WASHINGTON — Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign said he would debate state Rep. James Talarico in Texas’ U.S. Senate race after Talarico challenged him to do so Thursday morning. Talarico, the Democratic nominee, said he had accepted invitations from Texas media groups for three televised debates and urged Paxton, who has not participated in debates Read More…
The man who led the U.S. response to the global pandemic in 2020 told Congress on Wednesday he wouldn’t answer questions about it. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, said he will invoke his Fifth Amendment right to protect against self-incrimination in a hearing about his role as Read More…
A group of nine Montana Democratic attorneys published an open letter this month urging the Montana Democratic Party’s State Central Committee to consider not nominating a replacement candidate if Democratic Senate nominee Alani Bankhead withdraws — a legal argument designed to clear the path for independent candidate Seth Bodnar to face Republican Kurt Alme one-on-one. Read More…
See the latest fundraising totals, where the money is coming from and how super PACs are spending in what’s poised to be Texas’ most expensive Senate race. The race for Texas’s senate seat is shaping up to be one the most expensive competitions in the nation. Democratic nominee James Talarico is setting records, raising more Read More…
The City of Missoula has filed for summary judgment in its lawsuit against Montana Attorney General Tim Fox regarding a universal background check ordinance for gun purchases, asking a judge to rule in its favor on the application of state laws without going through a trial. Summary judgment can be used when the two sides Read More…
The next chairman of the National Governors Association (NGA) will spend his term promoting job training and workforce development, an initiative that could be seen as the outlines of a presidential campaign message. Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D) will formally take the helm of the bipartisan group on Saturday in Santa Fe, N.M., where the nation’s governors are Read More…
HELENA – Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton is asking the state Supreme Court to overturn a judge’s decision to remove Green Party candidates from the November ballot. Stapleton’s office filed an appeal Wednesday of the decision by District Judge James Reynolds of Helena. Reynolds ruled last week that 87 of the more than 7,000 signatures Read More…
New York billionaire George Soros said former President Barack Obama was his “greatest disappointment,” during a wide-ranging interview with the New York Times published on Tuesday, while also appearing to distance himself from partisan politics. The wealthy liberal donor, who was an early supporter of Obama’s 2008 presidential run, told The Times that Obama was Read More…
Jackson Hole News&Guide reporter John Spina has set aside his journalistic ambitions to try to get Republican Jackson billionaire Foster Friess elected as the next Wyoming governor. Friess announced Spina’s appointment as his campaign’s director of communications Friday. His two-year stint covering the town of Jackson and Wyoming Legislature came to a close the week Read More…
State Rep. Jon Knokey on Friday officially withdrew from his re-election bid, spurring local Republicans to find a replacement for the race. Knokey served as a representative for House District 65, which includes the northern part of Bozeman from East Valley Center Road to Huffine Lane and from Gooch Hill Road to North Rouse Avenue. Read More…
On Friday, the Montana Shooting Sports Association moved to intervene in the City of Missoula’s lawsuit against Montana Attorney General Tim Fox over the ‘Bloomberg Ordinance’. Missoula’s gun ordinance was ruled as unenforceable by the Attorney General as it conflicts with state law. MSSA President Gary Marbut said the intervention is to protect the rights Read More…
Wyoming Republican Sen. John Barrasso introduced a discussion draft of the Endangered Species Act that elevates the role of states, increases transparency and prioritizes resources. “When it comes to the Endangered Species Act, the status quo is not good enough,” said Barrasso, chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. “We must do Read More…
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On Tuesday night in New York, a 28-year-old political newcomer and self-described socialist, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, defeated one of the most powerful and entrenched Democrats in Congress in a shocking primary win for the progressive wing of the party. Ocasio-Cortez is likely to be the youngest woman ever elected to Congress come November. READ THE FULL Read More…
Helena – In a lawsuit filed by the Montana Democratic Party and several prominent Democrats, District Court Judge James Reynolds ruled Monday in favor of the Democrats and ordered the Montana Green Party must be removed from the ballot. However, Judge Reynolds failed to disclose his ties to one of the plaintiffs, Donald Judge of Read More…
Democrats could breathe more easily Tuesday after a judge ordered the Montana Green Party to be removed from the November ballot, upending a threat from the left to Sen. Jon Tester’s critical re-election bid. Helena District Court Judge James P. Reynolds issued his ruling after invalidating dozens of signatures on Green Party petitions in what Read More…
The lines started forming before noon Thursday, hours before President Donald Trump’s scheduled 4 p.m. arrival at Four Seasons Arena in Great Falls. As the temperature climbed, more and more red, white and blue-clad Trump enthusiasts milled around the fairgrounds, bearing the chants that would later echo throughout the arena: “Keep America Great” signs, “Lock Read More…
