'He was a terrific guy, he did the right thing and was always willing to work with his colleagues'

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller issued the following statement about his colleague North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, who died on Friday, January 28:

“Wayne Stenehjem was a good friend and trusted colleague for the 22 years he served at Attorney General of North Dakota. His integrity, ability to work incredibly well with others, his grace and non-elitist character will be remembered by all who knew him.

There’s a story I will always remember of Wayne, that tells a lot about him:

When Wayne first ran for Attorney General, his opponent a Democrat reached out to me for advice and encouragement. When Wayne won the election, I called to congratulate Wayne, but also reached out to the other candidate to wish him well. Despite his loss, he told me, 'you’re going to like Wayne, I worked with him in the legislature for many years and I ran against him for attorney general and can’t say one bad thing about Wayne.’ He was so right about Wayne.

He was a terrific guy, he did the right thing and was always willing to work with his colleagues. When I was first elected as president of the National Association of Attorneys General, Wayne was one of the first colleagues I reached out to for counsel, ideas, and a dose of bipartisanship.  I will miss his dedication and friendship.”