President-elect Joe Biden has named several key appointments to his health team, including the nomination of Xavier Becerra to the role of Secretary of Health and Human Services. If confirmed, Becerra will be the first Latino to hold the position. Becerra comes to the Department of Health and Human Services as the 33rd attorney general of California and the Read More…
Several GOP senators and representatives voiced support for President Trump to run for office again in 2024, in interviews with Politico on Wednesday. Senators Lindsey Graham (R., Ga.), Josh Hawley (R., Mo.), Steve Daines (R., Mont.), and Rick Scott (R., Fla.) all backed the idea, as did Representatives Matt Gaetz (R., Fla.), and Paul Gosar (R., Ariz.). Read More…
Paul Ryan left the U.S. House and the powerful speaker’s post two years ago. Then the Janesville Republican went silent, avoiding commentary on President Trump. He and Trump had clashed at times. Sen. Mitt Romney, the Utah Republican who picked Ryan as his 2012 running mate, also clashed with Trump. Now, with the Read More…
Recently, there has been much debate about whether billionaires should exist, an idea popularized by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. But to former Alphabet executive chairman and investor Eric Schmidt, who is worth more than $17 billion, the idea that extreme wealth is a moral failure is reductive. “We would probably all be better off spending more time understanding Read More…
The Honorable Ted O. Lympus, a former Flathead County Attorney and Flathead District Court judge for decades, died peacefully Thursday morning, surrounded by family members at home in Missoula. He was 77. Lympus served as a judge for the 11th District Court in Montana for 23 years, retiring in 2015. Prior to that he spent Read More…
BILLINGS — As the cold weather starts to settle in Montana, snow and ice can make getting from point A to point B difficult on the roads and rails. Luckily, BNSF Railway, which moves everything from groceries to medicine to automobiles, has some interesting methods to keep its trains running during the winter. READ FULL Read More…
MISSOULA — The Montana Food Back Network reports that approximately 10% of Montanans struggle with hunger — a problem only made worse by COVID-19. Once again KPAX and First Security Bank have teamed up for our annual holiday food drive to help keep our community fed. We spoke with First Security Bank president and CEO Read More…
Casper, Wyo. • The owner of a Montana coal mine filed for bankruptcy and laid off nearly half of its workforce at the facility near the Wyoming border. Lighthouse Resources Inc. filed a petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, The Casper Star-Tribune reports. The company based in South Read More…
WARSAW — The $156.6 million Wyoming County budget was approved Tuesday in a special meeting. The county’s Board of Supervisors approved the budget nearly unanimously after a public hearing. Supervisor Daniel Leuer of Middlebury abstained from the budget vote, along with a separate vote to breach the state’s tax levy. No members of Read More…
Cynthia Lummis is the Republican senator-elect from Wyoming, having been elected to succeed Mike Enzi. She will be the first woman to represent Wyoming in the Senate. First elected to the House in 2008, she served as the representative for Wyoming’s at-large congressional district from 2009 to 2017. READ FULL STORY
Idaho Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin accepted $314,727 under the Paycheck Protection Program, a federal coronavirus relief program, records show. Three months later, she wrote an op-ed published in newspapers across the state criticizing those “who advocate socialized medicine, unearned income, and other handouts … that foster dependency.” The money was offered to employers under the $2.2 trillion coronavirus aid Read More…
Let me tell you about the chatter I am increasingly hearing from those in the know here in Montana: we have a shot at getting a second seat in the US House of Representatives. Even with our state’s very poor response rate during the latest US Census count? Yes. At least that is what I am Read More…
Gov. Steve Bullock on Wednesday announced that Montana could receive the first shipment of vaccinations for COVID-19 as soon as Dec. 15. The state is expected to receive an initial shipment of around 9,750 doses of the vaccination developed by the drug company Pfizer, with several thousand more doses in subsequent weeks. If approved, another Read More…
A man shot at Belgrade police officers Monday night when they responded to a disturbance on NorthHoffman Street in Belgrade. The incident occurred at approximately 10:30 p.m. According to a press release, shortly after officers arrived on the scene, a man opened fire on officers from a second-story apartment window. A Belgrade police car that Read More…
MISSOULA — A $500,000 grant from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will double SNAP benefits in Montana for the next four years. Now, for every one SNAP dollar spent on items like fruits and vegetables, the user will receive one extra dollar to spend. This round of grant funding secures the program for four Read More…
In recent years, Wyoming created some of the most attractive laws in the country for establishing blockchain and cryptocurrency companies in our state. But by allowing the laws to be shaped and written by those who benefit from them, our legislative hard work accomplished everything the blockchain industry wanted but nothing the state needs. Namely, Read More…
A couple weeks ago, the City of Jackson, Wyoming’s START bus system got something new: an electric bus from Proterra. The system plans on getting at least 7 more of the vehicles. START hosted Proterra representatives for a small ribbon-cutting ceremony on Nov. 12, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, they were unable to Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — The U.S. Air Force is appealing a federal court ruling preventing exercises that had military jets coordinating with plain-clothed soldiers on the ground in cities in Idaho as part of an urban warfare training program. The Air Force filed the appeal with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday. The Read More…
After a dreadful year for our local economy, this year’s “Small Business Saturday,” carried a little more weight than usual. “Last year, Small Business Saturday was our single largest retail sales day since we opened our doors in 2008,” said Amy Dolan, co-owner of Noteworthy Paper & Press. But that was last year — and 2020, Read More…
Italy’s competition authority on Monday fined Apple €10 million for misleading consumers about the water-resistance of its iPhones. Apple advertised several iPhone models as resistant to water for up to 30 minutes, even a few meters under water, but it didn’t make clear that this is only true under specific conditions (pure water in a laboratory), which Read More…