President Trump went after Sen. Jon Tester during a campaign-style rally in Tester’s home state of Montana on Thursday night, accusing the Democratic senator of failing to live up to his promises in Washington. Joined by Republican Senate candidate Matt Rosendale, who is seeking to oust Tester in November, Trump sought to tie the two-term Read More…
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, directly targeted by a presidential visit Thursday, spent the Fourth of July in Butte and East Helena – and said he’s not that worried about President Trump campaigning against him. In fact, he said he hopes the president sees more of Montana than just the walls of a campaign rally. “I Read More…
Montana Representative Greg Gianforte is trying to win support in Congress for more roadbuilding on public lands. Conservationists say he’s trying to turn back the clock to policies that proved unsustainable. On Tuesday, Gianforte chaired a House subcommittee hearing focused on road closures and access on U.S. Forest Service lands. “Unfortunately the Forest Service seems Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — The president of the United States is coming to Montana Thursday. Donald Trump will be the 17th sitting president to do so and the sixth to visit Great Falls. Trump is hosting military families for a picnic and fireworks at the White House for the Fourth of July, but in less than Read More…
HELENA, Mont.—Jerry Swick, an Army veteran who currently resides in this mountainous capital city, plans to vote this fall to keep Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in Congress. He just doesn’t know how he would tell that to President Donald Trump, for whom Mr. Swick voted in 2016. Mr. Trump will host a campaign rally in Read More…
Special Counsel Robert Mueller is tapping additional Justice Department resources for help with new legal battles as his year-old investigation of Russian interference with the 2016 election continues to expand. As Mueller pursues his probe, he’s making more use of career prosecutors from the offices of U.S. attorneys and from Justice Department headquarters, as well Read More…
A giant balloon dubbed “Trump baby” has been given the green light to fly near parliament during the president’s UK visit. London mayor Sadiq Khan’s Greater London Authority has approved a request for the flight after thousands signed a petition and a crowdfunding campaign raised more than £16,000 to get the six-metre inflatable off the Read More…
Donald Trump Jr. is set to headline Friday’s GOP convention in Montana, where he will seek to boost state auditor Matt Rosendale (R), who is running for Senate. READ THE FULL STORY.
For the first time since President Donald Trump took office, the CNBC All-America Economic Survey shows more than half the public approving his handling of the economy, and it appears to be having some impact on his overall job approval rating. The president’s economic approval rating surged 6 points to 51 percent with just 36 Read More…
NEW YORK (CNN) — The Trump administration took the final step Tuesday in its plan aimed at making health insurance policies cheaper for some small businesses. The administration released its final rule governing association health plans, which allow small businesses and the self-employed to band together based on their industry or location and buy health Read More…
BILLINGS – Montana State University Billings has named Ed Garding as the Interim Dean of the College of Business. Garding served as the president and CEO of First Interstate BancSystem from 2012 to 2015. He is still involved at First Interstate as the corporate and government relations officer. He began his career with First Interstate Read More…
The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee has invited FBI counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok to appear before the panel. Strzok has faced a barrage of attacks from President Trump and conservatives after an internal investigation revealed he had been sending messages critical of the then-Republican candidate during the 2016 presidential race to FBI lawyer Read More…
The two Republicans in Montana’s congressional delegation – Sen. Steve Daines and Rep. Greg Gianforte – told MTN News this week they were mostly standing behind President Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigrants crossing the Mexican border. “He announced a zero-tolerance policy; it’s taking a strong stance to secure our borders,” Daines told MTN News Tuesday. Read More…
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) said in an interview last week that not enough of her fellow Senate Democrats were willing to “take on the billionaire class.” Warren has been critical of Senate Democrats for their support of the Dodd-Frank rollback, which President Donald Trump signed in May. The new legislation scaled back regulations imposed Read More…
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., used a private plane to travel between some stops on a three-day RV tour of her state, McCaskill confirmed Tuesday. “I added some stops with the use of the plane, but I was on the RV so much that the broken door drove me crazy,” McCaskill said Tuesday, according to Politico. Read More…
HELENA, Mont. — Montana’s GOP nominee for U.S. Senate is turning down a debate with incumbent Sen. Jon Tester. The planned debate between Matt Rosendale and Tester would have been hosted this Sunday in Whitefish by the Montana Broadcasters Association. Monday morning the association told us Rosendale declined to appear. READ THE FULL STORY.
