Montana Democrats call on Sheehy to release hospital report he says he lied about

Daily Kos Staff

Tuesday April 23, 2024 · 11:12 AM PDT

2024/04/23 · 11:12

Screenshot of Montana Republican Tim Sheehy in a video from the Montana Democratic Party. — Montana Republican Tim Sheehy

The strange story of Republican Tim Sheehy’s bullet wound just keeps getting stranger.

Sheehy, a former Navy SEAL who is seeking to unseat Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in Montana, recently claimed to the Washington Post that he lied to a park ranger when he said he accidentally shot himself in the arm at a national park in 2015.

Instead, Sheehy says, he was shot in Afghanistan three years earlier in a possible episode of friendly fire but never reported the injury. He lied to the ranger, he says, because he feared that telling the truth would somehow spark a military investigation into the original incident overseas.

Of course, these new claims don’t add up either, as this new video from Montana Democrats helpfully illustrates:

YouTube Video

Joan McCarter for Daily Kos

Daily Kos Staff

Thursday April 18, 2024 · 2:43 PM PDT

2024/04/18 · 14:43

no image description available — Abortion rights supporters during a protest

A new abortion rights advocacy organization, Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights, officially launched its ballot initiative, which aims to enshrine abortion rights in Montana’s state constitution. If the petition drive succeeds, it will make abortion central to the 2024 campaign and likely give vulnerable Democratic Sen. Jon Tester, a staunch abortion rights supporter, a boost.

“Abortion is a topic that’s become politicized and stigmatized, but in reality, we all love someone or are someone who’s had an abortion,” Martha Fuller, CEO and president of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Montana, said during the official launch event. “We can no longer let politicians threaten access to the lifesaving, essential care that thousands of Montanans need and deserve. Montanans must act now to proactively secure our right to abortion.”

Somchai

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday April 10, 2024 · 4:51 PM PDT

2024/04/10 · 16:51

Screenshot2024-04-10at4.54.01PM.png — Jon under the Electra. Hope he has jack stands under there just in case.

I’m not sure what Senator Tester is doing. I know he got a new tranny in his Electra 225 and at first I thought he was putting it in, but no way big belly Jon would fit under that car with a turbo hydramatic transmission. A more careful reading seems to indicate that he got a new tranny, and also here he is doing something to his car.

Those land yachts are just the thing for the run to the airport from your wheat farm. Put the seat back, keep it steady at 75, and watch out for cows.

The 1970 225 came with a 455 cubic inch V8, and the transmission they matched it to was sought out by drag racers.

Jon inherited the car from his dad, the farm was homesteaded by his grandad a hundred plus years ago. Over a thousand acres, dry land wheat farm if I’m remembering correctly.

Jon’s in a tough race this year. State was +16 Trump in 20, and the popular governor Bullock, a Dem, lost a senate race to Daines . Jon himself is very popular, he’s the real deal and everyone knows it. He has money, and incumbency, but I just don’t know.

Jon is the last rural western Dem senator that I can think of. I include all of the Dakotas on down in my label as western.

In an earlier version of this post I called Daines, the Republican senator a carpetbagger, he isn’t. Born in MT, early years in CA, then high school and college in MT, which pretty much makes him a Montanan as far as I can see. I was thinking of Gianforte who is now the Governor. I should name call less.

Montana used to have blue senators and governor, and they’re in danger of losing the last one. Which is a shame, as those guys have attitudes reflected by many Democrats in the intermountain west and the high plains. I like both of my Democratic senators just fine, but when Tester speaks often enough he speaks for me.

MT-SEN: Big Sky Country, not Big Lie Country

JTP42

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday April 08, 2024 · 7:19 PM PDT

2024/04/08 · 19:19

Senator Jon Tester is #BigSkyCountry. #TwinCitiesTim is #BigLieCountry.

To help Senator Tester keep that 50th Senate seat, here’s the only ad that he should need, especially since he has a chance to outflank his Republican opponent…

in Montana…

ON GUNS,

after Tim Sheehy shot himself in, well, wherever he says he got shot today:

Here in Montana, we believe in many things.

We believe in family, and we believe in our many hard-earned freedoms, like the right to bear arms.

We believe in an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work, and we believe in honesty.

I’m Jon Tester. I’ve worked as a farmer, a butcher, a teacher, and I’m currently honored to serve as your United States Senator.

I’m asking for your support to continue representing Montana, because I’m Montana-born, Montana-raised, and I love our Big Sky Country.

My opponent? I know he was born in Minnesota and was raised in a multi-million-dollar lake house, but even though he’s new to Montana, he should know that we don’t appreciate lies about our guns.

