Just like we need progressive state legislatures, just like we need progressive secretaries of states, just like we need progressive state courts to undo the massive harm to our democracy that Republican rampages have caused in the states, we need attorneys general. We've seen how much damage AGs hellbent on destruction can cause: right now, the Supreme Court is about to hear a case that could toss out the whole of the Affordable Care Act because Republican AGs have attacked it. We've also seen how Democratic AGs can fight back against a destructive Republican White House, from fighting the Muslim ban to halting the sabotage of the U.S. Postal Service.
Here's a prime candidate to add to the ranks of progressive and activist AGs, and Daily Kos's newest endorsee: Raph Graybill, candidate for attorney general in Montana. Yes, folks, we're back in Montana! Graybill has served as Gov. Steve Bullock's (another endorsee) chief attorney, and intends to make the transition to defending the state. He's a fifth-generation Montanan. His grandfather, Leo C. Graybill Jr., was president of the 1972 Montana Constitutional Convention—he helped write the state's constitution—so two things run generations deep in Graybill: Montana and the rule of law. Exactly what every state and the nation needs.
Please, fight for the rule of law and protection of our rights by contributing $5 to support Raph Graybill.
As Bullock's legal counsel, Graybill has defended the state's strong sunshine laws against the Trump administration's effort to shield some nonprofits from disclosing donor names. Remember when Montana became the first state to enforce net neutrality rules? Graybill wrote that. He also has been fighting to keep Montana's public lands public. Oh, and he's helped Bullock beat Trump to make sure that all of Montana's voters get mail-in ballots for November. So he's already got a good start on the job.
He's worked with Bullock on the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women in a state that has one of the largest Native American populations in the country. He'll be the AG to make sure the federal law that passed this week is fully implemented in a state that's one of the epicenters of the crisis. That's part of his larger plan to end the systemic racism faced by Native Americans in Montana. He wants to see a serious, holistic, and intersectional policy approach that addresses both the ongoing crisis and the broader structural inequality affecting Indigenous people and deploy the Division of Criminal Investigation for all missing persons cases. That's how he intends to approach dealing with substance use disorders in Montana's criminal justice system, advocating robust treatment and prevention programs to solve the substance abuse epidemic—fundamentally, medical conditions that require medical treatments rather than incarceration.
Oh, and he believes this: "Equal treatment under the law is one of our highest ideals." That includes all of the protections in the Equal Rights Amendment: "equality for women in employment and wages, insurance coverage, and continuing to provide protections for a woman’s private healthcare decisions." How refreshing is that?
It won't come as any surprise that the Republican challenger for this open seat is a full-on Trumper. As a former speaker of the Montana House of Representatives, Austin Knudsen killed an equal pay bill in committee. He supports the Republican lawsuit to overturn the ACA, and even instituted an extremely sexist dress code for women in the state legislature. Lately he's been hanging out with the QAnon crowd and related domestic terrorist groups like the Oathkeepers. He calls himself a "law and order" candidate, but has advocated allowing the state to nullify any federal law. And as coronavirus cases surge in Montana, he questions the expertise of doctors and scientists and is an anti-masker. He's dangerous and we don't need any more dangerous Republicans holding statewide office.
The attorney general spot can serve as a key launching pad for future governors, senators, and even vice presidents. Here’s our chance to put another great progressive in a position to help shape the future.
Raph Graybill will fight for the rule of law and protection of our rights. Help him by contributing $5.