My moderate heart was beating proudly yesterday while I was following the actions in the Montana Senate about Medicaid expansion.

Why? Five Republicans told the far-righties in the Montana Senate to take a long walk off a short pier.

It’s not that I am fully in favor of Medicaid expansion or fully against expansion – it was exciting to see that some of the GOP senators in this Montana Legislature are individual thinkers – that Reagan Republicans still have a heartbeat. I thought the Montana Reagan Republicans were probably dead and buried along a dirt road in a golden triangle wheat field (and they went the way of Joe Pesci in “Casino”).

But for at least one day and one vote there’s a heartbeat for moderates. There’s hope that the wackos on the far right are losing ground. Maybe a little less tea will be consumed in the coming months and they will act a little less cocky. Hope is a good thing.

So who are these brave men who have boldly gone where few have gone before? They are State Senators Llew Jones, Ed Buttrey, Jim Peterson, Bruce Tutvedt, and Taylor Brown.

Salute!  Continue reading →