Hello! Here are the topics for today’s independent commentary:
- PETA Visits Great Falls
- Gallatin County & ICE
- COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
- One More Thing
PETA VISITS GREAT FALLS:
As previously reported here at The Western Word, PETA’s “Hell on Wheels” display showed up at the Smoked. American Barbecue and other Great Falls eateries that serve pork on Wednesday.
PETA says the “Hell on Wheels” display was a hyper-realistic pig transport truck that appeared to contain real pigs en route to slaughter. There was also some audio being played with actual recorded sounds of the animals’ panicked screams along with a subliminal message every 10 seconds suggesting that people go vegan.
What the event did was help Smoked have a record-breaking day of business.
MTN in Great Falls reported:
Smoked BBQ at 203 Second Avenue North in Great Falls enjoyed a huge turnout for lunch on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 – thanks to community response to a vehicle from the organization People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) parked outside, urging people to reject pork and other meats.
It was also reported that the business sold 2000 pounds of meat. Lines were stretched down the street for food. Check out the Smoked Facebook page HERE.
GALLATIN COUNTY & ICE:
We are going to see and hear a lot from Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen in the next few years because he can’t run for AG again, so he needs another political job.
Knudsen’s most recent fake outrage to get him some publicity is about the Gallatin County Commissioners and the Gallatin County Attorney not wanting to enter into an agreement with ICE to detain undocumented immigrants from across the state at the Gallatin County Detention Center. (Source)
Knudsen sent a strongly worded letter to the commissioners, then he did some interviews.
It was also reported in several publications that the county already participates in a federal program to detain undocumented individuals charged with crimes, so the MAGA talk of undocumented individuals being free to roam the streets of Bozeman is hyperbole.
Gallatin County already participates in the federal 287(g) Warrant Service Officer (WSO) program, a robust, limited cooperation initiative that allows trained local law enforcement officers to perform certain functions of ICE officers. This collaboration ensures that undocumented individuals charged with crimes in Gallatin County are properly flagged and held for ICE. (Source)
The Gallatin County Attorney is looking out for the county. Knudsen is playing politics again. This is a nothingburger.
COVID-19 VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS:
Readers may have heard that U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., announced this week that he was ending coronavirus vaccine recommendations for healthy children and pregnant women.
Kennedy is not a doctor. He is an anti-vaccine activist and conspiracy theorist.
On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported:
Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are scrambling to understand Kennedy’s decision, announced in a 58-second video on X on Tuesday morning, which took agency staff by surprise.
Five hours later, CDC officials received a one-page “secretarial directive,” dated May 19 and signed by Kennedy, that contradicts some of what he said in his video, according to two current and one former health officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation.
Nobody in their right mind should trust Kennedy’s recommendations.
ONE MORE THING:
TACO = “Trump Always Chickens Out.”
Donald Trump had an Oval Office meltdown over Wall Street’s new acronym for his tariffs: TACO Trade, which stands for Trump Always Chickens Out.
Check out the story HERE.
## END ##
The Western Word 
PETA: Despite the big day for Smoked, PETA won because of all the publicity they got. And they tweaked the righties, which is always good.
Knudsen: Supposedly our jails are so full that there’s no room for our local criminals so judges let the lesser ones go to roam the streets to continue to rob, burgle, break into cars, and sell drugs. But Knudsen wants the counties to turn over cells to the Feds to house ICE detainees instead. Simple detainees, not necessarily criminals beyond their immigation status.
Incidentally, here in Cascade County sheriff Slaughter told the county commission that he is looking into our jail entering into an agreement with ICE to house detainees here. He would make room by getting rid of the state prisoners he currently houses because the state prisons are too overcrowded. ICE pays more than $50 more per day per prisoner than the state. What a deal! Slaughter almost seems to be watering at the mouth at the prospect. Meanwhile those state prisoners who were here because the state prisons are too overcrowded will go … where? Back on the streets? To some out-of-state private prison the Feds could have hired instead?
Let the Feds kick loose federal prisoners and put their ICE detainees in federal prisons instead.
https://theelectricgf.com/2025/05/23/county-officials-discussing-ccso-budget-including-absorbing-des-and-potential-ice-contract/
It’s kind of funny that these MAGAs hate the Feds interfering with their little kingdoms, but will bend over backwards to take federal $$.
PETA did get a lot of attention. Interesting organization.
Thanks, JmB