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…
Montana’s Democratic Senator Jon Tester said Monday there is an agenda behind new attack ads aimed at the politician. The ads from the Judicial Crisis Network claim Tester is threatening to block support for Supreme Court Judge nominee Neil Gorsuch, creating gridlock in Washington. From KULR 8
Some health advocacy groups on Monday said they are supporting a draft bill to raise the state tax on cigarettes by $1.50 a pack to boost it to $3.20 a pack. Montana’s current cigarette tax of $1.70 a pack ranks 22nd highest nationally and hasn’t been raised since 2005, backers said. The national average Read More…
Helena – A recently released state audit that included the Montana Department of Transportation shows that MDT gave out raises to 82% of employees while postponing construction projects and asking the legislature to raise the state gas tax. The audited conducted by the Legislative Audit Division revealed that MDT handed out raises of $2.4 Million Read More…
Andrew Puzder withdrew his nomination Wednesday to be secretary of labor after Senate Republicans informed the White House that he lacked the votes to be confirmed. GOP senators advised the White House that Puzder could not pass through the narrowly divided Senate, sources said, and shortly thereafter the White House confirmed his intention to pull Read More…
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is trying to clear the traffic jam of votes on six of President Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees, including Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke, who stands to be confirmed as the next interior secretary. McConnell filed cloture on Monday night for Rep. Mick Mulvaney, who will head the office of management and Read More…
Kelly McCarthy is a long-shot hopeful for the Montana Democratic nomination in the U.S. House election, according to a recent poll. Ahead of him are musician Rob Quist and schoolteacher Amanda Curtis. From Bozeman Daily Chronicle
State lawmakers are continuing to work on Wyoming’s supplemental budget bill, and a committee is expected to be appointed today to iron out the differences in the House and Senate versions of the budget. The House passed its version of the budget Monday, and the Senate passed its version Friday. From Wyoming Business Report
Helena – Despite months of campaigning on fiscal responsibility and opposition to a statewide sales tax, Governor Steve Bullock is now supporting a raising the state fuel tax. At a contentious confirmation hearing this week, Department of Transportation director Mike Tooley admitted the Bullock administration wanted to propose an increase in the fuel tax but Read More…
Montana educators expressed their concerns to Montana’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen at an education conference on Thursday. Arntzen stopped by the Montana Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals Conference in Great Falls to update attendees on various areas of education since taking over office in December. From KTVQ
Only two people filed applications by Friday’s deadline to indicate their desire to replace the state’s commissioner of political practices, Jon Motl. Michael Larson of Billings submitted his application to be the state’s campaign watchdog last week. Larson was a Billings City Commissioner from 1996 to 2004, a nonpartisan office. From Bozeman Daily Chronicle
President Donald Trump’s controversial executive orders on immigration and refugees — which were immediately challenged in federal court — brought into sharp relief the high political and legal stakes for the Supreme Court fight that will unfold this week. With Trump planning to announce his nominee on Tuesday night, his allies are moving quickly to Read More…
Helena – Montana Attorney General Tim Fox has issued an Attorney General opinion that nullifies a Missoula City Council ordinance that would require background checks for private gun purchases within Missoula city limits. Fox ruled Thursday that the ordinance violates state law stating that, “Plainly interpreted, the Montana Legislature has prohibited all forms of local Read More…
Helena – More than 300 people rallied at the capitol Wednesday in support of school choice. Supporters are asking the Legislature to support several bills this session. Montana is one of only three states in the nation with no form of school choice. “Every student deserves the chance to find his or her perfect educational Read More…
Dark. Negative. Divisive. That’s was the immediate narrative about President Donald Trump’s inaugural address. But many Americans liked it. A new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll shows that the new president’s message is resonating with voters, refuting the idea that Trump bungled his first speech as commander in chief. From Politico
Embattled State Sen. Bill Kintner resigned Wednesday from the Nebraska Legislature following months of criticism from lawmakers, constituents and Gov. Pete Ricketts. The resignation is effective Jan. 30. From Omaha World-Herald
Lawmakers are considering a bill that seeks state funding for 19-year-old high school students. Currently, Montana only funds students who are age 18 or younger at the start of the academic year. Democratic Rep. Jean Price of Great Falls introduced her bill Monday. The House Education Committee heard testimony in favor, but did not take Read More…
Sen. Steve Daines is praising President Donald J. Trump’s executive action to move forward with the Keystone XL pipeline. “The Keystone XL pipeline will create good-paying Montana union and tribal jobs,” Daines stated. “After years of talk and political nonsense, I couldn’t be more thrilled that President Trump has heeded my call to move forward Read More…
The nation’s capital descended into inauguration madness today. Masked protesters smashing store windows. A former America’s Got Talent competitor crooning “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Our new president promising a skittish country that “I will never, ever let you down.” Quite a ways down the coast, at Miami’s Turnberry Isle Resort, politicians and progressive donors are presently Read More…
Four Republican members of the Montana House pitched four bills to the Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that aim to change the state’s gun laws, including allowing anyone to carry a concealed pistol without a permit. Rep. Randy Brodehl of Kalispell said House Bill 246 reaffirms a Montanan’s right to possess firearms in a U.S. post Read More…
Helena – Montana’s state budget has been the biggest issue of the legislative session so far, that will likely continue when Governor Steve Bullock delivers the annual State of the State address this week. When he released his budget proposal in November, Bullock said in a press release that “Montanans expect our state’s leaders to Read More…
