News you can use
News you can use
Sorted by date Results 2021 - 2045 of 3191
Montana is broke. As subcommittee chairs of House Appropriations, we are the first stop for spending bills in the Montana Legislature. We are responsible for hearing testimony in our area of focus, then making decisions and moving bills to the full Appropriations Committee. In a low budget situation, like we are currently experiencing, we are responsible for making spending cuts and doing the difficult work of prioritizing needs in order to create a balanced budget. We recognize that there is a need for us to do a better job...
The congressional death in 1945 and the appointment of a federal judgeship appointment in 1969 triggered two Montana special congressional elections like the one we’ll have in 2017 once Rep. Ryan Zinke is sworn in as Interior Secretary. On Jan. 15, 1945, beginning his fifth term, Montana Congressman James F. O’Connor of Livingston, 66, passed away in Washington, D.C. O’Connor had been a Montana District Judge, served one term in the Montana Legislature, and unsuccessfully tried three times in Democratic primaries to get t...
In 2014, a large majority of Montana voters cast their votes for Steve Daines to be our U.S. Senator. That was done primarily with the belief that he embodied and promised to protect the things that we in Montana held dear. This was mart of his message to the people of Montana as he marched around our great state asking for our vote. It worked and Sen. Daines won easily in all but a few of our large cities. In the two years he has served as our junior senator, he has served his conservative base in a fashion that one could ex...
The office of the Commissioner of Political Practices is a hot topic at the Montana Legislature. Montana has had 11 commissioners of political practices since 1975, when the current model for the office was created by a group charged with de-politicizing the COPP. Ask anyone who has run for office in Montana about the services they received from the office of Political Practices, and every one of them will say that the office and its staff are knowledgeable and helpful to an extreme. When legislative candidates call to ask...
Week 6 has seen more House bills moving from the House to the Senate. Things, in general, seem to be moving a little bit faster as we move into the full swing of session. Elsie Arntzen, superintendent of the Office of Public Instruction, gave a presentation to the Senate this week. She stated that, in her opinion, more funds need to be assigned to education from the General Fund, even as her department currently uses around 40 percent of the general fund. Her budget calls for $3 million in cuts from education, while the...
I was 33 years old, walking from the house to the shop on a warm spring day, the moment when I realized that I knew my parents when they were my age. I stopped mid-stride and calculated the years while the sun warmed my back and the profoundness of my thought altered reality and possibly opened a portal in the space-time continuum. I turned 10 the year Dad turned 33. My parents were building a house across town. My older brother was one year away from becoming a teen-aged...
A hundred frigate birds dip and soar overhead. Sun glints off the waves. Sailboats provide suitable backdrop in front of Bird Island. A beautiful bride and groom, surrounded by family, repeat vows of matrimony on the beach. Three young flower girls, adorable in frothy white dresses with long pink sashes roll on the lawn. Nobody yanks them on their feet to “behave.” The bride’s train will be filled with sand so, in the bigger picture, what’s a few grass stains? It’s a typical day at the Luna Palace. Kids splashing. Volley ba...
Nov. 8, 2016, the voters of House District 28 gave me a chance and sent me to Helena. During the campaign, my team and I knocked over 19,000 doors. We shared laughs and heartaches, but above all, we heard the stories of everyday Montanans. By the end of my campaign, it was clear that a few issues stood out. I was elected to champion public education, mental health, public lands, and the development of our infrastructure. We are rapidly approaching midsession. I’m proud to report that my voting record has and will continue t...
People in every corner of Montana rely on prescription drugs to treat illnesses and conditions ranging from mild to severe. Our most vulnerable neighbors need access to these drugs even more than the rest of us. Senior citizens, people with chronic conditions, and sick children all use prescriptions to provide them comfort from pain and, in the case of those with the worst sicknesses, keep them alive. Unfortunately, our most vulnerable people are subject to the greed of pharmaceutical companies who use the difficult...
Jan. 20 was my last day at work. Under the Obama administration, I served as a political liaison for NASA on Capitol Hill. I watched up close while 2016 revealed the strengths and weaknesses of our democracy. As the American West opens up before my windshield on the drive home to Montana, I am compelled to say why I pledge to vote in Montana’s upcoming special election. I pledge to vote for many reasons, but this year, I am mostly concerned about the state of our democracy. The Economist Intelligence Unit downgraded the U...
There are several Democrats who represent coal states in the United States Senate. Clair McCaskil of Michigan, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Joe Donnelly of Indiana and, of course, Montana’s own Jon Tester. But Tester is unique among this group. While those other coal-state Democrats have established a track record of working to protect coal jobs, Tester has consistently voted to support every Obama-era regulation designed to kill the coal industry. Case in point is the Senate’s vote on the Orw...
Editor’s note: Due to a misunderstanding on the part of the Havre Daily News, regular submissions from state Sen. Russ Tempel, R-Chester, have not been printed. —— I hope this article gets into the paper this week in Havre. Each week I sent an update on what is happening in the Legislature to my District 14 newspapers. The Liberty County Times and the River Press Paper had been publishing the articles but I recently discovered that the Havre Daily News didn’t understand my intention. It’s too bad that the articles didn’t ma...
The first several days of the Donald Trump administration caused me great worry. Not about the substance of his presidency, but about its form; not about the product, but about the process. Based on his first week it looks like the worst instincts of President Trump may be erupting to the surface and there appears to be no one around him who can stop the Mount Trump eruptions. It seems that the President has surrounded himself with enablers, not counselors. That became even clearer when the President started signing...
