Republicans in Congress have voted to overturn a Biden administration rule that blocked new federal coal leases in the Powder River Basin of eastern Montana, marking a significant shift in national energy policy and a victory for coal-producing states. The U.S. Senate on Wednesday approved a resolution under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to reverse Read More…
Governor Greg Gianforte joined thousands of students and community members at Montana State University this week for a Turning Point USA (TPUSA) event honoring the late Charlie Kirk, urging attendees to continue Kirk’s mission of faith, freedom, and love of country following his assassination last month. More than 2,800 MSU students and several hundred Montanans Read More…
North Dakota State Superintendent of Public Instruction Kirsten Baesler was confirmed Friday by the U.S. Senate to serve as Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education in the U.S. Department of Education, a top leadership role overseeing federal policy for the nation’s K-12 schools. “I am honored, humbled, and incredibly excited to have received this Read More…
(The Center Square) – Vice President JD Vance is calling for Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones to withdraw from Virginia’s Nov. 4 election after private text messages leaked in which Jones talked about shooting former House Speaker Todd Gilbert. The messages, first reported by National Review, include Jones writing in 2022 that Gilbert would Read More…
Gov. Steve Bullock said during a Wednesday call with the press he believes the state will remain “financially strong” coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, and that the state is in a better financial position than most other states. The governor said his office is predicting the state’s general fund balance will be $113 million Read More…
The coronavirus has altered yet another thing — ballot initiatives. Montana’s secretary of state has determined that MTCARES, the group behind a ballot initiative that would require 80% of the state’s energy come from renewable sources by 2034, can mail in non-notarized signatures to qualify for the November ballot. The decision came shortly after a Montana Read More…
(Bloomberg) — Michigan closed down its capitol in Lansing on Thursday and canceled its legislative session rather than face the possibility of an armed protest and death threats against Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer. The gathering, meant to advocate opening the state for business despite the coronavirus pandemic, followed one April 30 that resulted in pictures Read More…
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins has been named the most bipartisan member of the Senate for the seventh year in a row by the Georgetown University and the Lugar Center, based on a voting index compiled by the two organizations. Collins, a Republican seeking her fifth term, is in what is expected to be her toughest Read More…
Idaho’s May 19 primary election will be the state’s first all-absentee-ballot election, a move to curb the spread of COVID-19. The Idaho Press partnered with the League of Women Voters to conduct candidate surveys for local races. Find their answers in the links below or do a ballot search using your home address at vote411.org. Tuesday, Read More…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Before the coronavirus pandemic the state of South Dakota appeared to be able to afford to pay for historic new unemployment claims caused by an economic downturn, according to reports from the Federal Reserve in Minneapolis and the U.S. Department of Labor. But the state has reached historic new unemployment Read More…
WYOMING — The Wyoming State Legislature will convene for a special session on May 15 and May 16 to consider four bills aimed at providing critical relief and support to Wyoming communities, hospitals, workers, and businesses impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. They will appropriate some of the funds from the $1.25 billion in emergency funding Read More…
The Supreme Court on Wednesday wrestled with a dispute over whether Electoral College voters have a constitutional right to diverge from their state’s popular vote in two cases that could have implications for November’s presidential election. The arguments featured hypotheticals about what would happen if electors were to take a bribe, get hacked by a Read More…
Former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday named the co-chairs and members of their joint task forces meant to shore up Democratic Party unity ahead of November’s general election. The announcement follows through on a pledge the two men made last month — when Sanders, the runner-up in the Democratic Read More…
The most competitive race in Montana this election cycle is in the Republican primary to advance a candidate to November to try to take the seat in the U.S. House being vacated by U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte, with six candidates in the race. Gianforte ran in the special election to take the seat when it Read More…
BOZEMAN- The National Rifle Association announced their endorsement of Senator Steve Daines in Montana’s U.S. Senate race. The NRA awarded the Senator a grade of an “A+” for his support of the Second Amendment. READ FULL STORY
