Free Republic

Left-wing activists in Montana have officially launched their signature collection effort to enshrine abortion into the state constitution. “On Tuesday, Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights announced that it has officially launched its signature drive to get the required 60,000 signatures from Montanans by June 21 to qualify the measure on the ballot,” The Hill reported. The constitutional initiative, called CI-128, would “expressly provide a right to make and carry out decisions about one’s own pregnancy, including the right to abortion. It would prohibit the government from denying or burdening the right to abortion before fetal viability.”

BUTTE, Mont. — Montana is known for plenty of large wildlife, like bears, mountain goats and elk. But elephants are a new one. Butte resident Mataya Smith was driving south on Harrison Avenue with her husband, who alerted her to the strange scene at noon on Tuesday. “I though he just meant it was in the parking lot. And then I looked up and was like, ‘No, there is an elephant in the road!’” said Smith. “My coworker pointed out, ‘There’s an elephant!’ Started jumping up and down, pointing out the window,” Civic Center Town Pump co-manager Josh Hannifin said....

A Mexican drug cartel used death threats to force a tribal leader to back out of testifying to Congress this week, according to another tribal leader who did show up to tell lawmakers just how much power the drug lords have accumulated.Jeffrey Stiffarm, president of the Fort Belknap Indian Community in Montana, said he didn’t want to name the fellow leader who backed out, but he said the threat seemed real and credible.“One thing that we really seem to overlook all the time is the threats, the death threats we get from cartel leaders,” he told the House Natural Resources...

The Senate Majority PAC and an affiliated nonprofit have injected themselves into Ohio and Montana Republican primaries this cycle... Groups aligned with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer have meddled in several Republican primaries this election cycle, a tactic that has been underway a number of years. The Senate Majority PAC (SMP), which works to elect and keep Democrats in Congress' upper chamber, has targeted Republican primaries in at least two states for the 2024 elections. SMP tends to maneuver using other groups to conceal its involvement until after the primaries. It mainly targets swing states by boosting candidates supported by...

Republicans are gearing up for what could be an epic showdown for majority control of the Senate with several contentious elections around the country later this year. Democrats control the U.S. Senate with a 51-49 majority, but Republicans are looking at a favorable Senate map in 2024, with Democrats defending 23 of the 34 seats up for grabs. Three of those seats are in red states former Donald Trump carried in 2020 - West Virginia, Montana and Ohio. Five other seats, one of which is held by an independent, are in key swing states narrowly carried by President Biden in...

In the ongoing Gun Free School Zone Act (GFSZ) case in Billings, Montana, the trial date is currently set for March 25, 2024. The process is a long and difficult one for Gabriel Metcalf and his mother, Vivian. Because this is a criminal, not a civil, case. Gabriel’s freedom is at risk. The current judge, Federal District Judge Susan P. Watters, has ruled the GFSZ to be constitutional, and the Montana Establishment of Individual Licensure law is insufficient to be an exception to the GFSZ. Going through the process of a challenge to the constitutionality of a criminal charge is...

16 Republican AGs seek answers from Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf... ... debanking ... Wells Fargo is pushing the Biden administration's anti-gun and anti-traditional energy policies and discriminating against customers who don't fall in line with their political beliefs," Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen... As attorney general, it's my job to protect Montanans from discriminatory business practices. I will continue to investigate and fight against any illegal actions that could impact Montana businesses and consumers." ... Wells Fargo unexpectedly closed the business and personal accounts of Bradon Wexler, the owner of Florida-based firearms dealer Wex Gunworks, with a vague explanation...

Today we're joined by Todd and Krista Kolstad, Montana parents who find themselves entangled in an ongoing months-long custody battle for their 14-year-old daughter. The couple candidly open up about the challenges they faced and the heartbreak they endured after losing custody of their daughter. Montana's Child and Family Services gained custody of their daughter when they refused to affirm her newfound "gender identity" as a boy. We delve into the origin of the dispute, starting as a seemingly minor disagreement and escalating into a legal battle that no parent could anticipate. The Kolstads courageously navigate through the difficult terrain...

A 34-year-old Billings woman accused of leaving chicken heads on her then-boyfriend’s bed, trashing his apartment, and vandalizing his car, faces potential jail time over allegations she failed to control her alcoholism. The woman, Michelle Suzanne Niedge, was put on two years of probation in March 2022 after she pleaded guilty to felony criminal mischief and misdemeanor assault before Sixth District Judge Brenda Gilbert. Gilbert sentenced the woman to 31 days in the county jail and two years of probation. Niedge also was fined $700 and ordered to pay $2,666.95 restitution to her victim. About five months of a county...