Montana musician Rob Quist is touring the state, not performing songs, but meeting with local Democrats who could grant Quist his wish to become their party’s nominee in an anticipated special election. U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, the Montana Republican tapped to become the next secretary of the interior, is expected to resign shortly after Read More…
“I ride my bike every day all year long and I do it because it makes me feel good,” said Bike Walk Montana Board Member and Montana Cycling Advocate. Taylor Lonsdale. Traveling the state on two wheels could get a little more challenging, a new proposed bill would ban cyclists on two lane roads that do Read More…
The state Senate’s Business, Labor & Economic Affairs Committee on Wednesday delayed voting on legislation that hopes to protect Montanans from exorbitant air ambulance bills so that it could consider amendments. Committee Chair Sen. Ed Buttrey, R-Great Falls, had substantial amendments drafted for SB 44, the bipartisan air ambulance committee bill being carried by Republican Read More…
At 12:01 p.m. Friday, Donald Trump’s aides will deploy a team of temporary political appointees into federal agencies to begin laying the groundwork for the president-elect’s agenda while his nominees await Senate confirmation, sources familiar with the plan told POLITICO. While the transition team has been building the so-called beachhead teams for months, they are Read More…
Ivanka Trump dispelled speculation that she will be filling in as a surrogate first lady or occupying the East Wing office of the White House, traditionally reserved for the president’s wife. Speculation that Ivanka Trump will fill in for incoming first lady Melania Trump started swirling after Trump transition sources said Melania Trump was not Read More…
President-elect Donald Trump will likely issue as many as five executive orders on Friday after his inauguration, the Washington Examiner reported. “He’s got a few of them, probably in the area of four to five, that we’re looking at on Friday,” incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer said. From News Max
White House press secretary Josh Earnest defended President Barack Obama’s decision to commute the prison sentence of soldier Chelsea Manning, who was convicted of leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to Wikileaks. He also accused Republicans of being hypocritical in their criticism of the move. From News Max
Betsy DeVos, Donald Trump’s pick for Secretary of Education, was met with a harsh reality check of what this role might entail. Some onlookers including teachers around the nation have criticized DeVos for her ideas on public education. Teachers across the county were wearing red Thursday to show their support for public education and sending a message Read More…
Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of the Interior, disputed Trump’s belief that climate change is a “hoax” and forcefully reaffirmed his opposition to the sale of public lands during his confirmation hearing Tuesday in front of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The Whitefish Republican was received amicably, for Read More…
In clearing more than $1 million in campaign debt over the past year, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker got the majority of the money by selling his donor list to other candidates. The governor racked up the debt before he dropped out of the Republican presidential primary in September 2015. He announced last week that he had paid off or otherwise resolved Read More…
Multiple retail liquor licenses across the state could be freed under a liquor law revisions bill advanced from the Senate Corporations Committee on Tuesday. Senate File 14 would tighten the time frame retail liquor license holders have to begin operations and would require license holders to be operational year-round to keep their license, instead of Read More…
Helena – Republican Senator Pat Connell (R-Hamilton) introduced Senate Bill 74 last week which would allow the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks to ban the use of barbed fishing hooks on catch and release only designated waters. The bill was heard in the Montana Senate Fish and Game committee on January 12, but Read More…
Wyoming could become the 29th state to request a constitutional convention to create a federal balanced budget amendment, if a resolution moving through the House of Represen-tatives is ultimately passed by the full Legislature. House Joint Resolution 2 was advanced by the House Judiciary Committee on Monday afternoon and will go on to the full Read More…
Former Republican Party chairman and state Sen. Ken Miller of Laurel said Monday he’ll compete for the GOP nomination to succeed U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, who may resign as soon as next week. “I’m not running for Congress because I want a title; I’m running to stand up for life, liberty and property,” he said Read More…
State officials have been planning a $10 million effort over the next two years to prevent the spread of invasive mussels in waters throughout Montana, but they aren’t yet sure where all the money will come from. Officials from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks explained Read More…
President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to be labor secretary has voiced second thoughts in recent days, because of a relentless barrage of criticism from Democrats, labor unions and other liberal groups, a business ally and GOP sources tell CNN. Andy Puzder is the CEO of the company that owns the Hardees and Carl’s Jr. fast food Read More…
President Obama’s first inaugural festivities stretched over five days. Donald Trump is spending barely three on his. Bill Clinton hit 14 official balls on the day he was sworn in. Trump plans appearances at three. From The Washington Post
Former U.S. Sen. Max Baucus’ son, Zeno Baucus, is considering whether to compete for the Democratic nomination for Montana’s soon-to-be-vacant U.S. House seat, MTN News has learned. The younger Baucus is an assistant U.S. attorney in Billings. He’s one of five Democrats now either considering or running for the seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Read More…
Nearly 120 potential delegates that would choose the Republican Party’s nominee to succeed U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke are behind Greg Gianforte, according to a letter distributed by his supporters – appearing to give him a near-lock on the nomination. The letter, signed by 117 local and state Montana Republican Party officials and officeholders, calls Gianforte Read More…
According to the Montana Department of Health and Human Services our state ranks No. 1 per capita in the country for suicide. Bills before the legislature are aiming to help decrease that statistic. Both measures are requesting $500,000. One measure is focused on helping prevent suicide among veterans. The other measure asks for extra funding Read More…