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

• Municipal General Election
• Highwood Creek Outfitters
• Update – Still There
• White House Ballroom
• One More Thing

MUNICIPAL GENERAL ELECTION:

I received my ballot for the Great Falls Municipal General Election on Tuesday. Election Day is November 4. You can view a sample ballot HERE. 

I saw that Great Falls City Commissioner Rick Tryon has made endorsements on his Facebook page.  That’s good, as it tells me who not to vote for! 

Tryon has endorsed Cory Reeves for Mayor, Joe McKenney for City Commissioner, and Peter Anderson for City Commissioner. No surprises there. Reeves and McKenney are running for reelection. 

I won’t be voting for Reeves or McKenney. They have raised taxes, fees, and rates over the last few years. The 27% utility rate increase was the last straw. 

After reading about candidate Peter Anderson’s ideas about forming a “Homeless Island,” in THIS ARTICLE, I hope nobody votes for him. 

I would like to see some new faces on the Great Falls City Commission. The current commission is a rubber stamp for the city department heads and the city manager. We need some forward-thinking younger people on the commission. 

Therefore, I will support Jasmine Taylor for Mayor, Casey Schreiner for City Commission, and Matt Pipinich for City Commission. 

As for the fireworks question on the ballot, I will be voting “Yes” to limit what fireworks can be sold and discharged in the City.

HIGHWOOD CREEK OUTFITTERS: 

The tune has certainly changed since IRS agents visited the Highwood Creek Outfitters store in Great Falls back in June 2023. 

Back then, Republican U.S. Representative Matt Rosendale (MT-02) had called the visit “Stormtrooper activity by the Biden Administration.” There was even a rally in support of the owner held on July 1, 2023. 

The U.S. Department of Justice reported the activity this way:

The owner of a firearms business in Great Falls was charged with filing false income tax returns after an undercover investigation determined the owner did not report 20 percent, or approximately $1.4 million, of his gross receipts, resulting in a tax loss of almost $500,000, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said today.

A grand jury indictment filed on Aug. 1 in U.S. District Court charges the defendant, Tommy Michael VanHoose, 66, with five counts of submitting a false tax return. If convicted, VanHoose faces a maximum of three years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and one year of supervised release on each count.

The DOJ also reported that an undercover IRS agent toured Highwood Creek Outfitters with VanHoose in May 2023. During the tour, VanHoose stated that he skimmed approximately $450,000 in cash and repeatedly stated he did not report 20 percent of the gross receipts to the IRS.

Da dumb!  

KRTV is reporting that Vanhoose reached a plea agreement earlier this month and has agreed to plead guilty to one charge of submitting a false tax return. In exchange, prosecutors have dropped four other charges of submitting a false tax return. It was also reported by KRTV that VanHoose faces up to three years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and one year of supervised release.

It’s interesting how things change.  The Electric covers the story HERE. It’s a great crime story to read! 

UPDATE – STILL THERE: 

This is an ongoing report about a dead deer on a city street in Great Falls.

On October 14, I wrote about taking my daily walk on October 9 and seeing a dead deer partially on the road within the city limits. I noted the location (23rd St. S. by MSU-GF) and when I arrived home, I called the non-emergency police department number. I gave the officer the location. He told me he would notify Animal Control. 

As of 6:30 p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 22), the deer was still there. Ridiculous. 

WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM:

If there ever was an illustration of what Donald Trump is doing or has done to the United States, then it was the photos of the demolition of the East Wing of the White House. See photos HERE. 

Trump has lied about the building of the ballroom, saying that the new structure would not touch the East Wing. Now, the East Wing will be destroyed in a few days. The cost has gone up over time. Trump claims personal donations will pay for the construction. Remember him saying Mexico would pay for the border wall? 

Our country is in terrible shape because of Trump. 

ONE MORE THING:

I remember when Halloween was the scariest night of the year. Now, it’s Election Night. (Source)

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