The Hill: Arch Coal backs out of Montana mine project
Mining giant Arch Coal on Thursday said it will suspend its work on securing a permit for a new mine in southeastern Montana. In a statement, the company blamed “capital constraints,” a weak coal market and uncertainty in the permitting process for suspending its proposed Otter Creek Mine project. The company secured the lease rights to 8,300 acres of minerals in Otter Creek in 2010. The permitting process to begin mining, the company said, “has taken longer than anticipated, and further deterioration in coal markets has led to the decision to suspend the permitting effort.” In its statement, the company
Free Beacon: Senators Push Obama Administration to Detain ISIS Fighters at Guantanamo Bay
A group of Republican senators introduced a resolution Thursday that would express the sense that the United States should detain captured ISIS operatives at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base military prison. The resolution–backed by 15 senators, including two presidential candidates–comes just as President Obama endures criticism from Republicans for his controversial push to close Guantanamo Bay and move current dangerous detainees to prisons in the U.S. Obama sent a plan to close the prison to Congress last month, citing detention facilities in Colorado, Kansas, and South Carolina as possible sites to hold the terrorist detainees. The resolution, introduced by Sen. Steve Daines (R., Mont.), expresses “the sense of Senate that individuals
The Hill: GOP resolution calls for sending captured ISIS fighters to Gitmo
Over a dozen GOP senators, including presidential candidates Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Ted Cruz(Texas), introduced a resolution Thursday to send detained Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters to Guantánamo Bay. The resolution comes a day after the Pentagon said it captured an ISIS leader on the battlefield, sparking new questions about how to handle such prisoners. The commander of U.S. Special Operations Command Gen. Joseph Votel said on Tuesday there was a need to detain some terror suspects long-term, but where they would be held was under debate. The Republican senators say the military prison at Guantánamo, which President Obama is working
Daines Slams Obama Administration on Long-Delayed Admission of Iranian Cyberattack on New York Dam
U.S. SENATE — Senator Steve Daines today slammed the Obama administration after reports indicate that they will name Iran as the perpetrator of a 2013 cyberattack on a New York dam. “It is downright shameful that it has taken President Obama three years to denounce Iran for a malicious cybersecurity attack on our country while at the same time sitting at a negotiating table with them,” Daines stated. “This failure is undoubtedly linked to President Obama’s clouded judgment in ushering through his misguided deal with Iran, which has only endangered our national security. “Just this week Iran tested two ballistic missiles inscribed with ‘Israel must be
Tester, Daines celebrate Montana’s Senate Youth Delegates
(U.S. SENATE) – Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines met with two of Montana’s brightest young students this week as part of the United States Senate Youth Program’s (USSYP) 54th Annual Washington Week. Out of hundreds of students from across the state, seniors Mollie Lemm of Polson, and Arthur Pettit of Missoula, were selected to represent Montana on Capitol Hill. Lemm and Pettit joined a group of 102 other student delegates for an intensive week in the nation’s capital, where they met with Senators, Representatives, Ambassadors, Cabinet Members, and a Justice of the Supreme Court. The purpose of the program,
Daines Statement in Opposition to Selling Arms to Pakistan
U.S. SENATE —Senator Steve Daines today released the following statement after voting to block the sale of F-16 aircraft to the Government of Pakistan. “The behavior of the Pakistani government gives me great concern regarding their commitment as an ally to the United States as we witness terrorist networks continue to operate freely in their federally administrated tribal areas,” Daines stated. “Rewarding Pakistan with U.S. fighter jets would send the wrong message and only harm our efforts to hold Pakistan accountable and make it a more reliable U.S. partner. The Obama administration is wrong for pursuing this deal, and I will continue to stand
Senators Introduce Resolution to Detain ISIL Fighters in Guantanamo
U.S. SENATE — Following the recent announcement that U.S. Special Forces captured an Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) leader while carrying out Operation Inherent Resolve, Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) today led 14 Senators in introducing a resolution to detain ISIL fighters at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Cosponsors of the resolution include Senators Jerry Moran (R-KS), Cory Gardner (R-CO), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), John Boozman (R-AR), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Tim Scott (R-SC) and David Vitter (R-LA). As the United
USDA Secretary: Biotech Foods are Safe
U.S. SENATE — Under Senator Steve Daines’ questioning, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today stated that Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) pose no risk to food safety or threat to plant pest risk. During a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies hearing on the President’s Fiscal Year 2017 funding request for the USDA, Daines pressed Vilsack to allow sound science to be preeminent in its rule-making process and to reject harmful regulations that are not backed by evidence. Click here to watch Daines’ remarks. Click here to download Daines’ remarks. During the hearing, Daines specifically
Daines Works to Improve Federal Cooperation with Indian Country
U.S. SENATE —Senator Steve Daines today fought to improve Montana’s tribes’ sovereignty, pressing the Obama administration to work more collaboratively and efficiently with Montana’s tribes relating to health care and management of tribal forests. During two different Senate Committee hearings today, Daines called on witnesses to improve stewardship of federal funds while working to alleviate some of the challenges associated with wildfires in Indian Country. U.S. Indian Health Service Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Request: Click here to download Daines’ remarks. Click here to watch Daines’ remarks. During this morning’s Senate Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies hearing on the Indian Health