Congratulations – you made it to hump day! Here are some topics that caught my attention for today’s column:

• Tester Announces
• Cascade County
• Kevin & Tucker
• National Gun of America

TESTER ANNOUNCES:

It was breaking news earlier this morning as U.S. Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) announced he was running for a fourth term. Tester is 66 years old.

I have said over and over, the Montana Republicans do not have anyone who can beat Tester. I predict Tester will win reelection.

The junior senator from Montana, Steve Daines, is head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), so it will make him look even more like a clown when Tester cleans his clock.

We will hear the MAGA folks calling Tester a “liberal” and talk about the “Biden-Tester” agenda. Of course, they will tie Tester to Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the Senate. It won’t affect the race. In his last win, then President Trump and his family came to Montana over and over the try beat Tester. Team Trump lost.

Montanans like Jon Tester. The agricultural community and veterans like what Tester has done for them. With his position on the Defense Appropriations committee, he can keep watch over America’s defense and protect Malmstrom AFB and our Guard and Reserve units. Montanans would be crazy to throw away 18 years of seniority and start over.

Check out the Associated Press (AP) story about the Tester announcement HERE.

CASCADE COUNTY:

When clowns are running the show, stupid things happen.

A faithful reader pointed out an article from The Electric about Cascade County officials still looking at options to handle mail services and elections as Innovated Postal Services is closing at the end of February.

A little deeper in the article, it was reported:

Earlier this month, (Sandra) Merchant (the newly elected clerk and recorder) and Rae Grulkowski, the newest county commissioner, requested ballot stock from the print shop, according to multiple sources.
County staff said they wouldn’t deliver ballot stock and consulted with the Montana Secretary of State’s office and was advised not to deliver the paper, but that Merchant and Grulkowski picked up ballot stock from the print shop.

The print shop is run by the county.

There are many things they could be doing with the ballot stock and most of those things are not good.

Someone who cares about openness in local government should get to the bottom of this – and quickly.

Read The Electric article HERE.

KEVIN & TUCKER:

There are several reports, starting with Axios, saying that thousands of hours of surveillance footage from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol are being made available to Fox News Channel host Tucker Carlson. The Associated Press (AP) says it is a stunning level of access granted by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy that Democrats swiftly condemned as a “grave” breach of security with potentially far-reaching consequences.

This is just wrong on many levels.

Check out the Axios report HERE and the AP report HERE.

NATIONAL GUN OF AMERICA:

I’m surprised this is not happening in Montana considering most of the Montana Legislature is made up of MAGA nuts. Maybe it is and I missed it.

Newsweek is reporting that Alabama Representative Barry Moore, a staunch gun-rights supporter, is proposing that the AR-15 rifle should be the “National Gun of America.”

Here is what Moore posted on Twitter:

“The #SecondAmendment is as American a right as freedom of speech, religion, & the press. Today I unveiled my bill to make the AR-15 the National Gun of America. We must send a message that we will meet every attack on any of our constitutional rights.”

I doubt the families of the 27 children and adults murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School would like to be reminded that the AR-15 used to murder their loved ones is now the “National Gun of America.” I imagine it would be the same feeling for others who had friends and family members gunned down with an AR-15.

This is a dumb idea. It is sick and hurtful.

Read the Newsweek article HERE.

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