Burgum Got to Milwaukee for Debate, Ended Up in ER

It's unclear if the presidential candidate will be able to stand at the debate
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 23, 2023 11:05 AM CDT
Basketball Injury Throws Wrench Into Burgum's Debate Plans
Republican presidential candidate North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum speaks during a Fair-Side Chat with Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds at the Iowa State Fair, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa.   (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum's arrival in Wisconsin for Wednesday night's GOP debate hasn't gone as expected. The presidential candidate ended up in a Milwaukee ER last night after injuring himself while playing basketball with staffers, a source tells CNN. Per the source, it's not clear if Burgum will be able to stand, putting his attendance at the 9pm ET debate in jeopardy. A rep echoes that to Politico: Burgum "may not be able to stand at the GOP presidential debate Wednesday night," as the site puts it. Though the nature of the injury wasn't specified, Politico calls it a leg injury.

Having framed himself as the candidate with the least name recognition, the 67-year-old's hope going into Wednesday had been to "get a chance to explain who we are, what we're about and why we're running." As such, "missing the two-hour debate would be a major setback for Burgum," observes the AP. Insider notes that the wealthy former software exec has loaned his campaign almost $10 million to get to this point; he offered would-be donors $20 gift cards in exchange for a donation of at least $1. (More on that tactic here.)

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