaking this information,

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