He once told one of our great park rangers in Glacier National Park that he shot himself in the arm.

Now he claims that maybe an American serviceman shot him.

What in the world are we supposed to believe about that?

Our Montana, where we treat our guns with the care & honesty they deserve, is Big Sky Country.

It’s not Big Lie Country.

Okay, fine - here’s a second one for 30-second ads:

I’m Senator Jon Tester, and I’m running for reelection because I believe, like all right-thinking folks in Montana, in family, and our many hard-earned freedoms, like our right to bear arms.

We believe in an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work, and we believe in honesty.

My opponent used to say he once shot himself in the arm.

Now he claims that maybe an American serviceman shot him.

What in the world are we supposed to believe about that?

As the only Senate candidate born and raised in our great state, I know that Montana is Big Sky Country, not Big Lie Country.

One more, for anyone:

Tim Sheehy was born in Minnesota.

He grew up in a mansion worth millions of dollars.

He claims to support our freedoms, like the right to bear arms.

Yet he once told a park ranger he shot himself in the arm.

Now he claims maybe an American serviceman shot him.

If Twin Cities Tim will lie about our guns & troops, what will he lie about next?

When you vote this year, remember that only Senator Jon Tester knows that Montana is Big Sky Country, not Big Lie Country.

Son of Imprisoned Seditionist Stewart Rhodes Running for a Seat in Montana House as a Democrat!

Irontortoise

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Sunday March 24, 2024 · 3:20 PM PDT

2024/03/24 · 15:20

Screenshot_24-3-2024_85835_www.msn.com.jpeg

Screenshot_24-3-2024_9536_www.msn.com.jpeg

Remember this guy? — Stewart Rhodes, infamous founder of the ultra-radical, anti-government Oath Keepers militia, who is now serving an 18-year prison sentence for sedition stemming from the January 6, 2021, “Capitol Riot.” Now meet his 27-year-old estranged son, Dakota Adams, currently running for a ruby-red local seat in the Montana House — as a Democrat!

Here is an uplifting story of how someone who grew up in an incredibly challenging family environment while living under extremely isolating circumstances could still manage to turn their life around and become a useful member of society once given the right opportunities, courtesy of Business Insider today. Regarding the events surrounding January 6:

"It served as a sobering wake-up call in terms of how much danger we are truly in and how the Republican Party enabled a president to become an active danger to this republic," Adams told the Associated Press about his father's involvement in the riot.

"I was forced to reevaluate a lot of beliefs and face hard questions about what I really stood for."

He uses his mother's maiden name and told the AP that he was still "figuring myself out" and has gone to therapy to work through the "long-term effects of living in a toxic or dysfunctional household."

He said that he plans to sell the rifles, body armor, and tactical gear he used to wear to anti-government protests with his father.

The linked AP story is well worth reading in full, as it delves more deeply into his background:

Adams, who uses his mother’s maiden name and refers to Rhodes only by his first name, was raised in the shadow of one of the nation’s most notorious conspiracy theorists.

Rhodes graduated from Yale with a law degree, but Adams called him lazy, paranoid and a grifter who had an exaggerated sense of his own importance as a threat to the government. Rhodes started Oath Keepers in 2009 after Democrat Barack Obama was elected president.

In their lives, as Adams tells it, Rhodes had his family living in constant fear that the government was spying on them and that the apocalypse was always just months away. Rhodes sabotaged his children’s home schooling and wouldn’t let them speak about their home lives in public, Adams said.

Side note: though Adams was widely self-read in history, he didn’t manage to learn even simple math like the times table until he was 19 so he could pass a high school equivalency exam!

Rhodes’ “leadership” of the Oath Keepers was inconsistent, even erratic, Adams said. Rhodes burned bridges with members, as well as with employers and creditors, leading to repeated moves for the family of eight.

“Basically until I’m an adult it’s all one continuous gray time of survival and moving boxes,” Adams said. “We lived in extreme isolation in one particular cultural bubble in increasingly paranoid and militant right-wing political spheres everywhere we moved in the country, until eventually we ended up in Montana.”

They escaped Rhodes in 2018, when Tasha Adams filed for divorce.

Regarding his current quixotic campaign for local office in a district that tfg won with 74% of the vote in 2020, he has no illusions about his chances against his Republican opponent, Neil Duram, who has a “solid reputation” and even got Adams’ vote in 2022:

While Adams’ campaign may look like a fruitless undertaking, he doesn’t see it that way. For him it’s a chance to tell his own story — that of an “honest weirdo” who emerged from a traumatic childhood to find his own way in life. It’s also a chance to make the case for his own vision of how democracy and personal responsibility intertwine.

