by Guest Writer | Oct 10, 2025 | Guest Articles, Mayor
REEFER MADNESS IN GREAT FALLS: By Jackie Brown
I saw another drive-by hit piece from the MAGAs in Cascade County. This time, the hit piece is posted at the E-City Beat blog by Philip M. Faccenda.
The post on the blog shows a photo of Great Falls mayoral candidate Jasmine Taylor, “…holding a half-full weed pipe and lighter…”
The horror! The horror!
The blog did correctly point out that recreational marijuana use is legal in Montana.
It passed with about 57% of the vote in the state. Cascade County approved it with about 55% of the vote. By the way, I voted for it.
Faccenda would like the people holding the next candidate forum to ask drug-related questions so they can try to “get” Taylor.
I would like the City Commission to stop raising my taxes, rates, and fees. The current mayor won’t get my vote because he has supported increasing our taxes, rates, and fees on multiple occasions.
Finally, I leave you with this thought: “Five drunk guys will start a fight. Five stoned guys will start a band.”
Party on…
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by Guest Writer | Oct 7, 2025 | Medicaid, Republicans, Shutdown
Article 1 of the Constitution vests in Congress the sole authority to appropriate money. Each year, Congress and the President are required to pass 12 appropriations bills to fund the government for the next year by September 30. The current Republican-controlled House only requires a simple majority to pass a bill, yet not one appropriations bill has been agreed upon by both chambers. In fact, only three of the 12 appropriations bills have been passed out of the House.
Instead of focusing their energy on passing the 12 appropriations bills needed to fund government, Congress has spent much of their time passing a budget reconciliation bill that the President wanted. He likes to call it the “one big, beautiful bill.” Many refer to it as the Budget Busting Bill, as it raised the debt limit by five trillion dollars. It cut taxes for the wealthiest by over four trillion dollars. It will kick more than 10 million Americans off health insurance and cut nearly one trillion from Medicaid, resulting in 15 million people losing Medicaid coverage. It cut $300 billion from food nutrition programs that help feed 42 million Americans, mostly children. It cut investment in conservation programs and renewable energy, while raising subsidies for fossil fuels and lowering federal royalties for coal and other fossil fuels.
All of these cuts will cause dire impacts for farms, ranches and rural communities in Montana.
Bottom line: The budget reconciliation bill will lower the average income for all Americans except the Top 1%. This reconciliation bill barely passed, as several Republicans voted against it and required the Vice President to break the tie in the Senate.
Sadly, the juncture at which we find ourselves – a federal shutdown with no reauthorized Farm Bill, which expired Sept. 30 – further erodes our food security.
Because members of Congress and the White House have been unable to work out budget details, other work critical to the family farm remains in limbo as well. For example, finalizing a potential plan for emergency payments to offset the devastating impact of tariffs and conservation payments for producers being delayed, while chronically understaffed USDA offices fall further behind in providing technical support for producers.
I repeat: The Republicans control the White House, Senate, and the House. When the Republicans can’t pass their own appropriations bills out of the House, it is ludicrous to blame anyone but themselves.
Every one of Montana’s Congressional Delegation is Republican.
Ask them to use their power as the majority to do their job.
Schweitzer is President of Montana Farmers Union, a grassroots organization supporting family farmers and ranchers through education, legislation, and cooperation. He ranches near Geyser.
Tags:
federal shutdown 2025, Government Shutdown, MFU, Montana Farmers Union, Walter Schweitzer
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by Guest Writer | Jul 22, 2025 | Cascade County, Commissioners, ICE
Please join us in person or virtually for the Cascade County Commission meeting on Thursday @ 2 pm. We intend to make public comments about our disagreement with the use of Cascade County Dentention Center for the holding of ICE detainees from around the state. It is morally wrong, provides short term financial gain with long term consequences, and erodes public trust.
If you would like to call into this meeting, please dial
888-788-0099
Webinar ID : 895 8271 4948
Passcode : 411313
I will post a written script if you would prefer to copy and paste that into an email or the online form
Check out the discussion tab for some recent local new articles on the matter.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for taking time out of your day to attend or make a comment !