At some point, nearly every worker faces a moment when they need leave, whether it’s to care for an aging parent, help a family member after surgery, recover from their own illness or injury, or welcome a new child into the family. As the Montana Legislature debates ways to improve the lives of Montanans, I wanted to take a moment to highlight one important issue. Paid family and medical leave has been making national headlines, and here in Montana we have the opportunity to design a plan that is unique to the needs of our st...
If I’ve learned one thing about myself over the years, it’s that I love to eat. I eat like I can’t live without food, and I have zero interest in ending this habit. I don't think it’s just a complete lack of strong will and good character. It feels like a biological impulse for self-preservation, and I am going to continue eating every day, several times a day. Don’t judge me poorly for being happy in this comfort zone. I will admit to one thing that is causing a problem. I recently have been forced to plan meals ahead of...
Certainly, I’ve no need to complain about my life. Today is the sum total of all my choices. I accept that. Yet, I like to complain now and then. Grumble brings a certain satisfaction. If only I had done this or that differently, I’m sure I would be rich, famous, beautiful, all the above, fill in the blank. Egads, of course, my life could have gone the other way; I’d be ugly, infamous and living under the bridge in a cardboard box. I also wouldn’t have my children, grandchildren, and second great-granddaughter, born this mo...
Editor’s note: A front-page article in the Jan. 23 edition of the Havre Daily News misreported that Havre High School required 24 credits to graduate rather than the actual requirement of 22.5 credits. —— This is something I believe requires clarification. I have been asked now by multiple people including current students of Havre High School whether the graduation requirements have been increased to 24 credits. The number of credits required to graduate from Havre High School has not changed. The credit requirements for gra...
Thank you, Daughter, for writing my article last week. Rocking chair, indeed! Next time I’m incapacitated, I’ll ask my son to take my place. I didn’t break that many rules. New eyeballs! There is a huge, vibrant, crisp and clear world out here, just waiting for me to explore. But my most excellent doctor, with whom I nearly fell in love pre-surgery, turned into a growly ogre post-surgery. End of romance. “What do you mean, stay indoors? Don’t garden? Stay away from public pl...
It was close to being a “Chamber of Commerce” day weather wise, for the Chamber’s Annual Meeting, after such a long cold and snowy period leading up to the day. As I noted, “to be in business is courageous and we thank you for your investment in Havre.” Thank you also, for sharing your time and expertise and giving throughout the year to support and sponsor the many Chamber projects. Thank you, Debbie Callahan and Andy Carlson, for your years of dedicated service to the Chamber. It has been rewarding to work with each of y...
I am going to do something I probably shouldn’t do while doing something I should do, mix my jobs while thanking north-central Montana for its giving, volunteer nature both in specific and in general. It has been my privilege to coach on Havre High School’s speech and debate team for the last 16 years and we have held many tournaments, from small meets to two-state tournaments, in that time, and the community always has been legendary in its stepping up to help. That happened again this weekend when Havre hosted the high sch...
In these confusing times of fake news, real news reported in fake ways and real news falsely accused of being fake, I give you really real news, correctly attributed to real sources, which prove that the truth can be just as strange, but less malicious, than fictitious news. Japan has gone to the loo If you think the new-fangled, low-flow toilets with one flusher for fluids and another flusher for solid wastes are confusing, do not go to Japan. Seriously, toilets in Japan have eight steps to proper usage. The Japan News...
First, I want to let you know this is Dee Dee, Sondra Ashton’s daughter. Mom had cataract surgery Friday the 13th, the lucky woman. Mom decided to do both eyes at once. Her life of fun and games interrupted, she found out she’s not allowed to read, or write, or garden, or go outside because of the dust in the air from the corn and sugar cane harvest, or really do anything for several weeks. I’m glad I’m not there. She’d be a beast to live with. Not really, but maybe. Mom seems to have trouble with the “not do anything” p...
Thus observed Great Falls Tribune reporter and columnist Frank Adams in 1980, a year after a plaque was installed in an obscure capitol hallway, the only monument in recognition of Whiteside, who was perhaps Montana’s most courageous statesman. Barely 20, Fred Whiteside left home in Illinois in 1878 to make the dangerous trek to Montana Territory. Using profits from buffalo hunting, Whiteside became a building contractor, constructing several early structures in Miles City. Whiteside soon became one of Montana’s most not...
After the most disruptive and disreputable presidential campaign and transition in memory, I seriously relate to the words of “My Fair Lady” lyricist Alan J. Lerner from the song “Show Me,” which begins: “Words! Words! Words! I’m so sick of words! I get words all day through; First from him, now from you! Is that all you blighters can do?” That song gets at the point that actions can count as much as words. Meaning can be found in the actions the speaker takes both before and after political words are proclaimed. But as much...
By Mark Fix Secretaries of the interior are called to be public stewards. On behalf of all Americans, they oversee our great national heritage of forests, grasslands, fisheries, national parks, wildlife, waterways and mineral wealth. Congressman Ryan Zinke, if approved for his nomination to that post, will have the opportunity to prove himself in the long line of great stewards that have preceded him. I wish him well, but there is cause for concern. Taxpayers at Risk During his last term in Congress, Rep. Zinke introduced leg...