(CNN) – A government watchdog has cleared Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke from improper political activity when he spoke to a professional hockey team owned by one of his campaign donors. The Office of Special Counsel found “no evidence or allegation” that Zinke “gave a political speech or otherwise engaged in political activity during this event” Read More…
Sen. Jon Tester of Montana was already facing a tough re-election battle in a state that Donald Trump won by a landslide — and then the Green Party made the Democrat’s job that much tougher by qualifying for the ballot. Now the Montana Democratic Party is scrambling to oust the Greens. It has asked a Read More…
Millions of dollars are flowing into Montana’s US Senate race before voters go to the polls on Tuesday — and that’s just for the Republican primary. GOP candidates and conservative outside groups have already poured about $5.7 million into the primary for Montana’s US Senate race on Tuesday. That’s about $5.60 per resident and about Read More…
A U-S Supreme court decision expected in the coming weeks could deal a big blow to Montana’s public sector unions. The decision could make Montana a so-called ‘Right-to-Work’ state in the public sector, costing the state’s biggest union membership, revenue, and bargaining power. “A union only works or only works well when the majority, if Read More…
At least two advertisers say they’re suspending ads from comedian Samantha Bee’s television show. The backlash follows the latest episode of TBS’s “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” in which Bee called first daughter Ivanka Trump a vulgar name. Autotrader said in its statement that Bee’s comments were “offensive and unacceptable.” “As a result, Autotrader has Read More…
In Montana’s crowded U.S. House Democratic primary, former land-trust director Grant Kier of Missoula and Billings attorney John Heenan are raising the most money – but their fundraising profiles are much different. Through mid-May, Kier had raised the most money from donors, at almost $760,000, with nearly two-thirds of that amount from Montanans. But he Read More…
The next big Republican Senate primary is in Montana, where voters will choose Democratic Sen. Jon Tester’s opponent on Tuesday. The GOP contest in Big Sky Country was a sleepy affair for much of this year, lacking the verbal ax throwing that animated similar contests in Indiana and West Virginia this spring. “It kinda starts Read More…
HELENA – One of the most hotly contested local races in the June 5 primary election will be for the Democratic nomination in Montana House District 81, covering parts of Helena and the Helena Valley. State Sen. Mary Caferro and Helena city commissioner Rob Farris-Olsen are running for the open seat. The primary will likely Read More…
HELENA – A political group that wants to elect more scientists is making the first major outside-money buy in Montana’s crowded Democratic U.S. House primary, supporting former land-trust director Grant Kier. The 314 Action Fund reported spending $52,000 in the past two weeks on direct mailers supporting Kier, one of five candidates competing for the Read More…
Matt Bell, a Democrat challenging three-term Montana House incumbent Kimberly Dudik is apologizing for making false statements in a mailer voters received last week. “I’m really sorry, I’m really embarrassed that I let this happen,” Matt Bell says. Matt Bell’s mailer claimed endorsements from Montana Conservation Voters, Planned Parenthood and the state’s largest labor union. Read More…
When a small group of alarmed White House aides caught wind that Sen. Heidi Heitkamp — one of the most endangered Democrats up for reelection in 2018 — would be attending President Donald Trump’s bill signing last week, they raced to stop it. Word eventually reached Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has made unseating Read More…