Where: 325 2nd Ave N, Room 105, Great Falls, MT 59401
Public · Anyone on or off Facebook
by Guest Writer | Jul 10, 2025 | Politics, Republicans
Ross Fitzgerald is a former Republican legislator from Teton County and the current chair of the Teton County Republican Central Committee. This is an editorial he wrote about the recent Republican convention in Helena and the elevation of Art Wittich to the state party chair.
“More alarming, the Freedom Caucus elevated Art Wittich to state party chair. I now call him the “Cleanser-in-Chief” for leading this pogrom in the state party. Wittich’s past includes a $68,000 fine—one of Montana’s largest—for campaign finance irregularities during his 2010 Senate campaign.”
I attended the recent Montana GOP Convention in Helena, representing the Teton County Republican Central Committee, never expecting to witness a blatant power grab. I was appalled to watch the Freedom Caucus, an extremist faction within the GOP, orchestrate the purge of nine sitting Republican state senators by stripping them of all voting privileges. Celebrated as a “cleansing” by Representative Nelly Nicol, the Freedom Caucus took a page right out of the authoritarian playbook, disenfranchising the 190,000 Montanans represented by those senators in the process. It’s an egregious attempt by the Freedom Caucus to crown themselves arbiters of the Republican Party, undermining the foundation of our democracy.
The purge began when Freedom Caucus Leader Senator Barry Usher moved to strip the senators’ credentials. Their offense? They voted for the best interests of their districts on issues like infrastructure and education over the demands of Senate President Matt Regier. Usher ignored the Republican Party’s bylaws, which grant legislators voting rights at the convention. Rep. Jane Gillette, another Freedom Caucus member, outmaneuvered former party chair Don Kaldschmidt, who correctly ruled the motion out of order. Gillette argued the GOP, as a “private association,” can decide who qualifies as a Republican. This extremist group, just 130 votes in a small room, overrode the will of Montana’s 350,000 Republicans. Rep. Nicol, also a Freedom Caucus member, even posted a Facebook video celebrating this purge, boasting, “As other states watch us to find clear pathways to cleanse their state’s party…” This chilling use of “cleanse” signals an attack on independent thought, not a strengthening of the GOP. The Montana Freedom Caucus PAC is now using this purge as an online fundraising tool.
More alarming, the Freedom Caucus elevated Art Wittich to state party chair. I now call him the “Cleanser-in-Chief” for leading this pogrom in the state party. Wittich’s past includes a $68,000 fine—one of Montana’s largest—for campaign finance irregularities during his 2010 Senate campaign. Court records show he accepted unreported campaign donations. Leaked 2013 emails from his time as Senate Majority Leader reveal plans to purge Republicans who didn’t conform, aligning with this “party first” mindset. It’s no surprise the Freedom Caucus chose Wittich to lead their effort to reshape the GOP in his own image.
In a representative republic, elected officials must prioritize their conscience and the needs of their constituents over party demands. A true Republican Party values individual liberty, not rigid loyalty. The Freedom Caucus, however, believes they alone get to decide who is and isn’t a Republican, dismissing the voice of the voters.
This purge is a wake-up call. Montanans now see how a few insiders at a closed event can override voter intent. These senators, chosen by their districts, face expulsion for representing their constituents. If representatives can be “cleansed” or bullied into compliance, your vote becomes meaningless. As conservative Republicans, we must act. Attend precinct meetings, contact your local GOP committee, and demand transparency. Elect representatives who prioritize Montanans, not out-of-state influencers. The Freedom Caucus’s exclusionary tactics, rule-bending history, and potential plans—like closed primaries or loyalty oaths—risk creating a single-thought party. Wittich’s past and this purge raise serious concerns. We must push back to preserve a Republican Party that serves all Montanans, not a radical few.
I call on every Republican to spotlight this betrayal. Show up. Speak out. Demand our party return to its roots. The “Cleanser-in-Chief’s” reign must not destroy what it means to be Republican.
Ross Fitzgerald is a former Republican legislator and current chair of the Teton County Republican Central Committee.
by Guest Writer | Jul 8, 2025 | Candid Cartoon
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By jcolemanmoore on July 8, 2025
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At the signing of the Big Ugly Bill, Speaker Johnson gave Trump the gavel he used to mark passage of this disastrous legislation. Seems symbolic of the Congressional Republicans’ complete capitulation.
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