Win or lose, Adams’ campaign is built on his belief that people sympathetic to extremist groups might be open to seeing things differently.

…

He’s gotten encouragement in his bid for the Legislature from Democrats, and some voters in his district have agreed to put signs in their yard. Scott Rodich, the vice chair of the county Democratic Central Committee, said Democrats have been hesitant to run in the Republican stronghold, so party leaders are glad to have Adams on the ballot.

Adams has also appeared at campaign events with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ryan Busse. Adams met former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, one of the state’s most prominent Democrats, at the party’s Mansfield-Metcalf dinner, and found it “incredibly weird” that Bullock knew who he was.

…

Adams has his eye on a threshold set by Bullock, who received 37% of the votes cast in Lincoln County in 2016. But even if he doesn’t meet it, he says he’ll be back.

“Regardless of what happens, I’m trying again,” Adams said. “I think this is going to be a lifelong thing.”

Montana legislators get chance to override Gov. Gianforte's veto on SB 442

mtskywtchr

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday March 22, 2024 · 12:58 PM PDT

2024/03/22 · 12:58

Mtskywtchr or Kathleen Gilluly in the back of the kayak on the Yellowstone River near Laurel, Montana.

SB 442 is still great policy for vets

The Montana legislature is finally getting their shot to save one of the most popular and bipartisan bills of the 2023 legislative session. Senate Bill 442 would direct a portion of the state’s marijuana tax revenue to increase assistance for Montana veterans, help counties across Montana fund the repair of rural roads, and increase funding for wildlife habitat projects.

While this bill passed the Montana legislature with support from 130 of 150 lawmakers, it was vetoed by Governor Gianforte who spent nearly a year obstructing lawmakers from having an opportunity to overturn that veto.

Fortunately, the courts just reaffirmed the Montana Legislature deserves the final say. For the next few weeks our elected leaders will once again vote on the merits of SB 442. As an army veteran, I want to remind our elected leaders why so many of my fellow veterans are watching the outcome of this vote with great interest.

Property tax relief

Montanas across the state are feeling the sudden and sharp rise in property taxes this year. These rising costs harm many residents, including our most vulnerable veterans, who can no longer work due to disabilities. While Montana has a program that helps veterans pay a portion of their property taxes, it's underfunded and unable to keep pace with rising tax rates.

Senate Bill 442 would send a lifeline of support for veterans who are struggling to pay property taxes by boosting funding for the Montana Disabled Veteran Assistance Program. This program reduces the property tax rate burden on the homes of veterans who were disabled in service or their surviving spouses. Depending on the income level, the tax rate can be reduced between 50 to 100 percent. As property taxes continue their climb, the importance of this critical program for disabled vets and surviving spouses cannot be understated.

Habitat to hunt and fish

Quality access to the outdoors is vital to the physical and mental rehabilitation of Montana veterans. When I came back from my tour with the U.S. army in 1995, I brought home a disability which has been a constant challenge to manage. But no matter how bad my disability is, I have always been able to find a way to enjoy Montana’s public lands and water.

In fact, hiking, hunting and fishing fundamentally helped me work on my physical and mental health in the years following my service. This is a very common story you will hear if you hang around veteran centers in Montana, and it's why so many veterans support the investments promised by Senate Bill 442.

This bill provides funding to help protect our best habitat and expand public access that veterans and other residents depend on. This bill would invest millions each year in habitat conservation projects and in landowner-led projects that protect and expand public access. In addition, SB 442 helps local counties maintain and repair the rural roads that lead to trailheads, fishing access, and other public lands.

The veto of Senate Bill 442 has already withheld millions of dollars from being invested in our rural roads, our veterans, and our wildlife. The Montana legislature has a huge opportunity to correct this mistake by rescuing this historic legislation.

Mtskywtchr is Kathleen Gilluly. She is a veteran and public lands advocate.

Montana, an island of abortion access, preps for consequential elections and court decisions

KFF Health News

Sunday March 17, 2024 · 3:09 PM PDT

2024/03/17 · 15:09

Abortion remains legal in the conservative stronghold because of a 25-year-old state Supreme Court ruling that protected it under the right to privacy included in the state’s constitution.

So far, most efforts by Montana’s Republican governor and GOP-led legislature to overcome that obstacle have gone nowhere. Montana courts have blocked multiple laws that would have restricted abortion.

It’s “a very daunting hurdle for those who would seek to undermine abortion access,” said Kal Munis, an assistant professor of political science at Utah Valley University and expert on politics in Montana, his home state.

Munis said to outlaw abortion, voters would need to amend the state constitution or elect Supreme Court justices willing to reverse precedent.

