by Helena Lovick | Sep 23, 2025 | Democrats, Politics
The Montana Democratic Party hosted their party convention this month in Livingston and it seemed business as usual. Because of the threats of violence that Montana Democrats faced after the Kirk assassination [despite right wing accusations – no one was celebrating his murder], the convention had increased safety measures in place. Luckily, the convention itself went smoothly without any violence or stripping of the voting rights of delegates like we saw at the Montana Republican Party convention held earlier this year.
The convention was held to amend Montana Democratic Party bylaws and also to elect new party leadership. Despite running two separate candidates, the Cascade County Democrats failed to gain a spot on the Executive Board. Instead, the 20-person board is 30% members from Missoula. Huh. I joke that Cascade County is the ugly stepchild of politics as we keep getting overlooked as the state has slid towards red.
New leadership was elected on Sunday, September 14th. Everyone went home…and that’s when the fun started. On Wednesday, September 17th, the newly elected Vice Chair resigned.
What Happened???
The party was all about unity at the convention. Change was inevitable when former Chair Robyn Driscoll stepped down from her role after six years. But then we go and have possibly the shortest term for an elected political party Executive Board Member ever.
Who was the Vice Chair?
The short-term Vice Chair was Max Johansen, a leader in the Park County Democratic party. I didn’t get a chance to meet with Max one-on-one, but he ran unopposed for Vice Chair and was elected by acclamation.
What happened?
After Johansen won his spot, he went out and spoke to reporters. And here’s what he said:
Per the Bozeman Chronicle:
Johansen criticized Tester for failing to adapt to the changing political environment the past several years, calling him part of the “old guard” that “represents a philosophy that no longer serves the interest of the party,” saying he had not adapted over the years to face a candidate as well-sharpened by the GOP as Tim Sheehy was during last year’s campaign.
Per Montana Public Radio:
“We’re tired of hearing from people who feel like they know everything because they’ve been at the top of the heap for so long,” Johansen said. “That is actually how parties get stale and that’s exactly how parties lose ground.”
That was a surprisingly aggressive position to take against a hugely popular figure in the Montana Democratic Party. When you are given such a large platform, there needs to be some delicacy around public comments. Instead, Max came in with a sledgehammer. And the old guard he dissed had some grave concerns about him continuing in the role. On Tuesday, September 16th, Tester spoke about Johansen on his “Grounded” podcast and said Johansen was seeking to tear down the party rather than build it up.
Three. Days. Later.
Johansen resigned “after acknowledging that certain comments he made following the convention were disruptive and inconsistent with the direction of the executive board,” according to the Democratic Party press release.
Wow. I think we saw that coming.
What’s Next?
Now we wait to see who will fill the board vacancy and smooth over this situation. Honestly, we don’t have time to mess around. Thanks to the trump Party and his ilk, fascism is here in America. The Democratic Party has to get its shit together and rise to this moment.
Let’s 👏get 👏our 👏shit 👏together👏
by Ken Toole | Sep 8, 2025 | Conservative, Republicans
WTF406 recently received Republican Legislator Llew Jones’ responses to a questionnaire sent to him from the state Republican Party. It is undoubtedly the beginning of a process to remove Jones and other Republican Party members from the state GOP.
In his response, Jones included a section titled “Context.” In it, he excoriates current party leadership. Jones wrote, “On paper, this questionnaire comes from the Montana State Republican Central Committee. In reality, it signals a major shift: instead of helping local Republicans get elected, the state party is now policing loyalty to party bosses. Under the direction of State Republican Chairman Art Wittich — who has a long history of attempting to purge Republicans he views as insufficiently loyal to the party machine — a state-level vetting committee has been created. We don’t know who sits on this committee, no minutes are taken, and there’s zero transparency. It appears the outcomes are predetermined, with this questionnaire serving more as justification than as honest evaluation.”
WTF406 has written numerous posts about the continuing feuds in the Montana Republican Party. https://wtf406.com/2025/08/dispatches-from-the-republican-civil-war/
We have also written about the so-called moderate Republicans from Cascade County in the legislature. https://wtf406.com/2025/08/myth-of-the-moderate-republican/
Jones On The Issues In His Own Words
In his response to the questionnaire, he addresses his positions on specific issues. Below are selected quotes from some of his responses.
