Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen led a coalition of 21 states in filing an amicus brief supporting President Donald Trump’s decision to reduce the workforce at the Department of Education, a move aimed at returning more educational authority to state governments. The brief was filed on Monday in the case State of New York v. Read More…
The Wyoming Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday regarding the classification of abortion as healthcare, a case that could significantly impact the future of abortion access in the state. The state is challenging a Teton County judge’s ruling that abortion is a form of healthcare, arguing that laws passed in 2023, which could impose a near-total Read More…
Governor Kelly Armstrong signed Senate Bill 2214 into law today, officially approving the merger of the North Dakota Securities Department into the North Dakota Insurance Department. The consolidation aims to streamline regulatory oversight of the state’s financial services industry. Under the new law, regulatory authority will be unified under the elected insurance commissioner. The merger Read More…
Two bills aimed at laying the groundwork for a nuclear energy industry in Montana have passed the state legislature and are awaiting the governor’s signature. House Bill 623 would permit the establishment of nuclear waste storage facilities in the state. This measure aligns with national Nuclear Regulatory Commission requirements, which mandate that nuclear power plants Read More…
U.S. Senator Steve Daines, R-Montana, announced Thursday he will be introducing bipartisan legislation to protect the civil liberties and privacy of Montanans from government spying programs. Daines’ bipartisan bill reforms Section 215 of the Patriot Act, which the National Security Agency has used to create a secret mass surveillance program that swept up millions of Read More…
Hunter Biden must appear Jan. 29 in a Batesville courtroom and explain why he shouldn’t be held in contempt for violating court orders to provide financial information in his Arkansas paternity case. Independence County Circuit Judge Holly Meyer signed an “Order to Appear and Show Cause” on Monday, a day when Arkansas courts were closed Read More…
There were no arrests or confrontations with heavily armed police at Monday’s gun-rights rally in Richmond. This caused Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to wonder aloud why that was … and blame racism. The New York Democrat and avowed socialist said in an interview for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday that was posted on social media Read More…
Today in Pierre, S.D., lawmakers are holding the very first state hearing on whether to ban surgical and chemical sex-change treatments for minors. The Vulnerable Child Protection Act would prohibit medical sex-change treatments for children under the age of 16 and make those directly involved guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. It would not prevent Read More…
Democrat Reilly Neill has withdrawn from the 2020 governor’s race, saying she will work instead through “the media to educate, inform and report on issues of climate change and human rights.” The Livingston resident and former state representative posted her decision on her votereilly.com website Jan. 12. “At every event for Democratic candidates I’ve attended in the Read More…
REPUBLICAN GOV. MARK Gordon, who took his seat as Wyoming’s 33rd governor in 2019, is the most popular governor in America, according to Morning Consult’s latest survey. The global technology company releases a survey identifying the country’s most and least popular governors every three months, with the most recent survey taken from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31, 2019. Read More…
He’s a one-man stimulus package! Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg is spending so much money on television spots across the country that it’s causing ad rates to soar, a new analysis shows. “The typical [TV] market increased their rates by 22 percent as the political spending poured in,” an Advertising Analytics analysis found. “Houston was Read More…
As the Senate embarks on the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump — only the third such trial in U.S. history — there’s intense speculation over how senators will vote in the case. And while there is virtually no chance that 67 senators will vote to remove Trump from office, inside both parties are key Read More…
HELENA – Lawmakers are heading home after wrapping up their first Legislative Week. Throughout the five days, lawmakers were busy bouncing around from meetings, to training sessions to committee hearings. They also looked into moving to annual sessions. Montana is only one of four states who meets every other year for 90 days. The week was Read More…
