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In this time of political division, pandemic and economic stress, we need something upon which we can all agree. Montanans all agree that we love our last best place. We all want to keep it that way. To that end, supporting our economy and keeping our natural resources pristine at the same time is paramount. That is why we are endorsing Monica Tranel for PSC. The Public Service Commission should keep the interests of Montanans at the forefront. This means that we should promote allowing farmers and ranchers to retain their land and generate ren...
We hear again about the availability of the public lands for use by the owners of that land ––the PUBLIC. Both candidates for Montana Senate seat indicate they feel public lands need to be open to the public. Who exactly are they talking about? The term public to me tends to be inclusive and not exclusive. The Bob Marshall Wilderness is considered by many to be “public” lands. The Bob Marshall is classified to be public but that is not really true. The elderly and handicapped (27% of the public) are categorically denied access to the Wildern...
Here is how I am voting: Judges, Propositions and Public Service Commission: http://kvs.org/vote/ballot-part1.pdf Five candidates: http://kvs.org/vote/ballot-part2.pdf My ballot: http://kvs.org/vote/ballot2020.pdf U.S. Senator: STEVE BULLOCK has done an outstanding job in difficult times. He expanded healthcare to 90,000 Montanans and kept rural hospitals open, balanced the budget and saved $60 million in our rainy day fund. His opponent takes credit for legislation he opposed, which passed anyway. He consistently votes against Montanans...
It is the harvest season, and a lot of living things, especially grizzly bears, have their minds on food. In the case of grizzly bears, the only thing they think about right now is food. While they think about food, I think about garbage. I work for the Living with Wildlife Foundation, in partnership with Flathead National Forest. I serve as the Swan Valley bear ranger, assisted by a dozen volunteers. We talk to campground visitors about grizzlies and garbage. Following last Sunday’s airing of “Coexisting with Grizzlies” on CBS 60 Minut...
I found the letter to the Pathfinder titled “Vote like life depends on it” interesting and I thank the Pathfinder for printing the varied views of the community. I do have several concerns about the view expressed. First, the author’s view is based on her Christian belief. As most of you are aware, our country was founded on the idea of the separation of church and state. Mostly this was out of concern that people did not want the state messing with their religious freedoms. I believe turnabout is fair play. Why should a church be able to ge...
If you got a mailer attacking my opponent, for the record that is not from me, and I disavow it. I do not do attack mailers, never have and never will. The interest earned off the current principle of the Coal Tax Trust Fund currently funds over 15 different programs in Montana. Those dollars back up Montana’s retirement systems, Montana’s schools, Montana’s Agriculture and infrastructure across the state just to name a few. Every session legislators try to spend that principle on all kinds of things, but Democrats in the legislature have done...
On Sunday, Oct. 11, the Missoulian endorsed me with the big bold headline: “Fielder is who PSC needs now”. Among other things, the well-reasoned endorsement acknowledged my “willingness to stand up to powerful interests.” Indeed, I have bucked the flow of big government and my own party at times – including my support for allowing all viable energy sources to compete in the marketplace and my strong stand against corruption. The Missoulian described me as “a fiercely independent thinker and a no-nonsense leader.” I analyze facts and put peopl...
As former wildland firefighters, we learned what’s required to take on complex and difficult, tasks. We learned that when the going gets tough, there’s no substitute for hard work, experience and clear thinking. We know that excellent leaders consider all sides of a problem and work with their teams before making critical decisions. That’s why we’re supporting Monica Tranel for the Public Service Commission. As a lawyer who’s dealt with public utility issues for decades, Monica will get right down to work as soon as she’s elected. Because she...
Over the last four years, our Secretary of State’s office has become plagued with incompetence and corruption under the leadership of Corey Stapleton and Christi Jacobsen. Under their mismanagement we’ve seen hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars given away in contracts to their top donors, hiring of family members into their administration, criminal abuse of state owned vehicles, an absolute failure to plan for the challenges of COVID-19 and much more. This November - we can clean up this mess. I’ve spent my career bringing Repub...
My wife and I moved to Seeley Lake in 2019 from the Flathead Valley, seeking to simplify and reconnect with nature and a smaller community. We quickly met many residents who made us feel welcome and provided great examples of community love and involvement. One of those people was Tom Browder. Tom leads by example. From volunteering on community boards, coordinating food drives, or just hiking in our beautiful public lands, Toms’ compassion and love for the community he calls home is obvious. Real governmental representation means more than j...
Mike Hopkins is asking to be re-elected to the Montana Legislature as the representative from the Seeley-Swan -Potomac-Bonner-Clinton area. Here’s a fact to consider in your decision to vote or NOT VOTE for him. Seeley residents have been undergoing a vigorous, divisive discussion over a $40 million central sewer proposal. Mike Hopkins has never entered that discussion and asked if or how he could help. There are four state funding entities which could assist a local government like Seeley. The funding from these entities is woefully i...
When you campaign across our beautiful state, as we both have had the opportunity to do, you learn a thing or two about what it means to be a Montanan. You learn that while there are unique issues in each of our 56 counties, we all share many of the same hopes and concerns from Butte to Broadus. We want our kids to receive a high-quality public education, we want our public lands to be protected and we all want to live dignified, respected lives. Every Montanan wants a legislator that will bring people together to get things done. That’s why w...