The Bozeman City Commission is advocating for Congress to give money to city governments across the U.S. to help with financial impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. All five members of the commission signed a letter to Montana’s congressional delegation asking for support for legislation that includes $500 billion for local governments as lawmakers consider Read More…
A legal battle between the state of Idaho and a transgender inmate seeking to undergo gender- confirmation surgery may be headed to the nation’s highest court. Gov. Brad Little announced Thursday that Idaho has appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a lower court’s ruling requiring the state to pay for inmate Adree Edmo’s Read More…
When it comes to sexual assault allegations against a conservative nominee to the Supreme Court of the United States- #BelieveWomen. When it comes to sexual assault allegations against a Democrat- #BelieveMen. That’s how the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s (NRSC) Nathan Brand sums up the news that liberal Gov. Steve Bullock (D-MT) is now defending former Read More…
Even after the White House’s delayed response to the coronavirus outbreak, unprecedented job losses and a bruising recession, investors and betting markets are still putting their money on President Trump to win re-election. The big picture: Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden holds a sizable lead in most national and individual swing state polls — but money managers Read More…
Kamala Harris was written off as a possible vice presidential pick for Joe Biden last year after a cutting debate performance where she seemed to suggest he was racially insensitive. Now, Harris is not only in top contention, but Biden aides, surrogates and major donors see her as the best fit at the onset of Read More…
(CNN)A liberal super PAC set up to help Democrats take back the Senate will spend $700,000 on a new ad to attack Sen. Steve Daines, a Montana Republican, sending another signal that Democrats are expanding the map to compete in even deep-red states as they try to flip the Senate in 2020. Senate Majority PAC told Read More…
The Democratic-led committee threatened to subpoena Bezos if he does not comply. Amazon’s stock fell after the announcement. Seven bipartisan members of the committee said in a letter to Bezos that a recent Wall Street Journal report on Amazon’s use of third-party seller data appears to show that Amazon may have misled Congress in previous statements. “If Read More…
The FBI took steps in early 2017 to close its investigation into former Trump adviser Michael Flynn before abruptly reversing course, according to new documents filed in Flynn’s pending legal effort to rescind his guilty plea for lying to federal agents. The filings indicate that by Jan. 4, 2017, the FBI had drafted a document Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — Two civil rights groups that filed a federal lawsuit challenging a new Idaho law banning transgender women from competing in women’s sports have asked for a preliminary injunction to prevent the law from taking effect July 1. The American Civil Liberties Union and Legal Voice filed the request Thursday. READ FULL Read More…
With so much of our attention rightly focused on all of the coronavirus news, and the economic fallout from the COVID-19 closures- much of the election news has been pushed off to the sideline. But, as absentee ballots are soon to be shipped out to voters all across Montana- the important primary debates will come back Read More…
Montana’s Democratic governor, Steve Bullock, who has called for eliminating super PACs, appears to have a new outside super PAC backing his Senate run. The Big Sky Voters PAC—a Montana-based super PAC—was created April 23 and looks positioned to boost Bullock’s Senate bid against incumbent Republican senator Steve Daines. Its treasurer previously held the same role for Read More…
Republicans Brian Putnam will challenge incumbent David Dunn – currently in his first term – for the Montana House District 9 nomination in the June 2 primary election. The winner of the primary election will be uncontested in the Nov. 3 general election. Early voting begins May 8. David Dunn Age:32 Family: Bachelor, dog, cat, Read More…
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden’s remarkable comeback from the depths of a fifth-place finish in the New Hampshire primary to all but locking up the Democratic nomination this month can be traced to his overwhelming support among black voters. And one critical endorsement — from South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn — helped reinforce that support at a tenuous moment in his Read More…
A planning commissioner for the city of Vallejo, Calfornia has resigned from his position after throwing his pet cat and appearing to consume an alcoholic beverage during a publicly-accessible Zoom meeting between city officials, Vallejo Times-Herald reported. During the Planning Commission’s meeting on April 20 — the group’s first teleconference amid the coronavirus pandemic — Chris Platzer told Read More…
Former Montana congressman Ron Marlenee, a Republican who served for eight terms representing the state’s old eastern district, died Sunday in Bozeman. He was 84. Marlenee, a farmer and rancher from Scobey in Montana’s northeastern corner, won the eastern district congressional seat in 1976 and was re-elected seven times. He then lost a close statewide Read More…
