Greg Gianforte

Recent Posts

Montana Chamber of Commerce releases endorsements

Zinke

The Montana Chamber of Commerce has come out with its endorsements in statewide races, and the only surprise is the total lack of surprise. There’s the usual heavy bias toward Republicans, the usual focus on the candidates’ perceived tilt toward business interests, the one token Democrat endorsement (Jesse Laslovich for state auditor). To which one might make the usual complaints: There really isn’t much evidence that picking Republicans helps the economy. In fact, the evidence at the presidential level since World War II has been quite the opposite, for reasons that are very much open to debate. In Montana, the evidence is no more convincing. Continue Reading →

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Prairie Lights: Cities lead the way in luring millennials home

Martini

Here’s some moderately good news, I guess: In a ranking of best states for millennials, compiled by MoneyRates.com, Montana came in fifth, after first-place North Dakota, followed by South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa. The worst five states were, in descending order, Vermont, California, Arizona and Virginia (tied for second-worst) and rock-bottom Washington. (more…) Continue Reading →

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Opinion: As Gianforte shows, money can’t buy everything

Russell

There was a recent French movie called “Marguerite,” about a wealthy aristocrat who decided to become an opera singer, based on a true story. Marguerite Dumont hired the best music teacher money could buy and set to work to achieve her goal, but unfortunately, she had no natural singing ability whatsoever. She was tone deaf, and nobody around her could convince her otherwise. (more…) Continue Reading →

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Waiting for governor’s race to be about something

One of my favorite Montana columnists, Dan Brooks, who writes for the Missoula Independent, has a good piece out about the governor’s race. So far, he says, the contest between sitting Gov. Steve Bullock and his Republican challenger, Greg Gianforte, has boiled down to partisan attacks on Bullock for using the governor’s plane for personal matters and partisan attacks on Gianforte for a lawsuit he filed nearly 10 years ago to kill an easement that gave the public access to the East Gallatin River across his family’s property. Both things really did happen, Brooks writes—Gianforte did file a suit and Bullock did apparently overuse that plane—but neither camp has made much of a case for what either candidate will actually do if elected next fall. “What’s the hot idea out of Bullock for Governor right now, besides that Greg Gianforte tried to shut down a beach?” Brooks asks. Continue Reading →

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David Crisp: Less than meets the eye in Gianforte tax plan

Crisp

Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte has unveiled his “406 tax relief” plan, and it’s so predictable it should be sold at Wal-Mart for a dollar a yard. The “4” in the plan stands for the number of years over which he would phase out the business equipment tax, which despite numerous reductions in recent legislative sessions still brings in about $81 million a year. This shortfall would have to be made up by local governments and schools, so it isn’t clear that this provision would help anybody other than large-company bookkeepers who have to fill out the paperwork. (more…) Continue Reading →

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Simple answers hard to find in debate on Montana wages

Medical

Greg Gianforte, a Republican candidate for Montana governor, has been going around the state arguing that Montana ranks 49th in the nation in wages. Is he right? Well, sure. But one might also argue that in terms of income, Montana ranks 47th—or 44th, or 42nd, or 41st, or 37th, or 35th or 31st. It depends on who is measuring and exactly what is being measured. Continue Reading →

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David Crisp: What matters, what doesn’t, in recent flaps

Crisp

In April 1864, months before one of the most contentious elections in American history, the New York World accused President Abraham Lincoln of having urged a friend to sing a comic song as they strolled among the dead and wounded two years earlier at Antietam. The World pounded on the false story for five months, eventually adding the fanciful detail that Democratic opponent George McClellan, the general Lincoln had fired for timidity and a fatal case of the “slows,” had pleaded in vain for Lincoln to show respect to the fallen. (more…) Continue Reading →

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Opinion: ‘War on coal’? How about ‘Give peace a chance’

Wade

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., came to Baker, where I live, to talk about, as he put it, a “war on coal.” His visit was part of an energy tour leading up to an Energy Expo in Billings, which he organized on behalf of the fossil fuel industries. As the days have passed, and I have thought about what was implicit in what he said, I find myself increasingly disturbed by how he and other politicians, like Ryan Zinke, Tim Fox, Greg Gianforte and Donald Trump are framing environmentalists. (more…) Continue Reading →

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Gianforte brings ‘Regulation Roundup’ tour to Billings

Greg

Greg Gianforte brought his Regulation Roundup tour to Billings on Monday to look for ways to save businesses from “death by a thousand cuts,” but most of those who showed up had bigger issues in mind. Billings was the sixth of 60 stops on the tour by the Republican candidate for governor. His goal, he said, is to find ways to reduce the regulatory burden on small businesses to help Montana improve its status as 49th in the country in average wages. (more…) Continue Reading →

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