Hello faithful readers! It is Friday, July 14, and here are the topics that caught my eye:

• National Defense Authorization Act
• Historic
• OTC Birth Control Pill
• Southern Border

NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT:

The U.S. House of Representatives is debating the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) this week. The Republicans have a small majority in the House, so they are filing several amendments and passing them on party-line votes, many of which will be dead on arrival in the U.S. Senate.

Republican U.S. Representative Matt Rosendale (MT-02) issued a press release announcing he had filed three amendments to the NDAA. One of the amendments caught my eye. It was Amendment 194, which would prohibit TRICARE from covering and the Department of Defense from furnishing sex reassignment surgeries and gender hormone treatments for transgender individuals.

Rosendale’s amendment passed the House 222-211 (Roll Call Vote 301). By the way, U.S. Representative Ryan Zinke (MT-01) voted “AYE.”

Amendments like Rosendale’s will be used as campaign talking points in the coming year.

HISTORIC:

U.S. Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) announced that he co-sponsored a “bicameral, bipartisan bill” to ensure the continued availability of AM broadcast in new vehicles at no additional charge to the consumer.

U.S. Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) is also a co-sponsor.

The bill in the U.S. Senate is S.1669 – AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act of 2023.

In the U.S. House, the bill is HR 3413. Representatives Matt Rosendale and Ryan Zinke are ci-sponsors.

So, there you have it, fellow Montanans. When times get tough and the issues are hot, our congressional delegation comes together. Coming together on an AM radio bill is just the tip of the iceberg on what the Montana delegation can accomplish when they work together!

By the way, I used to listen to Art Bell late at night on the AM radio. I miss him, RIP.

OTC BIRTH CONTROL PILL:

In a ruling that will probably send many MAGA folks into a tizzy, the Associated Press (AP) is reporting that Federal regulators approved the nation’s first over-the-counter birth control pill in a landmark decision that will soon allow American women and girls to obtain contraceptive medication as easily as they buy aspirin and eyedrops.

Let me repeat part of that for the MAGA crowd: “…will soon allow American women and girls to obtain contraceptive medication as easily as they buy aspirin and eyedrops.”

Is this a great country or what?

Read the AP story HERE.

SOUTHERN BORDER:

Gallup Polling is reporting that a 39% plurality of Americans think the situation at the United States-Mexico border is a “crisis,” 33% a “major problem,” 22% a “minor problem” and 5% “not a problem,” which is essentially unchanged from the previous reading in 2019.

The report from Gallup concludes:

Nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults think the situation at the southern U.S. border is a crisis or a major problem, even after Title 42 has expired and the expected influx of migrants did not happen. The Biden administration has tried to ebb the flow of migrants by changing asylum guidelines, but it remains to be seen if this will be a temporary fix or a permanent solution.
Americans are, however, sympathetic toward those seeking to enter the U.S., as well as, to a lesser extent, those who have entered the country illegally. Biden’s latest plan is to encourage those who are seeking asylum to do so from their home country rather than travel to the U.S. border and try to gain asylum after crossing illegally. The administration has also warned that those crossing illegally can be immediately deported and will jeopardize their chances of gaining asylum in the future.

Check out the full report from Gallup HERE.

## HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ##