Opinion
Editor, Our Republican legislators are on a mission to politicize Montana’s court system. Two bills being proposed by our Republican legislators, HJ 5 And SJ 4, would result in our judicial candidates being identified on the ballots as either Republican or Democrat in future elections. Is there not already too much political divide in our state? By requiring a judicial candidate to select a party affiliation we are introducing a potential bias into a judicial system that should be independent, free and fair. Montana’s court system has served us well for over 90 years. Our courts have been rated as one of the best systems in the country. It is interesting to compare the respec...
Editor, Rachel Maddow is to resume her nightly show for Trump’s first 100 days in office. “The Rachel Maddow Show” needs to be listened to every night at 7 p.m. Mountain Standard Time on MSNBC. Rachel covers completely, wisely, correctly, and inspiringly the great need we have in this...
Editor, Today, Monday, Jan. 20, I am honoring Martin Luther King for his wisdom, generosity of spirit, and service to our country. As a teacher, I know that children are often wiser and more empathic than adults. I quote Alaia DiDomenico (Missoula International School): “Freedom is a forked pa...
When President Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States this week, it marked a new day in America. Voters rejected Joe Biden’s policies that led to unaffordable prices, open borders and weakness abroad, and together with a Republican Congress he is already delivering on his America...
Editor, Young people in our local communities have historically supported the Ronan Bread Basket through sponsoring food drives, donating garden produce and the yield of 4-H projects. This past holiday season offered the Bread Basket so many opportunities to be grateful for and celebrate the community ...
To provide a better understanding of what climate change means for Montanans, we are hosting a new monthly series, entitled Montana Climate Matters. Each month, you’ll hear from experts knowledgeable about climate science, impacts, and solutions. Our goal in this endeavor is to facilitate unders...
Property taxes in Montana are an incredibly complex issue, but that isn’t stopping Senate Republicans from working hard to reform them this legislative session. On January 22, the Senate Tax Committee heard SB 117, a bill I’m sponsoring that reforms how local governments in Montana calculate thei...
Montana’s property taxes are out of control. That’s why our top priority this session is passing permanent property tax relief for Montanans. And we’re not alone: Governor Gianforte signaled property tax reform is at the top of his to-do list this session in his recent State of the State ad...
Senate Republicans have numerous pieces of legislation to consider during the 2025 session, but few are as important as bills to reform Montana’s overreaching courts. The state’s judicial branch has ventured into the realm of making laws instead of interpreting them, endangering the system of che...
I read something on grief the other day that struck a chord. The person writing lamented the fact that losing your spouse causes you to lose not only the person dearest to you, but in the aftermath you also lose most of your friends as well. I can personally attest to this. And that is not pointing any fi...