A green nonprofit that is indirectly funded by a foreign billionaire is pressuring broadcasters to drop advertisements that criticize the Biden administration’s massive electric vehicle (EV) agenda. Climate Power wrote to numerous broadcasters this week demanding that they stop airing American Fuel and Petrochemicals Manufacturers (AFPM)-funded advertisements in swing state markets that rail against President Joe Biden’s plans to impose widespread EV adoption in the coming years. The charitable organization affiliated with Hansjorg Wyss, a Swiss health care mogul and billionaire philanthropist, donates millions of dollars to the Fund for a Better Future, which was the fiscal sponsor for Climate...

Montana GOP Rep. Matt Rosendale has dropped out of the state GOP Senate primary less than a week after announcing his campaign, he confirmed to Politico. Rosendale lost to Montana Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in a 2018 bid and last week sought to mount a second attempt, entering a crowded Republican primary that had already seen Senate leadership rally behind businessman Tim Sheehy. Former president Donald Trump also endorsed Sheehy. Rosendale's departure from the race came the same day that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated he would be "involved" in the primary to Sheehy's benefit.

GREAT FALLS, Mont. — Malmstrom Air Force Base is on lockdown in response to an active shooter alert on base. Schools east and south of the river in shelter in place. The Cascade County Sheriff's Office says that this is an ongoing investigation and they cannot release any information at this time./

Mexican cartels have flooded Montana with fentanyl and meth – by setting up operations on Indian reservations, where law enforcement is scarce, according to a report.

Former President Donald Trump tipped the scales in the U.S. Senate race in Montana on Friday, endorsing retired U.S. Navy SEAL and businessman Tim Sheehy on the same day that Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT) announced that he was getting in the race. “I LOVE MONTANA! Tim Sheehy is an American Hero and highly successful Businessman from the Great State of Montana,” Trump posted on social media. “He is strongly supported by our incredible Chairman of the NRSC, Steve Daines, and many other patriotic Senators and Republicans who have endorsed our Campaign to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! I also respect Matt...

Mexican drugs cartels have expanded all the way north and are targeting America's 'last best place' by preying on vulnerable Native American communities in Montana. A recent report showed Montana to be the second most 'addicted' state with 18.2 percent of the state's population using illicit drugs in 2021 - a figure that has only been rising as time goes on. Drug cartels from Mexico are drawn to the state of Montana because of how much money they can squeeze out of residents. Fentanyl pills, for example, can be sold for 20 times the price in Montana than other areas...

Representative Matt Rosendale of Montana is expected to announce a campaign for Senate as soon as this weekend, torching plans from top Republican officials to avoid a bruising primary battle in a state that many in the party view as their best chance to win back control of the chamber. Mr. Rosendale, an anti-abortion Republican agitator who voted to overturn the 2020 election, plans to formalize his campaign as Montana Republicans gather for their winter meetings this weekend in Helena, according to three people familiar with the deliberations who insisted on anonymity to discuss unannounced plans. A spokesman for Mr....

For context, social workers removed a child from the home of his parents, and tried to find a state willing to perform sex changes. NBC reported that "Republican Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte told The National Desk (TND) Monday state officials acted within their legal limitations by removing a child from parents who objected to their transitioning gender identity." From NBC's coverage, Gianforte said, "“Upon hearing recent allegations related to a child welfare case, I asked Lieutenant Governor Kristen Juras – an experienced attorney, constitutional conservative, mother, and grandmother – to review it," Gov. Gianforte said. "Consulting with the director of...

Wildlife officials in the Treasure State claim that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service relied on "inadequate scientific studies" when it listed wolverines under the ESA last fallBack in November, the United States Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) added the North American wolverine to its list of threatened species in the Lower 48, giving the elusive mesopredator new protections under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). The agency cited habitat degradation spurred on by climate change as its primary justification for making the determination. On Friday, January 26, Montana—a state with a sizable portion of the wolverine’s home range—said it...

Republican Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte told The National Desk (TND) Monday state officials acted within their legal limitations by removing a child from parents who objected to their transitioning gender identity. Montana Child and Family Services (CFS) officials took custody of the 14-year-old from parents Krista and Todd Kolstad this month, according to Reduxx. The teenager is reportedly a biological female and recently began to express suicidal thoughts. While being treated at a hospital in August, doctors began using the child's preferred name and pronouns, which do not correspond with the child's biological sex, according to Reduxx. The parents reportedly...

A Montana family is transitioning through a nightmare right now, thanks to the left’s evil, twisted, and ghoulish transgender movement. After parents Todd and Krista objected to their 14-year-old daughter Jennifer’s gender transition plans, the state Child Protective Services got involved and medically kidnapped the young girl and is now helping her transition into a boy. This is the type of story you’d expect to read about in some backwoods foreign hellhole, but it’s happening right here in the US, and in a red state of all places. It all started in Glasgow, Montana, when Jennifer started identifying as a...