In The News

Four Republican senators are calling for cutting foreign aid to Ghana if two former Guantanamo Bay prisoners who were transferred to the African nation escape or return to terrorism. The move marks a renewed effort by security-minded lawmakers to use the power of the purse to effectively pressure other countries considering taking Guantanamo detainees. In the case of Ghana, the country earlier this month accepted two detainees from Guantanamo Bay, part of the Obama administration’s latest wave of transfers out of the prison camp. But the senators, in a letter Wednesday to key committee leaders, warned that Ghana may be

A bipartisan group of U.S. Senate and House members sent a letter Wednesday urging the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to let its doctors discuss and recommend medical marijuana as a treatment in states where it is legal. The letter to VA Secretary Robert McDonald comes four days before the expiration of a current directive that prohibits VA physicians from recommending the plant for medicinal purposes.   “According to the current directive, VA providers are prohibited from completing forms seeking recommendations or opinions regarding a veteran’s participation in a state-sanctioned marijuana program,” the letter reads in part. “This policy

U.S. Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) has recognized Blake Wombold of Heart Butte, a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army Reserve, as his “Montanan Of The Week.” Wombold earned the honor for his contribution of new shoes for the Heart Butte High School boys basketball team. This marks the second year that Blake has donated new shoes to Heart Butte’s basketball team.  A press release from Daines’ office says that while growing up, Blake witnessed the sacrifices his mother, a teacher at Heart Butte School, made to provide for him and he wanted to be able to help the community that

Democrats blocked a controversial bill that would curb the flow of Syrian and Iraqi refugees to enter the U.S. Sen. Steve Daines expressed his disappointment with the Senate. “It is Congress’s responsibility to ensure the safety and security of our nation, but today Senate Democrats proved they would rather play politics than prioritize our national security,” Daines said. “The SAFE Act is commonsense legislation that institutes a much-needed intensive screening process for incoming Syrian refugees. We are at war with radical Islamic extremism and it is irresponsible to accept anything less than a 100 percent verification of these refugees’ backgrounds

Senator Steve Daines today reaffirmed his commitment to reining in Washington’s perceived out-of-control spending after the Congressional Budget Office reported that the federal budget deficit is expected to increase by $105 billion in 2016 – the first increase in seven years. “These projections reaffirm the dire consequences of Washington’s continued bloated spending. Make no mistake – this $105 billion increase in the federal deficit is direct result of the 2000-page trillion dollar spending bill that was cobbled together behind closed doors and forced through Congress last month,” Daines stated. “It’s past time for Washington to get serious about reining in our

Last week, the Rocky Mountain Rifle Club was formally recognized for their sponsorship and support of the local 4-H Shooting Program. The members of the club joined with 4-H shooters in welcoming Robin Baker of Senator Steve Daines’ office. Recently, Senator Daines took to the floor of the Senate to read his recognition of the Rocky Mountain Rifle Club into the Congressional Record as “Montanan of the Week.” Ms. Baker presented the club with an official copy and read the document, explaining the process of entering the honor into the record. The local 4-H program has some of the top

A main topic discussed at an energy briefing in Billings today: President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan. Enacted last August, the Clean Power Plan’s goal is to reduce carbon pollution from power plants. Montana Senator Steve Daines said this act will kill 7,000 tribal and union jobs within the state. Additionally, he said it will affect $140 million of tax revenues every year that fund schools, teachers and infrastructure. “It’s going to create a double-digit energy increase for Montanans. To sum it up, the people in Montana who can afford it the least are going

Losing part of Colstrip’s 40-year-old power plant would devastate Montana’s economy through possible job losses and higher power bills, state elected officials and industry backers said Monday in Billings. They urged the business-friendly audience to speak out against federal regulations they say would hurt the coal industry. “President Obama stopped the Keystone pipeline. Next on his to-do list is to kill the coal industry,” U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., said at the forum sponsored by Big Sky Economic Development. About 180 people attended the gathering at Crowne Plaza in downtown Billings. Included in the audience were state lawmakers, county commissioners

The U.S. Department of the Interior announced Friday it will “pause” on issuing new coal leases on federal lands. The suspension was ordered while the federal agency reviews the coal lease program “in order to ensure that it is properly structured to provide a fair return to taxpayers and reflect its impacts on the environment, while continuing to help meet our energy needs,” according to press release. The review is expected to take three years, the agency said. The move met with immediate criticism from congressional members in Montana and Wyoming. Montana Republican Sen. Steve Daines said the move is an “unprecedented assault on one