On Affordable Housing: The housing market must remain driven by the free market, but the government has a limited role to play in ensuring unnecessary regulations do not block development.
On Property Taxes: The first step in lowering property tax is enforcing local spending discipline, since property taxes fund local government. Without it, tax reform is impossible.
On Economic Development: Economic growth is best achieved by empowering private enterprise and reducing government interference. The government’s role is to maintain shared infrastructure like roads, bridges, and water systems, which allow private business to thrive.
On Budget Surpluses: Surpluses should go back to the people or toward long-term obligations, never to grow government. If a surplus is ongoing, it should reduce tax rates.
On Education: Home schoolers, who do not draw on public funds, have much more freedom. I support broadening opportunities through public, charter, private, or homeschooling, consistent with Republican support for choice.
On Abortion: I am pro-life and believe life begins at conception, a principle I have consistently upheld in my votes. My record has earned me an “A” rating from the Family Foundation. Defending life is a core Republican principle I will continue to champion.
On Trans People: I stand firmly against gender reassignment procedures for minors and oppose biological males competing in female sports. Adults may choose for themselves, but taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize those choices, nor should providers be punished for elective procedures chosen by adults. This aligns with Republican principles of protecting children and ensuring fairness while respecting adult responsibility.
On Climate Change: The climate has always changed, and while I oppose alarmist policies that cripple our economy, I support responsible stewardship of Montana’s land, air, and water. Clean, safe development without overregulation aligns with Republican priorities of resource stewardship balanced with economic freedom.
On Illegal Immigration: Montana must support law enforcement, resist illegal immigration in our communities, and defend the rule of law. I have consistently supported strong border enforcement policies, including those advanced during the Trump administration. At the same time, we must avoid creating new programs that pile on burdensome red tape or punish employers unfairly. If an illegal immigrant deceives an employer, the response should target the deception, not impose undue penalties on Montana job creators who are already complying with the law. A balanced approach strengthens enforcement without strangling employers in punitive bureaucracy.
On Gun Control: None. The Second Amendment is clear: “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” Montana Republicans have long defended this right, and so have I. I have consistently been rated A by the NRA and Montana Shooting Sports Association. We already have sufficient laws on the books — what we need is to defend the rights we have.
It’s Really Pretty Simple
Let’s just boil all of that down a little. Jones is anti-choice and pro-gun. He believes in trickle-down economics and deregulating corporations. He thinks climate change is the historical norm and expanding homeschooling is a good thing while public schools are underfunded. He thinks budget surpluses shouldn’t be used to improve infrastructure and public services and should be “given back to the people instead.” He is anti-trans and believes in state action replacing the judgment of medical professionals and parents. And on immigration, he supports the Trump administration. Enough said.
Jones is a garden-variety Republican conservative who claims the title of “moderate” only because others in the Republican party have gone so far over the edge. Unfortunately, many people in politics these days let him get away with it.
by Helena Lovick | Aug 28, 2025 | Democrats, Politics, Republicans
Let’s talk about “moderate” Republicans. I’ve been hearing about this perspective for years. Some political “experts” think we should support moderate Republicans when they run for districts that are an uphill battle for Democrats. This is different from the calls for voting in a Republican primary to help ensure a more reasonable politician is elected as the blog previously discussed here. Instead, the moderate Republican strategy I’m talking about includes: not investing in Democrats, not supporting Democrats in general elections, not endorsing Democratic candidates, even all the way up to voting for a Republican in a general election.
Rather than recruiting a strong Democrat and trying to put it all on the field, some people believe it is a winning strategy to not even put up a fight, roll over and give the win to a moderate. “At least we can elect someone that is easy to work with!” So….does that strategy payoff? Do these Republicans vote more moderately? Is it preferable to throw support behind a moderate Republican rather than trying to help a Democrat in a lop-sided race?
I’m going to have to say HELL NO. There’s a reason why Wayne Gretzky said, “you miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.” If you want to make in-roads in a district, you actually have to work on building relationships with the voters in that district.
