HELENA — Montana’s Republican Sen. Steve Daines said in a call with constituents Wednesday night that Medicaid expansion, which now covers about 79,000 around the state, would likely end in 2019 regardless of a U.S. Senate bill expected to terminate the program by 2026. When Montana chose to join with 31 other states and expand Read More…
HELENA — Two Democratic governors are saying that the Senate health care proposal would devastate their conservative-leaning states. Montana Gov. Steve Bullock joined Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards on Wednesday for a call with reporters outlining their concerns about Republican efforts in Washington to dismantle the Obama administration’s Affordable Care Act. Bullock said GOP proposals Read More…
HELENA — About 50 people gathered outside of Sen. Steve Daines’ Helena office on Wednesday afternoon to urge him to vote no on the Senate healthcare bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. The gathering happened several hours before a tele town hall on Wednesday night, but people said they were frustrated with Read More…
BUTTE — Republican Sen. Steve Daines has reiterated his invitation to Environmental Protection Agency’s top administrator Scott Pruitt to visit a Superfund site in Montana. Daines first gave the invitation to Pruitt in February at the time of Pruitt’s confirmation hearing. Pruitt, so far, has not taken Daines up on that offer. When he visited Read More…
BUTTE — Republican Sen. Steve Daines has reiterated his invitation to Environmental Protection Agency’s top administrator Scott Pruitt to visit a Superfund site in Montana. Daines first gave the invitation to Pruitt in February at the time of Pruitt’s confirmation hearing. Pruitt, so far, has not taken Daines up on that offer. When he visited Read More…
The Blackfeet Nation voted no on a new governing document Tuesday in their first-ever vote to replace the Indian Reorganization Act constitution that’s been in place since the 1930s. Tribal members rejected the citizen-drafted constitution with 56 percent against and 44 percent in favor, according to unofficial counts. Voter registration forms were sent out to Read More…
BILLINGS — The Fort Peck Tribal Executive Board has filed a complaint with federal agencies, alleging discrimination against Native American students in the Wolf Point School District. The complaint, which is backed by the ACLU of Montana, alleges that Native students have been disproportionately disciplined in comparison to white students and are denied various academic Read More…
BILLINGS — Two Yellowstone National Park visitors were injured after bison “butted” them at Mud Volcano, just north of Lake Village, park officials said. Utah residents Theodore Schrader, 74, and Patsy Holmes, 72, were taking photographs on a boardwalk when a bison approached them. The animal “butted” Holmes, who fell into Schrader. Park rangers helped Read More…
Jeff Bridges played a president in “The Contender,” a political flick released nearly two decades ago in the wake of President Bill Clinton’s White House scandals. But when it comes to critiquing the role of today’s real-life president, Bridges is a lot more laid back than some of his fellow celebrities. How would The Dude, Read More…
POLSON — Law enforcement officers in northwestern Montana believe a body that was recovered from the Flathead River is that of a 23-year-old Nebraska man who went missing last month. Richard Mitchell of Minatare, Nebraska, fell into the fast-moving water on May 31 after passing warning signs at a scenic overlook just below the SQK Read More…
HELENA — The Helena Police Department has released audio of the 911 call that led to the arrest and charge of partner or family member assault against Cascade County Sheriff Bob Edwards. Your browser does not support the audio element. Edwards was arrested in Helena earlier this month while attending the Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association Read More…
HAMILTON — Colleen Powell became a little too attached to the red-tail hawk she tried to help Friday night. She was driving on the East Side Highway about 8 p.m. after an early evening of bird watching near Bells Corner when she spied the raptor on the west side of the road. “He was standing Read More…
HAMILTON — Dozens of vintage Chevrolet “horseless carriages” descended upon the Bitterroot Valley, slowly buzzing around and along U.S. Highway 93 as part of a national group’s annual event. The Vintage Chevrolet Four-Cylinder tour is in Hamilton with some cars that are 103 years old. The cars and trucks were built between 1914 and 1928. Read More…
WHITEFISH — After a year of working to bring diverse interests to the table to find better ways to manage forest and rangelands across the West, Gov. Steve Bullock said progress had been made but more needs to be done. Bullock presented a report Tuesday on his National Forest and Rangeland Management Initiative at the Western Read More…
BUTTE — Democrat Senator Jon Tester got assurances Tuesday from Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt that he will enforce Superfund regulations despite seeking to slash $326 million from cleanup sites, including Butte, during a Senate hearing in Washington. Pruitt’s hearing before the 15-member Senate subcommittee on appropriations for the environment and other agencies provided an Read More…
A group of Montana newspapers has been allowed to join a challenge to Marsy’s law as a friend of the court. The law, a so-called victims’ bill of rights, was passed by voters in November and is supposed to take effect July 1. The American Civil Liberties Union of Montana, Montana Association of Counties, Montana Read More…
HELENA — Republican Greg Gianforte and Democrat Rob Quist raised a combined $11.5 million in last month’s special congressional election, a record haul in Montana for a U.S. House seat. The race won by Gianforte seemed destined to break records when outside groups began pouring money into the contest. In all, such groups poured in Read More…
WHITEFISH — Cutting off public campaigns by proponents and opponents, U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Tuesday he plans to recommend the Upper Missouri Breaks retain its status as a national monument, effectively taking it off the list of monuments nationwide that could lose their status. “My likely recommendation will be to leave the Missouri Read More…
WHITEFISH — U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Tuesday he plans to recommend the Upper Missouri Breaks retain its status as a national monument, effectively taking it off the list of monuments nationwide that could lose their status. “My likely recommendation will be to leave the Missouri Breaks as is,” Zinke said. “I think it’s Read More…
HELENA — A district court judge from Billings is forming an exploratory committee to consider running against U.S. Sen. Jon Tester in 2018. Russ Fagg, who announced earlier this spring that he will retire from the Yellowstone County District Court bench in the fall, announced his decision in a press release Tuesday. “I believe in Read More…