Happy Friday! Here are the topics that caught my eye this week:

• They’ve Already Started
• Path to Security and Prosperity
• Robert F. Kennedy Jr
• Death Penalty Support

THEY’VE ALREADY STARTED:

In a campaign email this week with the subject, “They’ve already started,” U.S. Senator Steve Daines writes, “I’ve already had a challenger come into my 2026 race and threaten to take me down.”

I wonder who that might be? 

Daines is asking people to sign up to show their support for him. 

Fox News reported this week that National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman and top Trump ally Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., suggested to senators ahead of the Wednesday Republican leader election that President-elect Donald Trump was supporting Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., to win, despite choosing not to endorse publicly.  (Source)

That seems like a poke in the eye to the MAGA folks who wanted Rick Scott to be the Senate Majority Leader. They should be pissed. Daines is such a wimp. 

There’s also been some chatter on social media saying that Daines might be attempting to get a cabinet position in Trump’s world. I’m all for it. That would get rid of Daines for a few years. 

PATH TO SECURITY AND PROSPERITY: 

In case you missed it, on Wednesday Montana Governor Greg Gianforte unveiled his “Path to Security and Prosperity,” which he calls a historic pro-jobs, pro-family, pro-business budget for the State of Montana for the next biennium.

Gianforte says his “Path to Security and Prosperity” cuts income taxes, reduces property taxes for primary homeowners, and invests in public safety, education, and Montana’s future.

Gianforte also claims the homestead rate tax cut will lower property taxes for Montana homeowners by 15% and for small businesses by 18%. The proposal is projected to directly reduce property taxes for more than 215,000 primary residences and more than 32,000 small businesses, as well as provide indirect relief to over 130,000 renters.

The governor’s “Path to Security and Prosperity” will be formally released on Friday, November 15 (Today). Then we should be able to see the nuts and bolts of his plan before the legislature tears it to shreds. 

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR: 

The Associated Press (AP) reported that President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday he will nominate anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, putting a man whose views public health officials have decried as dangerous in charge of a massive agency that oversees everything from drug, vaccine and food safety to medical research, Medicare and Medicaid. (Source) 

Trump’s picks are getting more interesting each day. I figure Trump will nominate former IndyCar/NASCAR driver Danica Patrick to head the U.S. Department of Transportation, just because…

DEATH PENALTY SUPPORT:

Gallup reported this week that younger generations of U.S. adults are far less likely than older generations to favor the death penalty for convicted murderers. As a result, overall support for the death penalty in the U.S. has fallen to 53% today, a level not seen since the early 1970s.

Gallup also says that less than half of U.S. adults born after 1980 — those in the millennial and Generation Z birth cohorts — favor the death penalty. At the same time, roughly six in 10 adults in older generations are in favor of such laws. Two decades ago, there were no meaningful age differences in views of the death penalty.

I’m not sure how I feel about the death penalty these days. I have probably been on both sides of the fence.

Check out the full report from Gallup HERE. 

## HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ##