Thanks for starting your week with The Western Word! Here are the topics for today’s column:

• Gianforte & ADF
• Cascade County & ICE
• Judge Amy Eddy
• Big Week Ahead
• One More Thing

GIANFORTE & ADF:

There was some talk on social media and a few articles posted about Montana Governor Greg Gianforte (R) replacing the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) representative on the state’s Criminal Justice Oversight Council with someone from the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a conservative religious legal organization. (Source)  

It’s important to realize that Gianforte can do this. Since Gianforte leans (or lets people know he leans) to the religious side, it is not surprising that he appointed someone from a “conservative religious legal organization.” 

Things like that happen when you win elections. All the other side can do is complain.  

The thing that bothers me is tilting the council too far one way or the other. Since there are 16 members, they will probably be fine.  

The Daily Montanan reported that the ADF representative is Jessica Flint. The Daily Montanan further reported:

Flint, according to her LinkedIn page, was a licensed relator [sic] in Billings between 2017-’22 and joined the Office of Public Instruction in 2020, where she stayed for about two years. She then joined the ADF in 2022. 

Jessica Flint is married to Aaron Flint, a conservative radio talk radio [sic] host who often has Montana’s Republican powerbrokers on his show. Campaign finance records show Jessica Flint has given political donations to Gov. Gianforte and current Attorney General Austin Knudsen. The Gianforte Family Foundation has also partnered with Aaron Flint and KBUL Radio in the past.

I know both Aaron and Jessica. I stopped listening to Aaron’s radio show when he went 100% off the deep end for MAGA. I don’t consider him a journalist; he is more of a cheerleader for Trump, Daines, Gianforte, Knudsen, etc. 

I do know that Jessica Flint was a top-notch staffer in congressional offices. Since she handled those positions well, I am sure she will handle her appointment to the Criminal Justice Oversight Council easily and provide valuable insight. I wish her the best. 

Here are some articles about the appointment HERE, HERE, and HERE. 

CASCADE COUNTY & ICE:

As I mentioned last week, several members of the community spoke out against the county working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

As normal, The Electric provided great reporting about the meeting:

There was no contract with ICE specifically on the agenda, but the Cascade County Sheriff’s Office is negotiating a new contract with the U.S. Marshals Service and is also in discussions with ICE for a separate contract, but there’s no draft or movement on that at this point, according to county officials. 

One of the interesting pieces of information coming out of the meeting was this reporting from The Electric: 

The county does has [sic] an existing contract with the Marshals that specifically includes ICE as an authorized agency user.

That contract was signed in May 2021 by Cory Reeves, who was the undersheriff at the time, and commissioners ratified the contract in June 2021.

Jasmine Taylor, who is challenging Reeves in the city mayoral race, spoke in opposition to cooperation with ICE.

Taylor is being attacked almost daily by Reeves’ supporters, who are mostly MAGAs. He seems to be afraid of her. She would destroy him in a debate. 

JUDGE AMY EDDY:

I happened to see some conservatives on social media complaining about an opinion piece in the local papers from Judge Amy Eddy, so I had to read it. 

Some of the MAGAs are bothered that Eddy donated to Democrats. That does not bother me. In the last Supreme Court election, I voted for Cory Swanson and Katherine M. Bidegaray.  

In case you did not know, Eddy has been a District Court Judge in Flathead County since 2015 and is a candidate for the Montana Supreme Court.

Eddy writes that she wants to keep our courtrooms honest, independent, and free from the corrosive influence of partisanship. I agree with that. It appears that many of the MAGAs in Montana want partisan judicial elections. 

She contends that she is running a nonpartisan campaign not only in name, but in spirit. She says she is not seeking endorsements from partisan elected officials and is not accepting political party money. She also says she is not traveling hundreds of miles to speak at political party conventions, which will probably save her some money (not to mention stomach aches from the food). 

Eddy says that “On the Supreme Court, I will protect our freedoms, guard our Constitution, hold criminals accountable, and apply the law fairly. I believe deeply that we must keep politics out of the courtroom.”

Amen to that! I think I may have found my choice for Justice of the Montana Supreme Court. 

Please visit the “Judge Amy Eddy for Montana Supreme Court” website HERE. 

BIG WEEK AHEAD:

• There is a Special City (Great Falls) Commission Meeting on Tuesday, July 29, at 5:30 p.m. to discuss fireworks use in Great Falls. You can read the agenda HERE. I think they will vote to place on the ballot a plan to partially ban fireworks in the city. Since it is on the ballot, why not place three plans on the ballot for people to decide? #1 Complete Ban. #2 Partial Ban. #3 Stay as is. Vote for only one. 

• NFL preseason football begins Thursday night. 

• The Montana State Fair continues this week and ends on Saturday.

• August begins on Friday! 

ONE MORE THING:

For those of you who are afraid to share my posts because you think a SWAT team will come knocking on your door…that’s just crazy! SWAT teams don’t knock…

## HAVE A GREAT WEEK ##