But it is abortion rights advocates who have jumped on the chance to amend the state constitution. A legal fight is brewing over a ballot initiative proposed for the November election that would add abortion protections to the constitution.

chills1953

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Saturday March 16, 2024 · 4:10 PM PDT

2024/03/16 · 16:10

In this midst of such scenic splendor in Gallatin County, Montana, it's hard to believe there can be so much ignorance, hate and bigotry.

In the midst of election year political fervor, email announcements have sparked controversy ahead of this year's Gallatin County Republicans Lincoln-Reagan Dinner scheduled to take place in May in Bozeman, MT. The emails, sent by organizers of the event, have stirred debate with their contentious claims.

In the heart of Montana, a passionate struggle is taking place to uphold the values of inclusivity, understanding, and tolerance, striving to keep the state free from the shadows of ignorance, hate, and bigotry. Republicans hold all statewide offices and have enjoyed a super-majority in the legislature. Jon Tester is the only Democrat representing the state in Congress. His seat is now a priority target and it’s predicted there will be record spending from both sides on this race alone.

I hope these images are readable. They are screen grabs of the actual emails and I didn’t want to change them in any way.

Drugs and Immigration: The emails assert that illegal drugs are inundating communities across the nation, including Gallatin County, posing a significant threat. Furthermore, there are claims that a surge of illegal immigrants, predominantly young men from China and Middle-Eastern countries, are flooding into the country daily, contributing to the perceived crisis.

Social and Educational Concerns: Among the claims is the assertion that children are being taught that they can pursue any passing whim without consequence. Additionally, it suggests a breakdown in understanding the concept of womanhood, blaming Marxists for a lack of clarity and concern.

Note of interest: (I attended the identical event back in October of 2023 in neighboring Park County where I live, with Elsie Arntzen as the emcee. Elsie is the incumbent Superintendent of Public Instruction. She is like Betsy DeVos on steriods and has proven to be seriously incompetent in effectively managing the state's educational system. The audience was treated to her repeated references of her efforts to assure attendees that she had personally made sure there were no kitty litter boxes in any Montana public schools.)

Economic Strain: The email alleges that nonpaying peasant families are burdening the medical and educational systems, seeking entitlements at the expense of taxpayers. It paints a picture of these systems being bankrupted by this influx.

President Biden: A scathing critique of President Joe Biden has been included, alleging that he is merely a figurehead for a group described as a "politburo" of Marxist and transgender advocates. It asserts that President Biden is not truly exercising executive authority but is instead acting as a mouthpiece for a clandestine group pushing a radical agenda. It accuses this alleged cabal of seeking to reshape American culture according to what it describes as "warped fantasies."

Furthermore, the email paints a picture of President Biden as a passive participant in governance, claiming that he reads from teleprompters with unwavering loyalty while relinquishing substantive decision-making to this shadowy collective. It alleges that, in return for his compliance, the president indulges in frequent vacations, ice cream consumption, and napping.

Judicial and Legal System: Criticism is leveled at the judiciary, with accusations that it is populated by "woke" social justice warriors who allegedly disregard the Constitution. The email particularly targets Montana's Supreme Court, labeling it as one of the most liberal in the nation. It further suggests a bias in the legal system based on political affiliation, warning Republicans to be wary. Republicans are especially boiling at the Montana Supreme Court because they have upheld an important privacy clause in the state’s Constitution and thus abortion is still available here, for now. Justices on that court are elected, so the voters are the ones electing people to the court who continue to uphold important freedoms. That includes Republican voters but the state party is hell-bent to ban abortion anyway.

Overall, such dangerous rhetoric undermines the foundations of democracy, fosters social division, promotes conspiracy theories, legitimizes discrimination, and risks inciting violence. It is essential to counteract such rhetoric with factual information, civil discourse, and a commitment to democratic values and principles. With this one series of emails, Republicans in Gallatin County are pulling out all the stops in their efforts to put fear into the hearts and minds of their voter base.

The Lincoln-Reagan Dinner has historically been a platform for conservative voices, but this year's event is poised to be particularly contentious given the divisive nature of the claims made in the pre-event communication. As the date of the dinner approaches, it remains to be seen how these controversies will impact attendance and discourse within the political community in Bozeman and beyond.

Update: The invitation email has been edited and much of the extreme fearmongering has been removed. As soon as I can get a copy of the edited version, I’ll post it here.

Matt Rosendale (Fascist-MT-02) to retire at end of this term

MTmofo for Montana Kossaks

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday March 08, 2024 · 11:03 AM PST

2024/03/08 · 11:03

After his failed Senate bid lasted just six days, Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT) said on Feb. 28 that he would run for re-election to the House. Now, Rosendale has reversed himself once again.