Even though our statewide radio show is called “Montana Talks,” we cover a lot of issues important to folks in the Rocky Mountain West. We also get a lot of great listeners in Wyoming thanks to the big signal from our Billings radio station: Newstalk 95.5 and AM970 KBUL. That being said, the news that Read More…
HELENA — Montana’s top Democratic state officeholder – U.S. Sen. Jon Tester – on Friday endorsed Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney in the contested Democratic primary for governor. “I can tell you that Mike will make a great leader for this state,” Tester said at a news conference in front of the state Capitol, with Cooney Read More…
On Friday, Roosevelt County Attorney and former Montana Speaker of the House Austin Knudsen will officially file to run as a Republican for the office of Montana Attorney General. KGVO spoke with Knudsen as he was taking a break on the road driving from his home in Wolf Point to Helena to file with the Read More…
A statewide campaign working to legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana submitted two proposed 2020 ballot initiatives for state review Monday. According to the initiative backers, The first ballot proposal would legalize marijuana in Montana for adults. In a press release, backers say it would also establish a regulatory framework for pot cultivation and sales, including Read More…
FARGO —A father and daughter who serve in the North Dakota Legislature announced on Tuesday, Jan. 7, that they are both running for reelection in November. Jim Roers, who holds the District 46 Senate seat, and his daughter, Shannon Roers Jones, who holds the District 46 House of Representatives seat, were both first elected Read More…
Wyoming lawmakers are the least conservative they’ve been in five years, a new report from a top conservative group in Washington says. However, a close review of the survey shows some oversights in the compilation of the numbers, including key differences in how the group evaluated members of the House and Senate. Numbers released Read More…
HELENA – A new bill was announced addressing the Firearm Owners Protection Act, with a focus on protecting travelers who bring firearms across state lines. The bill will clarify the term transport to include staying in temporary lodging overnight, stopping for food, fuel, and vehicle maintenance to name a few. It will also ensure that law-abiding gun Read More…
MISSOULA – After President Trump’s address to the nation, we bring the Iran conflict home to Montana and hear from the Treasure State’s leaders in the house and senate. After Wake Up Montana spoke with Senator Steve Daines, Senator Jon Tester, and Congressman Greg Gianforte, the responses were mixed, however all three agreed the world Read More…
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview published Monday that Democrats nationwide can cultivate “too big of a tent,” asserting that she and her party’s 2020 frontrunner, former Vice President Joe Biden, would be in different political parties in any other nation. Asked for a profile by New York Magazine about what role she might play as Read More…
A new survey found that people are mistaking 2020 Democratic presidential contender Tom Steyer for some of his competitors, despite hefty ad buys by the candidate. The New York Times released Friday the results of a quiz asking readers to identify different celebrities and political figures. The survey found that only 8% of people could properly identify Gov. Steve Read More…
U.S. Sen. Steve Daines was a cosponsor to a resolution introduced Monday that allows the Senate to dismiss articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump after 25 days for lack of prosecution. The proposal, introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, is a move to force House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to play her hand. When the trial Read More…
BOZEMAN — Alice Buckley is a few days away from two important dates. January 9 is the candidate filing open for Statewide, State District and Legislative candidates running in Montana. It’s also a couple days after her 27th birthday. “I have the interest and the commitment in having equal representation in the legislature and believe Read More…
There’s a three-way race underway for a seat on the Montana Supreme Court. Each of the candidates are relying on self funding to get their 2020 campaigns off the ground. Justice Laurie McKinnon, who lives in Helena, is running for reelection after announcing last year she would not seek a second eight-year term on the Read More…
The South Dakota legislature begins their 2020 session on January 14 in Pierre. State Farm Bureau Lobbyist Mike Held says the primary challenge facing lawmakers will be how to divide up the state budget to fund needed programs. He says Farm Bureau members are watching to see if legislators increase agricultural fees to raise revenue Read More…