Here is how I am voting: Last week’s letter dealt with Propositions, Judges and the Public Service Commission. You can view it here: http://kvs.org/vote/ballot-part1.pdf MT House Rep, HD 92: TOM BROWDER is a native Montanan, who lives in the district. He is thoughtful and pragmatic, headed for the legislature to focus on a rational tax system with lower taxes for poor people. He supports affordable housing, so that we can accommodate a variety of incomes in Seeley Lake. He advocates for quality education from pre-K to college, trade and tech s...
The summer before I turned 17 was the worst fire season in Montana history. The Rice Ridge fire outside of Seeley Lake grew 60,000 acres in a single day, filling the beautiful Blackfoot Valley, where I’ve lived my entire life, with smoke and threatening evacuation for my family and many of our friends and neighbors. And we had it much better than most of the people living in the Seeley-Swan Valleys, who breathed air filled with the particulates of their burning forests for most of the dry summer and well into the fall, and continue to feel t...
I’m writing this letter in support of Tom Browder, as he is a man of character and diligence. I met Tom about three years ago as a volunteer on his Parks and Recreation committee, which he led and continues to lead at this time. I continue to volunteer and have gotten to know Tom very well. He is an intelligent, self-directed, people-oriented person who is committed to whatever he chooses to do. He is devoted to the task. What he says is what he does! Tom is also a technology wizard. He has worked in this field for many years and has done m...
Recently, I have received a couple of misleading mailers from the Montana Republican State Central Committee attacking Kathleen Williams and claiming she “wants to take away your Second Amendment rights.” Don’t believe the Republican and NRA propaganda about Kathleen. It is not true! I have been a gun owner, shooter and hunter for the past 60 years. I know Kathleen and have spoken with her about her views on firearms. Kathleen is a firearms owner and hunter. Like many of my hunting companions, she supports reasonable, commonsense legis...
Around the United States for the last several years, Republicans have pushed legislation and regulations to make voter registration and voting more difficult. As we all know, and Republicans like Trump and a few others have publicly admitted, they do not do well at the polls when more people vote. Back in March of 2020, Trump stated on Fox News that opening up voting to more American citizens would mean “you’d never have a Republican elected in this country again.” We’ve even had a few Republican state legislators in Montana acknowledge the pro...
I’m not sure I’ve ever read a more disingenuous or out of touch endorsement for a political office than the Missoulian’s recent endorsement of Jennifer Fielder for Public Service Commissioner. They contend she has a “unique capacity to unite a fractured commission.” Anyone that has followed her political life knows that her capacity to unite is because she would be another Republican on the commission. Isn’t that really what Lee Newspapers wants? Another vote to styme the change on the commission that we Montanans desperately need and desire....
In two recent decisions, the Montana Supreme Court ruled that the Public Service Commission (PSC) broke the law when it imposed harsh contract terms on renewable energy developers who sought to sell power to the state’s largest regulated utility. These rulings were welcome not only because they opened the path to future renewable energy development, but also because they affirmed a fundamental principle of American democracy: Nobody—no person, nor government official, nor government agency—is above the law. In another way, however, the rulin...
I have had brief but memorial conversations with Jennifer Fielder. It was apparent from those conversations that Jennifer Fielder has no desire or ability to work with others that may not agree with her. Most concerning to me was how hostile Jennifer Fielder appeared to be regarding outdoor recreation. I remember thinking how difficult it would be to work on the same committee with Jennifer Fielder. That’s why I was stunned to read that the Missoulian endorsed Jennifer Fielder in part because of her “unique capacity to unite.” Jennifer Field...
I am a retired teacher in Missoula and Bryce Bennett has my support for Montana Secretary of State. Bryce is a fifth generation Montanan with a solid history of public service as State Senator. Bryce attended Montana public schools and is enthusiastically supported by MEA-MFT. An important component of the Secretary of State’s job is to interpret election laws and to oversee the election process. I firmly support Bennett’s principled plan supporting mail-in ballots. Montana citizens should not be forced to make a choice between their health dur...
The outcome of every electoral race this November will affect Montana’s air, water, climate and economic opportunities. Montana Conservation Voters, a statewide non-partisan organization, believes we all can help protect our public lands, our environment and our climate by electing conservation champions at all levels of government. To that end, Montana Conservation Voters strongly endorses Monica Tranel for Public Service Commissioner in District 4. Our Public Service Commission is a very small state agency, but it has a very big say in d...
I am a long time resident of the Swan Valley. I am voting for Monica Tranel because she knows her stuff! Take a moment to learn about her, she is the right person for this job. In addition to two decades of experience working directly with the Public Service Commission, Monica served as a staff attorney for the PSC from 2001 to 2005 and worked for the Consumer Counsel from 2014 to 2016. She currently runs the Tranel Law Firm, which is focused on regulatory issues before the PSC, water and property rights, and represents clients who want to inve...
With all the “grades” being issued by the National Rifle Association (NRA) for Montana political candidates I’d like to offer some perspective on this highly partisan organization. I am 74 years old and have hunted for nearly 60 years in Montana. When I was honored to be elected as a Democrat to the Montana House of Representatives back in the 1990s I earned a “D” rating from the NRA the entire time I was in office. The Republican gentleman who defeated me in my fourth bid for re-election had never hunted, fished or owned a gun but received...
With numerous important voting issues, none is more critical than life. God’s Commandment states: “You shall not kill,” meaning to not kill unjustly. Even though science concurs with the Church that an individual human being exists at conception, 60+ million abortions have been wickedly legal in this country since 1973. However, God’s laws overrule man’s laws. We know the mantra: “It’s a woman’s choice; it’s her body”; not according to our Creator: “It is I who bring both death and life…” (Deuteronomy 32:39). Anyone who votes for a political...
