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With Tim Fox term-limited, we will elect a new Attorney General this year. I support Fox’s Chief Deputy Attorney General, Jon Bennion. Serving as Fox’s chief of staff for most of his first term was the greatest privilege of my career. I worked closely with Jon. He has the knowledge, experience, work ethic, and judgment for the job. Navigating the Attorney General’s world and Montana’s complex Department of Justice is no small task. The law enforcement community has high regard for Jon. He works well with everyone, is an excellent listene...
Last week the Legislative Council met virtually to discuss COVID-19 and the fiscal situation for Montana. Administrative committee chairs from finance, audit and revenue were also invited for information purposes. Todd Everts, chief legal counsel for the legislature, briefed members on the powers of the governor and the legislative body when there is an emergency. Throughout the years, the legislature has delegated broad authority to the governor in dealing with emergencies such as fire, flooding, drought and energy issues. There’s never b...
The upcoming primary election is one of the most important for the State of Montana. There is a critical race for Montana Attorney General and I want to enthusiastically endorse Kimberly Dudik. Kimberly Dudik is a mother of four, a former prosecutor and Deputy Gallatin County Attorney, Assistant MT Attorney General and a Registered Nurse who specialized in neonatal intensive care. Kimberly Dudik is a four term legislator who has successfully worked across the aisle for everyday Montanans. As an advocate and leader for the protection of public...
Coronavirus is not going to disappear anytime soon. There is no vaccine or cure. The primary goal of the current public health and safety measures have been to slow the spread of the virus so our healthcare system would not collapse. In Montana, we have succeeded. Since the beginning of this crisis, a massive federal aid package was passed to ease the burden on as many Americans and businesses as possible – but it is a solution to the economic crisis we now face. In addition to our public health and economic crises we face, there is a third c...
The pandemic surrounding Covid-19 has left the country in a predicament that it wasn't prepared for. Non-essential businesses were forced to close, forcing millions of Americans to scramble and file for unemployment. Congress passed an economic stimulus package that at first glance, seemed like a big help. This package is the lacking basic consumer relief that many people need. With a stimulus package that can barely hold some over for 2 weeks and millions unemployed, it will force a number of people to seek out loans where they could be...
SEELEY LAKE - I am writing to recommend Tom Morris and Jason Gilpin for election to the Seeley Lake Sewer District board. Here is why. With only one recent exception, current board members have blindly pursued an exorbitantly expensive sewage treatment solution which will not clean up or protect our watershed. Tom and Jason will respect our constitutional rights to know and participate in this important process. With the direct aid of Missoula County officials, the Board did an end run around our 2016 vote to NOT pursue this proposal and has...
We now have many Montanans wanting to work to support their families but in my opinion are prohibited from doing so by intrusive government regulations. Private homeowners and landlords in Montana that need to have maintenance work done and now qualify for low interest loans are also hampered by the same laws. I understand that many professional service providers will not work doing minor maintenance on older homes or mobile homes, even though they can charge many times more than a handyman. If they do concede to work, I believe many do so by...
SEELEY LAKE - Ballots are in the mail this week. Please fill them out and sign them correctly. This is the time to vote two great candidates onto the board. Don’t let two candidates who are business owners make you subsidize the sewer for their benefit. Instead, vote for Tom Morris and Jason Gilpin. Just remember 40 years is a long time to pay for a system only good for 15 – 20 years. I was also wondering, during a crisis like we are in now, who would pay your operating and maintenance? Who would pick up the costs for any foreign objects tha...
The current Public Service Commission is dysfunctional and hasn’t been serving the public’s interest. Why should you care? Because it affects your pocketbook, your environment and the social well being of Montanans. Do wildfires and smoke concern you? We have a family forest in the Lower Blackfoot at risk because of our reliance on fossil fuels. We need a vision for a heat and power system that reduces fossil carbon emissions. Monica Tranel is running for the District 4 Commissioner. She has EXPERIENCE, over 20 years worth. She is ready the fir...
Voters in Senate District 46 should check the box for Shannon O’Brien on June 2. I’ve known Shannon for over a decade and she is a passionate leader who has dedicated her career to providing a quality education for Montana’s kids. As an education policy advisor to Governor Steve Bullock, Shannon worked collaboratively on issues ranging from early childhood learning to workforce training and economic development. She helped identify and define problems and find solutions that work. Montana spends almost a third of the state budget on education,...
Monica Tranel is running for the Public Service Commission District 4 including Missoula, Lake, Ravalli, Sanders, Granite, Mineral and Lincoln counties. I am grateful to have such an intelligent, hardworking, educated and knowledgeable candidate for this position. An attorney with a wealth of experience presenting cases in front of the PSC, Monica truly understands this complicated area of the law. She also understands the role Public Service Commissioners are supposed to play in Montana – regulating monopolies to protect consumers’ poc...
Vote for Shannon O’Brien for Senate District 46 and you will not be disappointed. Shannon has extensive experience as an educator and an advocate for our children. She served as education policy advisor for Governor Bullock and dean of Missoula College. She was a high school teacher and coach. She understands how to work hard and get things done in Helena. She shares our values: a clean environment, high-quality health care, affordable homes, and believes in treating each other with basic human dignity. Shannon and I have worked on a handful o...