BISMARCK —A New Jersey-based company that sells caller ID spoofing services is suing over North Dakota’s new anti-spoofing law, arguing it’s preempted by federal law and unconstitutional. SpoofCard LLC and CEO Amanda Pietrocola are asking a federal judge to stop the state from enforcing the law that took effect in August and to award them unspecified Read More…
Pete Buttigieg raised $24.7 million in the final three months of the year, his campaign said Wednesday. That brings the former South Bend, Ind., mayor’s total last year to about $76 million, making him one of the best fundraisers in the Democratic presidential field. Other candidates had not yet announced their fundraising hauls for the Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — Between taxes, marijuana and a presidential election, 2020 will be a busy year for voters. There are 10 issues proposed already, but not all of them have enough signatures yet. That means it’s still up in the air whether the following initiatives will make it to the ballot. The Marijuana Regulation Act One Read More…
LOS ANGELES — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was campaigning for Bernie Sanders at a jampacked beach-side rally last week when she took a moment to look beyond 2020. “I know, and we all know, that this isn’t just about Bernie Sanders,” she said. “This is about a movement that has been decades in the making.” Since endorsing Read More…
After declaring he would refuse to comply with a subpoena in President Trump’s impeachment trial, Joe Biden backtracked and said he would testify if hauled before Senate lawmakers. The former vice president on Saturday sought to clarify the comments he made on Friday when he told the Des Moine Register’s editorial board that the grounds to call Read More…
The Lake County Commissioners are doubling down on their opposition to a proposed bill that would ratify the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes water compact. Montana’s two U.S. senators, Jon Tester and Steve Daines, are co-sponsoring a bill, the Montana Water Rights Protection Act, that would ratify the water compact at the federal level. It would Read More…
Harvard law professor Laurence Tribe penned a Sunday column in support of House Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiFive health care fights to watch in 2020 Congressional leaders, 2020 hopefuls condemn anti-Semitic attack in New York Figures to watch as White House mounts impeachment defense MORE’s refusal to submit House articles of impeachment to the Senate for Read More…
President TrumpDonald John TrumpUS launches airstrikes targeting Iran-backed militia in Iraq, Syria Trade, interest rates top finance fights for 2020 Five health care fights to watch in 2020 MORE and former President Obama have finished 2019 tied as the “most admired men” in the U.S., according to new polling from Gallup. Obama and Trump both received 18 percent Read More…
Former first lady Michelle ObamaMichelle LeVaughn Robinson ObamaObama unveils favorite books, shows of 2019 Obama shares photo of family Christmas tree with holiday wishes: ‘Merry Christmas!’ Michelle Obama shares family Christmas card MORE is the “most admired woman” in the U.S. for 2019, according to a new Gallup poll. Obama earned 10 percent of the Read More…
Outlets report that one of the armed church parishioners who took down the gunman that open fired on the congregation the West Freeway Church of Christ in Texas is a man named Jack Wilson. Wilson is a Hood County resident running for commissioner for Precinct 3. He took to his campaign’s Facebook page to briefly discuss Read More…
Soccer players Ali Krieger and Ashlyn Harris tied the knot in Miami over the weekend, nearly a decade after the two first met as teammates on the U.S. women’s national soccer team in 2010.According to …
Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg on Monday took aim at President Trump, saying she “wouldn’t have wasted” her time with trying to speak to the president about climate change when she attended the U.N. Climate…
The Vermont senator delivered his plea in Des Moines before lighting a menorah on the final night of Hanukkah.
promotional still from ‘Cats’ courtesy Universal Pictures It is rare when a film is so bad that hyperbole does not do it justice… When it had been initially announced that after four decades of Broadway entrenchment the production of ‘’Cats’’ was being adapted for Hollywood there was zero interest from me. It was a musical Read More…
OPINION: Republican double-standards are clear if we look back at President Clinton’s impeachment.
Chief Justice John Roberts has tried to prevent the Supreme Court from being seen as just another political body, but when he presides over President Trump’s likely impeachment trial in the Senate, the partisan glare will…
Screenshot from this video The West Freeway Church faced a horrible tragedy in which they lost two of their congregation in six seconds after an attacker pulled a gun and started shooting in the church. The shooter was taken down by armed parishioners or many more might be dead. One parishioner who was acting as Read More…