Welcome! Here are the topics for today’s column:

• Bernie & AOC in Missoula
• Grassley Town Halls
• Small Cities & Starting a Business
• One More Thing

BERNIE & AOC IN MISSOULA:

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) visited Missoula on Wednesday during one of the stops on their “Fighting Oligarchy Tour.” It was reported that they spoke to a “capacity crowd of about 7,500 at the Adams Center.” (Source) There was another crowd of about 1,500 -2000 outside in an overflow space. 

The Bernie/AOC stop bothered many MAGAs in the state. Their message and the visit to Missoula were attacked on MAGA radio and via social media. It was pathetic.

MAGA Montana U.S. Senators Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy even sent a fundraising plea via email later in the day, saying, “Bernie Sanders and AOC are bringing their Socialist road show to Montana today.” They also said, “Before Bernie and AOC wrap up their socialist road show in Montana, I hope we can count on your support of $20, $50, $100, or more to keep Montana in Republican hands.”

Some MAGAs were on social media attacking the visitors. 

If Trump keeps taking the country down the toilet, western Montana might be more in play than in past elections. I think this is why the MAGAs were so uptight over this visit.  

GRASSLEY TOWN HALLS:

U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is 91 years old. He visits each of Iowa’s 99 counties every year (Source). He recently held an in-person town hall meeting in Fort Madison, Iowa. 

Unlike our elected officials in Montana (U.S. Senators Steve Daines, Tim Sheehy, and U.S. Reps Ryan Zinke and Troy Downing), Grassley meets and hears from constituents face to face. Even if it gets a little raucous, he shows up. At his age, Grassley has probably seen it all. 

I salute Grassley for doing his job. Iowans should be proud. 

As for Montana, we deserve better representation. 

SMALL CITIES & STARTING A BUSINESS: 

With National Small Business Week approaching and many employers still struggling to hire new workers, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2025’s Best Small Cities to Start a Business, as well as expert commentary.

To determine the most business-friendly small markets in the U.S., WalletHub compared more than 1,300 cities with fewer than 100,000 residents across 18 key metrics. The data set ranges from small business growth rates and accessibility of financing to investor access and labor costs. 

As for Montana, four cities made the list. Bozeman is ranked #5. Helena is ranked #16. Missoula is ranked 51. Great Falls is ranked way down the list at 278. 

Check out the full report HERE. 

ONE MORE THING: 

This joke is circulating in Europe:

What borders on stupidity?

Mexico and Canada (Source- Pinterest)

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