The conservative Republican announced on Friday that he was dropping out of the House race and retiring at the end of this Congress.

Rosendale cited “defamatory rumors” and a “death threat” against him as part of his reasoning for dropping out, saying they had taken a “serious toll on me, and my family.”

Rosendale seemed to be referencing rumors from former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), who alleged on a podcast that Rosendale dropped out of the Senate race, and was considering resigning from Congress, because he “impregnated a 20-year-old staff person.”

www.yahoo.com/...

MT-Sen—- What the Actual Fu@k!!!

justin423

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday February 26, 2024 · 6:16 PM PST

2024/02/26 · 18:16

Matt Rosendale has dropped out of the Senate race in Montana after getting his 20 year old aid pregnant, demonstrating one of the very few times that a man's career options have been limited by an unplanned pregnancy. pic.twitter.com/S66Z9VKDCN
— Christopher David (@Tazerface16) February 26, 2024

Democrats should now register as Republicans and vote for this guy as a write-in candidate…/s

Ex-congressman who called lobbying an 'honorable profession' seeks comeback after turn as lobbyist

Jeff Singer for Daily Kos Elections

Daily Kos Staff

Wednesday February 21, 2024 · 6:38 PM PST

2024/02/21 · 18:38

Former Montana Rep. Denny Rehberg announced Wednesday that he was joining the June 4 Republican primary for the 2nd District currently held by GOP incumbent Matt Rosendale, who still has not said if he'll run for reelection after pulling the plug on his very short-lived Senate bid. The congressman's team told the Montana Free Press he'll be making up his mind "soon," though there are only a few weeks left before the March 11 candidate filing deadline.

Even if Rosendale retires, though, Rehberg will still need to get through a busy primary that includes two statewide officeholders if he's to resurrect the political career that, at least temporarily, ended with his own 2012 loss against Tester. Rehberg represented the entire state in the years before Montana regained a second House seat following the 2020 census, a shift that led to the state getting divided in two. The more conservative 2nd District in Montana's eastern half favored Donald Trump 62-35 in 2020.

Among the candidates already running, state Auditor Troy Downing finished December with $294,000 in the bank, compared to $119,000 for Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen, who self-funded $250,000 last year. Former state Sen. Ed Walker was further back with $74,000 on hand, while none of the other candidates had so much as $30,000 available to spend.

Rehberg's long career in elected office began when he won a state House seat in 1984, and he entered statewide office in 1991 when he was appointed lieutenant governor after the post became vacant. Rehberg suffered a setback five years later when he lost a competitive 1996 Senate race to Democratic incumbent Max Baucus, but it would prove temporary. The Republican pulled off a comeback in 2000 when he claimed what at the time was Montana's only U.S. House seat, and he easily won reelection five times.

JohnnyPiano

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Sunday February 18, 2024 · 3:04 PM PST

2024/02/18 · 15:04

Here’s some background. According to the Daily Montanan:

Gov. Greg Gianforte said Montana would continue to send resources — referring to National Guard troops — to the southern border at an event in Texas alongside 14 other Republican governors.

Gianforte said Montana “stands with Texas in this fight” during his visit. “Montana has had our soldiers here on the southern border for most of last year,” Gianforte said of the National Guard troops deployed. “And Governor Abbott, we’re committed to stand with you and continue to provide resources so that we can protect the citizens of the United States and our country.”

“Our states are being invaded by the people crossing illegally,” said Gianforte, who did not offer more specifics at the event. “Our Constitution gives the states the right to self defense. That’s what Governor Abbott’s doing, and that’s why we’re here standing with him today. Biden is doing the exact opposite.”

Following the news article, Darrell Ehrlick of the Daily Montana penned an excellent editorial, berating governor for supporting Texas’ insurrection.

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Montana Democrats call on Sheehy to release hospital report he says he lied about

Montana becomes the latest abortion battleground state for 2024

Senator Jon Tester's Electra

MT-SEN: Big Sky Country, not Big Lie Country

Son of Imprisoned Seditionist Stewart Rhodes Running for a Seat in Montana House as a Democrat!

Montana legislators get chance to override Gov. Gianforte's veto on SB 442

Montana, an island of abortion access, preps for consequential elections and court decisions

The Dangerous Claims of the Gallatin County, MT Republicans about Democrats and President Biden

Matt Rosendale (Fascist-MT-02) to retire at end of this term

MT-Sen—- What the Actual Fu@k!!!

Ex-congressman who called lobbying an 'honorable profession' seeks comeback after turn as lobbyist

Is secession next?