Flathead Beacon: Daines Talks Health Care, Environment During Latest Tele-Townhall
U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana, fielded questions from Montana residents during a “tele-townhall” phone conference Wednesday night, addressing concerns about health care, his cabinet votes, and environmental regulations. According to the senator’s staff, the evening forum marked the 14th time he’d connected with Montanans since winning the Senate seat. It came on the heels of criticism that he’d shirked constituents’ calls for a live town hall after controversial moves to confirm Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education and gavel down Elizabeth Warren on the Senate floor. But Daines was unfazed, and answered questions and criticisms with aplomb during the 90-minute session, hearing
KTVQ: Daines holds tele-town hall, healthcare major topic
BILLINGS – Healthcare and the Affordable Care Act were major topics at the tele-town hall meeting with Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) Wednesday night. The senator gave his thoughts on repealing and replacing the healthcare law. As Daines spoke on the phone in Washington, D.C., about 30,000 listened to the tele-town hall meeting, according to the Senator’s staff. He took questions on the phone for about an hour and a half. Daines said the Affordable Health Care Act has brought rising premiums, unaffordable deductibles, fewer insurance choices and higher taxes. He cited numbers from the Silver or Standard plan on the insurance
Daines Welcomes Zinke to First Congressional Hearing as Secretary
U.S. SENATE — U.S. Senator Steve Daines today questioned newly sworn-in Secretary of the Interior, Ryan Zinke during a hearing in the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. “This is an historic moment for Montana,” Daines stated. “We have before us the first Montanan to ever serve in a President’s cabinet, a Montana tribal chairman testifying on the witness panel, and both of Montana’s senators up on the dais. Now, with Secretary Zinke leading the Department of the Interior, we can truly say: It’s a new day for Indian Country. It’s a new day for tribal sovereignty. And it’s a
Daines Congratulations Billings West Student on Air Force Academy Appointment
U.S. SENATE —U.S. Senator Steve Daines today congratulated Adam Barrie, a senior at Billings West High School on receiving an offer of appointment from the U.S. Air Force Academy, located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Daines called Barrie earlier today to congratulate him on his appointment. Barrie has been a varsity cross country runner and track distance runner since his freshman year and is the captain of his cross-country team. He is the senior class president, president of the Key Club and volunteers weekly at the Billings Clinic. “Adam is an outstanding Montana student who has shown a clear passion for service
Daines: Restore Montana Commonsense to Land Management
U.S. SENATE —U.S. Senator Steve Daines today applauded the U.S. Senate passage of a resolution to undo an Obama administration rule that fundamentally changed the land planning process. The rule shifted the planning and decision-making away from those closest to the land, away from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) regional and field offices, and back to BLM headquarters in Washington, D.C. Click HERE to watch Daines’ remarks. Click HERE to download Daines’ floor remarks. “For too long, the Obama administration ignored the commonsense of those who manage the land and our natural resources,” Daines stated. “Now, is the time for
Daines, Tester Introduce Timber Innovation Act
U.S. SENATE — U.S. Senators Steve Daines and Jon Tester today introduced bipartisan legislation that would support Montana’s timber industry, create jobs, and help accelerate research and development of tall wood buildings in the United States. The Timber Innovation Act will focus on finding innovative ways to use wood in the construction of buildings above 85 feet in height or roughly seven or more stories. “In Montana, we have an abundance of trees, and through innovative technology we can create new uses and applications for Montana’s natural resources,” Daines stated. “By incentivizing the use of wood in building materials, we
Daily Inter Lake: HEALTH CARE PROPOSAL WOULD PRESERVE LIBBY CARE
The U.S. Congressional Republicans’ repeal-and-replace bill that throws out core provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act preserves special provisions for Libby asbestos victims, Sen. Steve Daines’ office said Tuesday. Daines, R-Montana, talked with key Republicans over the weekend about the need to retain Libby-specific health care provisions as Congressional leaders prepared for the roll-out of the draft bill on Monday. He followed up with a letter to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, pointing out that toxic exposure from decades of vermiculite mining in Libby “remains an environmental and public health crisis.” A
Missoulian: Daines: GOP health-care bill preserves benefits for Libby asbestos victims
BUTTE — Sen. Steve Daines’ office said the bill released by Congressional Republicans Monday repealing much of the Affordable Care Act preserves special provisions written into Obamacare to protect victims of asbestos-related disease in Libby. Daines, R-Montana, “was engaged in conversations” over the weekend about the Libby benefits with key Republicans in Congress, according to his staff. On Monday his office released a letter he wrote to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan asking them to preserve the Libby patients’ status. On Sunday, Lee Newspapers reported that in 2009 when the Affordable Care Act
Daines to Leadership: Protect Libby
U.S. SENATE —U.S. Senator Steve Daines today urged U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives leadership to protect the residents of Libby by preserving provisions to treat those affected by asbestos. In 2009, Libby was declared a Public Health Emergency after linking years of asbestos exposure to the now closed W.R. Grace & Co. mine. Daines’ letter is available to download HERE and below. Dear Speaker Ryan and Leader McConnell: Thank you for your leadership in developing legislation to repeal the core elements of Obamacare and replace that disastrous law with reforms that reduce health costs, provide access to affordable