Greetings! Here are the topics for my common sense commentary: 

• Jacobsen’s Latest Postcard
• Montana Campaign News
  • Sam Forstag & AOC
  • Campaign Mailers Update
• The Iran War
• One More Thing

JACOBSEN’S LATEST POSTCARD:

Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen sent voters another postcard this week about new election requirements. (FRONT/BACK)

I have some concerns. 

As many people pointed out, at least one claim on this postcard is now factually wrong due to a court ruling issued on May 11. A Montana district court granted a preliminary injunction against Senate Bill 490, blocking the new law restricting Election Day voter registration. With the ruling, the state’s existing rules stay in place, allowing voters to register to vote on Election Day as long as they are in line by the close of voting hours.

Some people are wondering whether she will update the postcard and resend it. That is not what I am concerned about. 

My concerns lie with the fact that Jacobsen is now an active candidate on the June 2 primary ballot—the very election this postcard is about. The footer line, “Under the Secretary’s leadership, Montana is informing voters…” is structurally identical to the January postcard’s “Under Secretary Jacobsen’s leadership” language that was flagged as “campaign style messaging” even when she wasn’t yet a candidate. January postcard FRONT/BACK. 

The postage permit on the back of the card—”HELENA, MT / PERMIT NO. 89″—looks as though this mailer is being directly dispatched through the official, bulk-mailing channel of the Montana Secretary of State’s office. This government-owned permit is the exact same one used for the controversial January mailings. Using a taxpayer-funded state permit to broadcast structural, “campaign-style” messaging directly to voters while Jacobsen is an active candidate on the June 2 primary ballot raises serious legal and ethical questions about whether official state resources are being leveraged for coordinated campaign activity.

The bottom line is, I think this postcard is on much shakier legal ground than the January one. The combination of Jacobsen now being an active candidate and the self-promotional footer language makes a new complaint, if it is filed, substantially stronger than the one dismissed in January. Whether the Commissioner of Political Practices would reach a different result under the same narrow legal standard is uncertain—but the political and legal exposure is meaningfully greater.

2026 MONTANA CAMPAIGN NEWS: 

Sam Forstag & AOC…

Mark your calendars! On Friday, May 22, smokejumper and union leader Sam Forstag will lead a rally in Missoula in support of his campaign for MT-01 alongside U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, AFA-CWA President Sara Nelson, and Montana labor leaders. (Source)

The event will be held at 5:00 p.m. at the Wilma Theatre.  

Campaign Mailers Update…

For new readers, I keep track of the campaign literature received during the campaign season. Some of the better mailers get shown on The Western Word.

So far this primary campaign season, I have received 40 campaign mailers. 

That is through Tuesday (May 12).

Please make sure you save your mailers and recycle them!

THE IRAN WAR:

The Hill is reporting that one new piece of information to come out of the hearings held on Tuesday with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was the latest estimated cost of the Iran war, which Pentagon’s acting chief financial officer Jules Hurst III said is nearing $29 billion. 

Some say it could be almost double that. (Source)

President Trump said back around March 1–2, 2026, that the military campaign was projected to last four to five weeks, though he noted it could go “far longer” if necessary. On March 31, 2026, Trump announced that the U.S. could exit within two to three weeks. 

I remember during the start of the pandemic that during a White House coronavirus task force press briefing on February 26, 2020, Trump stated that the 15 U.S. cases of COVID-19 would soon drop “down to close to zero.”

It’s time for the MAGAs to realize what all the rest of us know: Trump is a liar. 

ONE MORE THING:

Things I have in common with Victoria’s Secret Models: Being hungry.

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