Montanans are doing our part in this very difficult time to help each other out and curb the spread of the COVID 19 virus. We come together and look out for each other, as we always have in times of crisis and in this case that means practicing social distancing to slow the spread of this disease. It is times like this that we as Montanans are even more appreciative of our public mountains and foothills, forests and prairies, and rivers and streams. Montanans recreate in the outdoors at as high of a rate as any state and last year’s C...
A candidate for the United States Senate in Montana’s June 2 primary election has refused to accept campaign contributions during the reporting quarter ended March 31, 2020. He spent $2,474.73, which includes the $1,740 filing fee and expenses for driving to 43 of Montana’s 56 counties before the shelter in place order. He intends to draw the line on graft. John Brian Driscoll (R) also announced today, in a published essay titled “Backfire,” that during his general election campaign he will not accept from any donor more than the filing...
Us: Some unusually bad hail came through this season and sadly it shattered many of our most precious stained glass windows in our home. What should we do? Government: Start by pouring gasoline all through your house and light it on fire. When the neighbors show up to help, begin screaming “FIRE, FIRE” at the top of your lungs. Tell them to be calm but encourage them to join in. When the crowds get large enough and loud enough, encourage them to burn down your neighbor’s house as well. And finally, if enough are willing and the rest are afrai...
When you see an Ace of Hearts taped face-out in a window or on a door, or brass-tacked on a post or a tree, it means within, or passing nearby, is an American with courage and caring enough to respond to the call of duty to protect and defend our U.S. Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. Scores of thousands of Montanans, in doing this, gave some and some gave all. From pictures of these Aces of Hearts in an album on my John Brian Driscoll Facebook page, you will see they ask nothing in return except effort by our nation to...
The challenges that COVID-19 presents are both unprecedented and telling -- they highlight the cracks in our system that leave out the most vulnerable, especially our seniors and veterans. As a veteran of the Vietnam War, retired businessman, eight-year state senator representing rural and urban areas in Montana, and Montana rancher, I know these challenges first hand. From insecure housing and underemployment to lack of comprehensive health care, food insecurity, and impossibly expensive pharmaceuticals, many of our state’s seniors and v...
SEELEY LAKE - As I sit here waiting out the coronavirus to pass, I realize the only other thing that will kill you is the cost of a sewer in Seeley Lake. The people of Seeley need Tom Morris and Jason Gilpin on the board to clean up the corruption from the lawyer and manager who say they represent the citizens of the town. The lawyer and the manager do not care about the non-supporters and refuse to work for a system that is affordable. I sit and think all they are for is a paycheck paid by everyone in the district. This is the reason why the...
SEELEY LAKE - Shannon O’Brien as candidate for SD 46? WE should all take STRONG note of this! Shannon is a powerful, energetic and experienced leader to help this District and our state in this ultra-critical time. Shannon has the experience to take us forward amidst the dark maze of health fears, financial setbacks, job loss and awareness, now that we face the new unknown! I have known Shannon only for the past six years, though more with great knowledge of her past leadership: Leadership in education, specifically at high school and c...
Our democracy can stand up to a lot — but COVID-19 will test us. The threat of this rapidly spreading virus has fundamentally changed our lives as Americans and Montanans seemingly overnight. We’ve turned to each other and made changes big and small to help protect our health and the health of our friends, neighbors and communities. COVID-19 has changed how we greet one another, what’s on television, how we gather together, how thoroughly we wash our hands, where we work, how often we go out and much more. Now, it must change the way we vote....
Thank you Roxie Sterling for your heartfelt and eloquent letter in last week’s Pathfinder. I applaud your defense of our president because he is our president. Imagine how much more could be accomplished were he not daily bombarded by unnecessary negativity. I personally only know of one other man who does not flinch under such attacks. Roxie, you have penned, on several occasions, my own sentiments. I, however, cannot write them as well. You have a gift. Roxie, I stand with you....
In reference to Don Larson’s letter about selecting the next two new Sewer Board members and to do your homework. Well, I did some investigating for the citizens of the town and here are my findings: 1. Tom Morris is a past sewer board member who protested the sewer and has years of experience on the board and will fight for the alternative solution. 2. Jason Gilpin is related to Tom and knows the facts and state laws on this matter. Jason has been well educated by Tom on this project and also protested. 3. Of the two other guys, one isn’t even...
I want to better articulate what I was trying to express at the Community Meeting last week. I am a candidate for a position on the sewer board. I had never considered running or becoming a part of the process but I was asked to run. So reluctantly, I filed. I don’t know how comfortable I’d be on the board but this is a serious issue for me personally, as well as for other residents in my area, and that is why I wish to be involved with the process. Follows are points from part of a letter I wrote last September both to the Pathfinder and to th...
SEELEY LAKE - I want to commend our local law enforcement in Seeley Lake. They took the burglary at my business It’s Ah Wrap very seriously, handled it professionally and went out of their way to keep me informed. Thanks to their hard work and collaboration with Missoula Police Department, the stolen equipment from my business was returned. After my business was broken into early Saturday, Feb. 29 I called and reported it. Missoula County Sergeant Bob Parcell came over and started his investigation. I provided him my surveillance footage and f...
SEELEY LAKE - The Veterans and Families of Seeley Lake would like to thank all the businesses and individuals in Seeley Lake for their generosity and donations to support the Ellinghouse triplets. The Spaghetti Dinner and Silent Auction March 7 raised nearly $7,300 and we are still receiving donations. Without the community’s support this would have not been possible. We are continually amazed how generous this town is and want to thank everyone for your support! VFSL is still accepting donations for the girls. Please make checks payable to V...