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Monday announced the formation of a Presidential Inaugural Committee ahead of their swearing-in on Jan. 20. The senior leadership of the committee, which will be responsible for organizing inauguration-related activities, consists of CEO Tony Allen and executive director Maju Varghese. READ FULL STORY
Election authorities in Georgia have opened investigations into progressive groups trying to sign up new voters in advance of twin January elections that will determine control of the U.S. Senate, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said on Monday. Raffensperger, a Republican, said his office was examining registration efforts by America Votes, Vote Forward and the Read More…
On March 9, less than a year after Gov. Steve Bullock signed House Bill 725 legalizing sports betting in Montana, the first betting terminals were placed inside bars and casinos across the state. Two days later, the NBA suspended the remainder of the professional basketball season. A day after that, the NHL and MLS suspended Read More…
A local Helena photographer celebrated five years in business. Kevin League hosted a grand opening of his new, permanent gallery this weekend in Downtown Helena to celebrate the anniversary. For League, having a full-time space to display his work is the first within his five years in business. League has numerous awards for his work Read More…
KALISPELL, Mont. (AP) — Flathead County’s interim public health officer is resigning at the end of the year, saying she’s frustrated with the lack of support from county officials for any efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Tamalee St. James Robinson submitted her letter of resignation Friday to the county commission and the Read More…
BOZEMAN — Well-known sources like sunlight, moving water and wind generate sustainable energy which can be stored for later use. But what if we could turn the air around us into usable fuel when the wind isn’t blowing? Montana State University researcher Michael Mock envisions a future in which homes have solar panels on the Read More…
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (Wyoming News Now) – On Thanksgiving day, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) shared dinner with Wyoming National Guard troops serving in Qatar. Senator Barrasso sat down with members of the 153rd Airlift Wing and 187th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, who are supporting airlift operations and medical evacuations in the Middle East. “Spending Thanksgiving with Read More…
TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) -The Idaho Transportation Department is looking at the possibility of building a third bridge to cross the Snake River canyon in Twin Falls and Jerome counties. ITD is exploring five potential areas in the Twin Falls and Jerome areas for a possible future bridge, but they stress that this is so Read More…
SANDPOINT, Idaho — A county commissioner in northern Idaho has proposed defunding the local health district after the district instituted a mask mandate to slow the spread of the coronavirus as it surges in the area. The Bonner County Daily Bee reports that Bonner County Commissioner Steven Bradshaw proposed the resolution Tuesday to pull Read More…
New state lawmakers take office this week during the Legislature’s organizational session, during which the governor will lay out his budget plans and lawmakers will decide on a legislative mask mandate. Among those swearing in will be a longtime, powerful state representative whom Gov. Doug Burgum sought to keep from another term. Business during Read More…
Sen. Marco Rubio suggested on Tuesday that he would oppose confirmation of President-elect Joe Biden’s national security team, presaging the first sign of potential Senate battles to come if Republicans maintain control of the Senate. Rubio (R-Fla.) said Biden’s selections “will be polite & orderly caretakers of America’s decline,” criticizing their professional credentials and Washington bona fides. Rubio Read More…
Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar are boosting a petition against Joe Biden nominating his former chief of staff to a new role in his administration, calling Bruce Reed a “deficit hawk” and criticizing his past support for Social Security and Medicare cuts. Why it matters: Progressives are mounting their pressure campaign after the president-elect did Read More…
The city of Fairbanks has petitioned the United States Supreme Court to review a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision allowing the Fairbanks Four to sue the city for wrongful imprisonment. The decision… READ FULL STORY
Comcast is adding a data cap for some of its home-internet plans starting in January. The telecommunications giant recently confirmed it’s introducing a limit of 1.2 TB on Xfinity Internet plans in 14 states and the District of Colombia. If customers that don’t have unlimited plans go over that cap, they must pay $10 for Read More…
The U.S. Supreme Court turned away a bid by Walmart Inc. to start selling liquor at its Texas stores, leaving intact for now a state law that bars such retail sales by publicly-owned companies. The rebuff, which came without comment, sends Walmart’s challenge back to a federal trial court, where the world’s largest retailer will Read More…
CASPER, Wyo. — The National Museum of Military Vehicles opened near Dubois this summer. The museum is among nominees to become USA Today’s “Best New Attraction 2020.” People are able to vote for the museum on the “USA Today 10 Best Readers’ Choice” website. As of noon Tuesday, the National Museum of Military Vehicles is in third place in Read More…
BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — You’ve waited years (decades for some) for this news, Treasure Valley. But, yes, In-N-Out says it’s officially coming to Boise. It’s fair to say that In-N-Out has a cult-like following — did you see the local, national or international news about 12-hour waits for some customers in Colorado after the burger joint opened a location in Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho State Board of Education held a special meeting Monday, Nov 23. The board meeting started at 3 p.m. and was streamed live. Board members took four pending rules that will be submitted to the Idaho Legislature when next year’s session begins in January. The proposed rules have to Read More…
The now-former Washakie County Health Officer says he was let go over his support for a mask mandate. On Monday, KWOR reported the Washakie County Commission called a special meeting on Monday and unanimously voted to remove county health officer Dr. Ed Zimmerman. Commission Chairman Fred Frandson declined to go into details and simply told Read More…
Gov.-elect Greg Gianforte on Tuesday named the first member of his cabinet, announcing that outgoing U.S. Attorney for Montana Kurt Alme will be the new Republican administration’s budget director. Alme, who has degrees in law and business, just announced his resignation Monday from the U.S. attorney job in Billings. Gianforte said voters gave his administration Read More…