But another aspect of “at least we elected a moderate” is that THEY AREN’T MODERATE. Over and over again we have seen that the people who are willing to run for office as a Republican in these times are extremists. Sure, they might throw you a bone and help Medicaid expansion get across the finish line (as they did in 2025), but they throw working people and marginalized groups under the bus every day. We’ve written about GOP bigotry of the moderates and MAGA in 2023, but here we are again!
I mean just take a look at how our Great Falls area Republicans voted during the 2025 Legislative Session.
Great Falls Area Republican Legislators
First, here is your list of Great Falls area Republican Legislators with their moderate or MAGA label. The Moderate descriptor is based on participation in the Solutions Caucus, support by the Conservatives4MT PAC, and/or community perspective.
How did they vote? (Shocker – Against us and our future)
In the following table, some key votes of moderate Great Falls area Republicans are listed. Bill descriptions are listed on the left. State Senators Trebas and Emrich are consistently MAGA bigots, and they voted the wrong way on every one of the following bills. Their votes are not shown in the table. Votes are coded with a green color when they are bipartisan and pro-working people.
As you can see in the table, in the vast majority of cases, so-called moderate Republicans vote with the Republican caucus and against the people. If you’re looking for more data on how these clowns voted, you can check out the deeper dive by the Daily Montanan here.
Any Good News? What about the Democrats?
It’s worth noting that our lone Democratic legislator in the Great Falls area, Jane Weber, voted the kind, forward-thinking way on all of these bills. I also give some credit to Republican Senator Wendy McKamey for voting against her caucus significantly more frequently than any other Great Falls area Republican.
It was good to see that Medicaid Expansion in Montana lived another day with the 2025 legislature. But the Big Ugly Bill passed by our federal government (also run by Republicans) just made giant cuts to Medicaid. So what is the benefit to electing moderates when we expect nearly 40,000 Montanans to lose insurance? Sure doesn’t seem like the payoff for ditching Democrats to support Republican Lite is worth it.
What should I do to help turn things around?
Inform yourself when politicians ask for your vote. Is the way they vote kind to you or your neighbors? Is it kind to attack our environment and attack our freedoms to be who we are and to have bodily autonomy? Is that the future you want? I sure don’t.
It is a lot easier to sleep at night when you know that your elected representatives have your back. (Rather than have a knife in your back.) Let’s put up a left leaning candidate in every district and try to build some real momentum away from the rightward slide of Montana and our country. And whoever gets elected, let’s continue to pressure them to do the right thing.
by Ken Toole | Aug 12, 2025 | Cascade County, Politics, Travel
Pishkun Reservoir sits eighteen miles west of Choteau nestled along the Rocky Mountain Front. The 1500 acre reservoir is part of the Bureau of Reclamation’s Sun River Project which provides water to farms and municipalities all along the Front and out onto the prairie. The area is subject to high winds and extreme temperatures. Because it is an irrigation project water levels change dramatically throughout the year There is a small developed camping area which is run by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
Like almost all camp sites, the Pishkun campground has a reader board at each entry with information about the rules, maps and contact information. Most of the information on the reader board is put up and maintained by the Montana Department Fish Wildlife and Parks. But at Pishkun there is a new posting from the Federal Bureau of Reclamation soliciting information from those using the camp ground.
The Bureau of Reclamation wants to know if you have identified;
-any areas that need repair or;
-any services that need improvement or;
-any signs or other information that are negative about either past or living Americans or that fail to emphasize the beauty, grandeur and abundance of landscapes and other natural features.
The post script at the bottom of the page reads; This effort is in accordance with implementing DOI Secretarial Order 3431; Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.
Clearly, Donald Trump’s war on factual history has arrived in a far corner of Montana. Are we really expected to notify the Bureau of Reclamation of “signs or other information that are negative about either past or living Americans”? Does that include songs around a camp fire or even bumper stickers on vehicles?
Read Trump’s executive order here: https://www.doi.gov/document-library/secretary-order/so-3431-restoring-truth-and-sanity-american-history
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.
