Tag: Government Overreach

U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines introduced a bill that would prohibit the federal government from sharing, disclosing, or disseminating information concerning Montanans’ religious accommodation requests, including exemption requests for COVID-19 vaccines. “The Constitution is clear—Montanans have the right to freedom of religion. The federal government should not be tracking, storing and sharing Montanans’ religious exemption requests for anything, especially for Biden’s overreaching vaccine mandates. We must fight back against this egregious power grab,” Daines said.  To read the bill text click HERE. Background:  At least 19 federal agencies – including five cabinet-level agencies – have created or proposed on the Federal Register to

U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines introduced a bipartisan bill to increase transparency and protect the privacy of Montanans from government surveillance. The bill would require public reporting and notice of the hundreds of thousands of criminal surveillance orders issued by courts each year, which are typically sealed indefinitely, keeping government surveillance hidden for years, even when the targets are never charged with any crime. “It’s simple–Montanans have a Constitutional right to know if their personal information has been searched or seized or if they’re being investigated by the government,” Daines said. “We must increase transparency regarding government surveillance while maintaining

U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines cosponsored a legislative effort to eliminate President Biden’s COVID-19 travel mask mandate.  “It’s time to end President Biden’s travel mask mandate,” Daines said.  Read more HERE. Daines’ resolution of disapproval to eliminate the travel mask mandate falls under the Congressional Review Act (CRA). A CRA is a process for Congress to eliminate an executive branch rule that must be brought up for a vote by the full Senate and cannot be blocked by Senate Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer. To pass, a CRA only needs a simple majority among senators voting. Daines’ effort to strike down Biden’s

U.S. SENATE – Today Senator Steve Daines’ effort to strike down President Biden’s overreaching federal vaccine mandate for Montana healthcare workers passed the U.S. Senate.  “While I am pro-vaccine, I am anti-mandate. President Biden’s vaccine mandate for healthcare workers threatens to cripple our rural hospitals, impact patient care and intensify the worker shortage at our health care facilities,” Daines said. “While I’m glad to see my effort to strike down Biden’s mandate for Montana’s healthcare heroes and rural health providers pass the U.S. Senate, I’m extremely disappointed that all Senate Democrats opposed it. We must work to support our healthcare heroes, not burden them with additional mandates.”

U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines introduced legislation to ban vaccine mandates for essential workers crossing the border. “Biden’s overreaching vaccine mandates are wreaking havoc on our entire country. They’re hurting small businesses, burdening the labor force and worsening the supply chain crisis,” Daines said. “It’s time we put an end to Biden’s big government mandates that are unnecessarily straining our truck drivers, jobs and the economy.” The supply chain has suffered major disruptions because of the coronavirus pandemic. Overwhelmed ports and rail stations have suffered from significant labor shortages, slowing the ability to transport goods and resulting in higher prices for consumers. The

U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines introduced a Resolution of Disapproval in the United States Senate to formally disapprove the vaccine and mask mandates for Montana Head Start staff, volunteers and students imposed by the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The resolution would also nullify the agency’s mandate for all children two years of age and older to wear a mask, including when they are playing outside. “Biden’s overreaching vaccine mandates for Montana Head Start threatens Montana families and children who depend on this program for childcare. We must do everything we can to prevent these

MONTANA — U.S. Senator Steve Daines, Governor Greg Gianforte and Congressman Matt Rosendale today pushed the Biden administration to issue exemptions to the healthcare worker vaccine mandate for health facilities where Montanans’ access to care, especially in rural communities, is jeopardized. Many hospitals, especially in rural Montana, cannot afford to lose another healthcare professional, and the vaccine mandate on healthcare workers threatens to worsen labor shortages and limit Montanans’ access to care. “Like many states across the nation, Montana is already facing labor shortages, especially in the healthcare industry, which severely threaten patient access to lifesaving medical care.  Given the Supreme Court’s decision, we are deeply

U.S. SENATE — U.S. Senator Steve Daines today made the following statement after the Supreme Court ruled in the cases on President Biden’s vaccine mandates for private businesses and for healthcare workers. The Court blocked Biden’s mandate on private businesses and upheld the mandate on health care workers. “President Biden’s private sector mandate is an extreme federal overreach, and I’m glad to see the Supreme Court step in to make that clear. Biden’s mandate on private businesses would have forced Montanans out of work and forced some businesses to close their doors. While I’m pro-vaccine, I’m strongly anti-mandate. This should be a decision between Montanans and their doctor, not the federal government,” Daines said. “I am disappointed

U.S. SENATE — U.S. Senator Steve Daines introduced another legislative effort to strike down President Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates. The measure introduced by Daines and Senate Republicans would block Biden’s Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) vaccine mandate for Montana healthcare workers.  “President Biden’s overreaching vaccine mandate for Montana healthcare workers threatens to cripple our hospitals and hurt our healthcare heroes who have been on the frontlines since the beginning of the pandemic. I’ve heard concerns from health providers across Montana that Biden’s vaccine mandate would further burden our healthcare system, which is already struggling with worker shortages. I will continue doing all that I can to block Biden’s vaccine mandates on behalf of Montanans,” Daines said.  Daines’ effort comes after the