Greetings! Here are the topics for today’s common sense commentary:

• Montana National Guard 
• Montana Politics
• Ben Sasse
• Non-Citizen Voting
• One More Thing

MONTANA NATIONAL GUARD:

An alert reader let me know about a decision in one of the cases involving three Montana National Guardsmen who were facing criminal misdemeanor trespassing charges in May 2025 for landing a Black Hawk helicopter on a private ranch to collect elk antlers. 

The three guardsmen are Michael Vincent Bray, 30, from Helena, Perry Wray Woodland, 30, from Great Falls, and Deni Lynn Draper, 36, from Clancy.

According to a story posted in Outdoor Life, the helicopter pilot (Deni Lynn Draper) has pleaded “no contest” to trespassing charges stemming from the fly-in shed-hunting incident. 

Additionally, it was reported:

Appearing in Sweet Grass County Court on Monday, Draper’s attorney, Dwight Schulte, changed his original plea from not guilty to no contest, waiving Draper’s right to a jury trial. Judge Jessie Connolly accepted the plea, according to Montana Right Now, and she deferred Draper’s sentencing for six months, which means the charges can be erased from his record if he is not charged with another crime during that time. Connolly also raised the fine amount from the $100 proposed by the prosecution to $500, which is the maximum penalty for a standard criminal trespass misdemeanor in Montana.

“The court finds since you do serve our country, you are held to a little higher standard than many people,” Connolly said of her decision to up the fine.

There was also information from the Montana National Guard in the article regarding their “internal investigation” that was recently completed. An official with the Guard said appropriate actions will be taken as a result, but that he is unable to share any specifics due to the privacy protections afforded in military investigations.

That seems typical for the good ol’ boys club. I think as taxpayers, we deserve to know the punishment (if any) these individuals received. It was a national story that brought embarrassment to Montana. As for the punishment given to Draper in civilian court, I think it was very, very mild.

MONTANA POLITICS:

The Montana MAGAs were in a fuss the last couple of days as more and more Democrats came out to challenge Republican officeholders.  

Montana Public Radio (MTPR) has the story about a Missoula smokejumper and union leader who has entered the race for the western congressional district. Sam Forstag joins two other Democrats in vying for their party’s nomination to challenge Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke. Forstag announced an endorsement from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders shortly after launching his campaign, which prompted several Montana MAGAs to take to social media to attack him. 

Other Democrats in the race (so far) include Matt Rains of Simms and Russell Cleveland of St. Regis. 

MTPR also reported that a U.S. Air Force veteran and leadership coach is now in the race for one of Montana’s U.S. Senate seats. Alani Bankhead of Helena is the fourth Democrat aiming to unseat Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Steve Daines. Bankhead spent 21 years in the Air Force with special operations and later served as a senior bodyguard with the Pentagon. Other Democratic candidates for the U.S. Senate seat include Reilly Neill of Livingston, Michael Black Wolf of Hayes, and Michael Hummert of Helena. 

NOTE: If you are a candidate in 2026, please add The Western Word to your press list. You can contact me at Western_Word@yahoo.com. 

BEN SASSE: 

This is another one of the issues that happened over the holiday break that I wanted to comment on. 

In case you don’t remember him, Ben Sasse represented Nebraska in the United States Senate as a Republican from 2015 to 2023. He was also the president of the University of Florida from February 2023 until July 2024. 

Last month (Dec. 2025), Sasse announced that he had been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer. This is part of his message on X:

This is a tough note to write, but since a bunch of you have started to suspect something, I’ll cut to the chase: Last week I was diagnosed with metastasized, stage-four pancreatic cancer, and am gonna die. 

Advanced pancreatic is nasty stuff; it’s a death sentence. But I already had a death sentence before last week too — we all do. 

Sasse and his wife, Melissa, have three children.

Ben Sasse was one of my favorite U.S. Senators, along with John Thune. I feel so bad for him and his family. 

Of course, some people did not think highly of Sasse and just had to attack him on social media. One of them was a guy who goes by John Jackson on X  (@pvtjokerus) and is often on Aaron Flint’s “Montana Talks” MAGA radio show in Montana. 

Jackson posted on X that “Ben Sasse was not a good guy. One of the most heinous and vocal Never-Trumpers during the first term, he also voted to impeach President Trump…”

Jackson went on to write that “He was a major figure in the sabotage and subversion of  Trump’s first term.”

He closes his attack with, “He will not be missed.” 

Jackson later deleted the post, but I had already taken a screenshot of it. 

I thought Jackson’s post was shameful. Ben Sasse has a wife and three children. He is dying, and to attack him over politics during this time is uncalled for. Be better. 

NON-CITIZEN VOTING:

I happened to get a postcard from Secretary of State Christi Jacobson recently with a photo of her with President Donald Trump. I imagine most Montanans will receive the postcard. 

The postcard, in part, states:

Secretary of State Christi Jacobson is partnering with the Trump Administration to strengthen election security. Montana will soon implement a verification program designed to:

• Verify immigration status
• Access Citizenship data for free
• Ensure only citizens vote in U.S. Elections

You can view the postcard HERE and HERE. 

I’m not sure the postcard was just to enlighten Montanans about non-citizen voting. Name recognition is important in elections. In Montana, being seen with Trump still carries some weight. Besides briefing Montanans by postcard about voting security, I’ve been seeing a lot more of Jacobson on TV recently. I’m sure, like all politicians, she is looking ahead to the next election. 

ONE MORE THING: 

When someone tells me they’re a Christian, I ask:

Classic Jesus or Republican Jesus? 

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