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) argued Wednesday that many Americans should protest economic insecurity by refusing to work after coronavirus-related restrictions are lifted. “When we talk about this idea of reopening society, you know, only in America does the president — when the president tweets about liberation — does he mean go back to work. When Read More…
In 2017, actress Alyssa Milano became one of the early advocates for the #MeToo movement when she tweeted, “If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted, write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet.” Legions of women went public with their stories in response. Two-and-a-half years later, Milano took to Twitter again — this time, to explain Read More…
CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Wyoming House District 45 Representative Charles Pelkey, who also serves as the Minority Whip said today in a Facebook post that Governor Gordon is “suddenly under a lot of pressure to “reopen” the economy no matter what the recommendations from health officials might be.” Gordon’s first of three orders was placed in mid-March in response Read More…
U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., outlined the importance of a phased reopening of the Montana economy while discussing COVID-19 relief efforts on Capitol Hill during a virtual chat with the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday morning. Daines said the good news is that Montana has seen a steady decline in confirmed COVID-19 cases – Read More…
A meeting between protesters demanding an end to restrictions on businesses in Wyoming and Gov. Mark Gordon on Monday was by turns confrontational and civil as the protesters shouted chants at the Republican and later thanked him for his time. Gordon appeared unexpectedly at Cheyenne’s Rally for the Choice to Work, engaging the 50 or Read More…
If any projects should be moving forward right now- it’s infrastructure, it’s boots on the grounds, it’s shovel ready jobs that put money into the pockets of hard working Americans. And, oh by the way- a Montana firm landed the contract. We’re talking about the effort to build a wall on our nation’s Southern border. Read More…
Montana U.S. Senator Steve Daines announced Saturday that nearly $3.5 million will be directed to the Montana Board of Crime Control. “This funding will play a critical role to ensure our law enforcement on the front lines have the resources they need to protect our communities during the coronavirus outbreak,” Daines said in press release. Read More…
HELENA — Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte has loaned another $500,000 of his own money to his campaign, increasing his personal contributions to $1.05 million – about a third of his total funding. Even without the personal loans, Gianforte, Montana’s U.S. representative, has easily out-raised his two Republican rivals in the year-long campaign for Montana’s Read More…
The battle over whether for-profit Alaska Native corporations should get a slice of the $8 billion in coronavirus relief intended for U.S. tribes exploded Thursday into a Twitter fight among U.S. senators, an Alaska-born Interior Department official and the governor. Let’s get you caught up: Congress has agreed to give $150 billion in relief Read More…
Groups in Montana collecting signatures to get ballot initiatives included in the November election are pushing the governor and secretary of state to eliminate requirements for in-person signature gathering and notarization. New Approach Montana, a group working to legalize recreational marijuana, has sued Secretary of State Corey Stapleton over the state’s prohibition on electronic signature collection. The group Read More…
Some of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ top campaign surrogates spoke to the New York Times about what it means that their former candidate, the leader of a massive grassroots movement, has endorsed the presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden. Why it matters: Convincing progressives to support Biden is viewed as key to building the coalition needed to defeat President Trump Read More…
Critics are blasting Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for staging a “photo op” Tuesday in the US ZIP code hardest hit by the coronavirus. A small group gathered in the virally blighted neighborhood of Corona, Queens, in AOC’s district, to hear a pitch for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to offer funeral assistance. Read More…
HELENA — In the past three months, investment funds owned by U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte have bought stock in several pharmaceutical and consulting firms doing work related to the coronavirus outbreak. Yet those purchases are a tiny fraction of the more than 200 transactions that Gianforte’s investment funds publicly reported since Jan. 1, as they Read More…
HELENA — A political action committee filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday challenging a Montana law a week after a state Republican lawmaker lodged a complaint about them alleging they are using a name that fails to identify the special interests of contributors, some of whom are fellow GOP legislators. Doctors for a Healthy Montana filed Read More…