Happy Leap Day! Here are the topics for today’s independent commentary:

• Great Falls Public Library
• More Rosendale
• Trump & SCOTUS
• Happy Leap Day 2024

GREAT FALLS PUBLIC LIBRARY:

KRTV covered the Great Falls Public Library meeting this week where the renegotiation of the library management agreement was “breached.”

KRTV reported, “There is a city agreement in place since 1993 between the city of Great Falls and the Great Falls Public Library,” explained Great Falls Public Library Board Chair Whitney Olson, “And it provides funding with seven mills to the library.” It has been suggested to renegotiate the terms of the agreement now that the new Library Mill Levy passed. While some believe the city could use the funds for other things like public safety, the library says that the mill levy amount was calculated with the seven mills in mind.

KRTV went on to report that “And so they were very clear that it replaced the $350,000 of the general fund supplement, but it was in addition to the seven mills,” Olson said, “And so we in good faith went to the voters with those numbers, expecting the budget to take us from the seven mills by agreement up to what we now have is 24 mills.”

The bottom line for me is if the commission takes any money from the library, then I will vote, and urge others to vote, against any public safety levy.

The library levy passed and the safety levy and bond request failed. It’s that simple.

The city also used up to $150,000 of our tax money to promote raising our taxes for the safety levy. That is just wrong. The department heads and the commission should hold a bake sale to raise funds to pay that money back.

The complete report from KRTV can be found HERE.

MORE ROSENDALE:

The Daily Montanan and several other sources are reporting that Congressman Matt Rosendale announced Wednesday he will indeed seek re-election to his eastern Montana seat following a whirlwind couple of weeks in which he announced a U.S. Senate run and dropped out six days later when former President Donald Trump endorsed his opponent in the Republican primary.

With so many candidates running in the primary for Montana’s Eastern District House (MT-02) seat, it might be appropriate to see who is not running.

It was also reported that Rosendale endorsed Tim Sheehy, who for nearly a week was officially his opponent in the Republican U.S. Senate primary.

So now there seems to be a lot of love between the MAGA folks. The leaders of the MAGA wing of the Republican Party have put people, like Rosendale, back in line.

Meanwhile, Rosendale officially submitted articles of impeachment against U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd James Austin III.

On social media, Rosendale stated:

The American people deserve to know when the person who oversees the safety of our country is incapacitated.
Austin must be impeached for his dishonesty and inability to secure our nation. We the people demand transparency and accountability!

Now, that’s the batshit crazy Matt Montanans have come to shake our heads with embarrassment about. Welcome back, Matt!

TRUMP & SCOTUS:

The Associated Press (AP) is reporting that the Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to decide whether former President Donald Trump can be prosecuted on charges he interfered with the 2020 election, calling into question whether his case could go to trial before the November election. While the court set a course for a quick resolution, it maintained a hold on preparations for a trial focused on Trump’s efforts to overturn his election loss. The court will hear arguments in late April, with a decision likely no later than the end of June.

So, when Trump loses the election in November, he will have the Supreme Court to blame for keeping him from campaigning.

Check out the AP story HERE. The AP digs deeper into the case HERE.

HAPPY LEAP DAY 2024:

Leap Day is the extra day at the end of February added to the Julian and Gregorian calendars every four years. There are several traditions associated with Leap Day around the world, such as having women propose to men and decorating trees with ribbons. (Source)

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