Hello February – here are some issues that caught my attention for today’s commentary:
- Montana’s Litigation Fund
- Drag Shows
- Ilhan Omar
MONTANA’S LITIGATION FUND:
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle has an editorial posted today that is titled, “Boosting Montana’s litigation fund isn’t the answer. Instead, stop bad legislation.”
Amen to that.
Here is a key point:
Two years ago, lawmakers passed a bunch of laws that ended up in court, some of which are still moving through the appeal process. Those lawsuits have cost the state hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the tab is still open.
One would hope that would teach our political leaders that defending bad bills in court is a burden on taxpayers.
The Chronicle Editorial Board fails to realize that the Montana Legislature is full of uneducated clowns that believe they have the power to do most anything. Instead of curtailing their unconstitutional bills, their leaders let them run wild. They end up embarrassing our state.
The Chronicle also stated that Montana’s Republican Governor, Greg Gianforte, has requested a 35% increase for the Montana Department of Justice’s legal defense team, which defends the state’s laws in court.
We should be thankful that our courts bring some common sense to the insane laws that come out of the circus in Helena.
You can read the Chronicle editorial HERE.
DRAG SHOWS:
In case you missed it, there’s a bill (HB 359) in the Montana Legislature with the short title, “Prohibit minors from attending drag shows.” It was introduced by Republican State Representative Braxton Mitchell of Columbia Falls. It has several cosponsors.
The text of the bill starts with:
A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: “AN ACT PROHIBITING MINORS FROM ATTENDING DRAG SHOWS; PROHIBITING MINORS FROM ENTERING SEXUALLY ORIENTED BUSINESSES; PROHIBITING DRAG PERFORMANCES IN LIBRARIES OR SCHOOLS THAT RECEIVE STATE FUNDING; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; AND PROVIDING PENALTIES.”
One part of the bill states, “A sexually oriented business may not allow a person under 18 years of age to enter the premises of the business.”
So much for parental rights – what if a parent wants to bring their child to the show?
In regard to public libraries and public schools, the bill carefully states that drag shows cannot happen at public libraries during “regular operating hours” and at public schools “during school hours or at any school-sanctioned extracurricular activity.”
I am not sure the bill is constitutional. If it becomes law, the state will probably spend a lot of money defending it – and lose.
There are many more serious issues that the state legislature should be addressing. Shame on Mitchell and the other clowns who support this bill.
ILHAN OMAR:
The Associated Press (AP) is reporting that newly empowered House Republicans are preparing to oust an African-born Black lawmaker, Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, from the Foreign Affairs Committee over comments she has made critical of Israel — and as payback after Democrats booted far-right Republicans from panels for incendiary, violent remarks.
Omar has apologized for those remarks.
According to the AP:
Omar told CNN in an interview Sunday that the move against her is “politically motivated.”
“It’s motivated by the fact that many of these members don’t believe a Muslim, a refugee, an African should even be in Congress, let alone have the opportunity to serve on the Foreign Affairs Committee.”
The bottom line to all this is that many, if not most, Republicans in the House are racists and anti-Muslim.
Read the AP story HERE.
The Western Word 
A timely article and a good reminder. I shudder every time I see MAGAs in our legislature blubbering about Jesus this and Jesus that, as if they had some sort of mandate from the Creator Himself to impose their bizarre undemocratic beliefs on the rest of us. Their mission to turn us into some sort of christofascist nation must be thwarted at every turn. And it’s just getting worse by the day.
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/thom-hartmann/104926/is-scotus-about-to-put-religion-over-civil-society
I think people can talk about Jesus and religion all they want – it’s called free speech. They just can’t make us believe what they believe or make their religion the law of the land. If I had my wishes, the legislators would keep their religious beliefs to themselves. Churches should promote voting and prayer for out elected leaders but not endorse anyone. Not all who believe in God (like me) want to push our beliefs off on others. -JmB
I agree completely, but a majority of MAGAs do indeed want to force their religious beliefs onto us. We see it reflected in their testimony daily in the legislature. And they do so arrogantly with their misinterpretation of the Constitution. Many issues are personal and private, and in spite of being ruled unconstitutional, they continue to waste time and money on matters that are none of their business. I think the most cruel of all are there vicious attacks on trans children and their parents and doctors. That is beyond the pale of decency. It makes me ill to see that. They’re kids ferrchrissakes.
This from the influential leader of the “freedom caucus.”
“Manzella’s statement demanding that we “put Jesus back in all the places [we’ve] asked him to leave” is a blatantly unconstitutional attempt to impose her personal religion onto other Americans, FFRF emphasizes. The First Amendment’s very first clause bars the establishment of an official religion and creates a wall of separation between state and church.”
https://ffrf.org/news/news-releases/item/40049-quit-your-bigotry-ffrf-advises-montana-state-sen-manzella
I think it’s a discussion we need to have in this state as they become more aggressive.
Another GOP move to prompt more expensive litigation. Once again, the party that thinks, “Big gummit should stay out of people’s private lives, as long as they live like we think they should.” is pushing a bill to interfere with a terminally ill person’s decision as to when it’s time to go.
SB 210 would make it chargeable as homicide if a doctor issues a prescription at the request of a rational person dying in pain and misery. This has already been litigated in Montana and several other states, and has been declared a protected, constitutional right, established between a patient and a physician.
Terry Pratchett was a world-famous author with over 50 books published in nearly 40 countries. He was one of the most insightful and humorous writers of the last 30 years. He also had a rare and incurable form of Alzheimer’s.
This is his viewpoint: “I would like to die peacefully with Thomas Tallis on my iPod before the disease takes me over and I hope that will not be for quite some time to come, because if I knew that I could die at any time I wanted, then suddenly every day would be as precious as a million pounds. If I knew that I could die, I would live. My life, my death, my choice.”
Off today’s topics, but news regarding one of our fine fine GF legislators:
Jeremy Trebas is pushing a bill to allow bars and casinos and so on to opt out of the state’s no indoor smoking clean air act.
Just 16% of Montanans smoke, smoking is the #1 health problem in Montana meaning it raises insurance rates for all the rest of us, and Jeremy thinks it would be great to subject the other 84% and visitors to smoky bars and casinos again. Including all the employees who don’t really have a choice of heeding the proposed signs on doors, except by quitting.
And for what … for some casino owner friends to be able to keep gamblers in their seats a little longer and extract more money from them, while running up the state’s health costs even more?
Read it all here. 1st hearing today. Hopefully the committee kills this outright, but who knows with these legislators.
Click to access SB0205.pdf
Silliness. Thanks for the heads-up.
Republicans: The Party Of Parental Rights … until they aren’t, and want to be The Nanny State instead.
Parents have the right to take their kids to an R-Rated movie if they feel that’s right and see all sorts of death, gore, violence, nudity, perversion, foul language, alternate lifestyles, and whatnot. But take them to see a drag queen read a story? No no no! Poor misguided parents need to be reined in on that one by the Father Knows Best Republican authorities in Helena.
Just give drag shows an R rating if you must, be done with it, let parents make their own decisions, and stay the hell out of a parent’s child rearing decisions. Practice what you preach to the Dems.
Exactly! Thanks, JmB