Happy Groundhog Day! Here are the topics that I am providing commentary about today:
- Groundhog Day 2024
- Cascade County Elections
- U.S. Senate Montana 2024
- Mail Ballots
- The Last Milestone
GROUNDHOG DAY 2024:
Today is Groundhog Day 2024 and although this column was posted long before Punxsutawney Phil did his thing, I can report that I saw the city of Great Falls street sweepers out this week. I think that means there will be six more weeks of winter in Great Falls, Montana.
CASCADE COUNTY ELECTIONS:
The Montana Free Press (MTFP) is reporting on the circus in Cascade County regarding elections. The MTFP does an excellent job of reporting from both sides of the issue.
My opinion is:
- I am glad the County Commissioners relieved Clerk and Recorder Sandra Merchant of her election administration duties.
- County Commissioner Rae Grulkowski should abstain from decisions related to the operation and management of upcoming elections.
- There is no way that the county commission should hire Beatrice Deveraux Biddick to be the Elections Administrator.
- As for the petition to repeal the resolution and return Merchant to her duties overseeing the elections, this will never see my signature. She may be a nice person, but she was in over her head as an elections administrator.
Check out the MTFP article HERE.
U.S. SENATE MONTANA 2024:
The latest fundraising numbers are in and Roll Call is reporting that Democrat Jon Tester continues to outpace his Republican opponents. Tester brought in $5.5 million and had more than $11.2 million in the bank. Tim Sheehy, the preferred candidate of Senate Republican leadership, raised $2.4 million, though $450,000 came from the candidate himself. Sheehy, a co-founder and CEO of Belgrade, Mont.-based aerial firefighting company Bridger Aerospace, had $1.3 million on hand. Rep. Matt Rosendale, who has not officially entered the Senate race but is widely expected to run, raised just under $100,000 and had $1.6 million on hand.
Tester has $11.2 million in the bank and Sheehy had to loan himself $450,000. Then we have Rosendale lurking in the background with more in the bank than Sheehy.
This spells a Tester victory in November.
MAIL BALLOTS:
The Associated Press (AP) is reporting that Republicans are challenging extended mail ballot deadlines in at least two states in a legal maneuver that could have widespread implications for mail voting before the presidential election in November.
The AP says Mississippi and North Dakota are among several states that accept late-arriving mailed ballots as long as the ballots are postmarked on or before Election Day, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. That includes political swing states such as Nevada. Some states, including Colorado, Oregon and Utah, rely heavily on mail voting.
I don’t think there should be any reason not to count ballots that are postmarked on or before Election Day.
The AP also reports that former President Donald Trump has long railed against the use of mail voting, in particular when many states expanded its use during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when the Republican lost his reelection bid to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump has falsely claimed that changing vote tallies after Election Day are an indication of widespread fraud. In the wake of his loss, several Republican-controlled states moved to tighten rules around mail voting.
The Cascade County (MT) MAGA folks are following in Trump’s footsteps.
As we get closer to election day 2024, look for the MAGAs to post negative things about mail ballots on social media. They want to make it harder for everyone to vote.
THE LAST MILESTONE:
On February 1, I officially joined the millions of Americans on Medicare. I don’t know if this milestone is cool or not.
It’s something I could not avoid. I guess I’m lucky I made it this far…
As I look back on life, there were many milestones like turning 16 and driving. Being 18 and the benefits that gave me. Partying at age 21. Insurance going down at 25. Federal retirement at 55. Drawing Social Security at 62. Qualifying for Medicare at 65.
I guess that is it. No more milestones. As the great George Strait sings in the song “Troubadour,” “I still feel 25, Most of the time. I still raise a little cain with the boys.”
The Western Word 