Category: News Article

On March 2, all five FCC Commissioners testified before the Commerce Committee. During the hearing, Montana Senator Steve Daines asked the commissioners to ensure an equal distribution of Universal Service funds to help close the gap in broadband access between urban and rural areas. “I see the commission awarding money to entities and areas that already have access to fiber, consistently upgrading speed in urban areas while certainly for many of us who are looking and repressing rural areas, we are undeserved,” said Daines. “Can you really say that is an efficient use for Universal Service funds and should the

Federal wildlife officials recommended lifting protections for the Yellowstone region grizzly bears Thursday, saying the species is recovered and no longer threatened. The long-awaited decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would remove the more than 700 Yellowstone-area grizzlies from the Endangered Species list and could pave the way for state-managed trophy hunting in Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. USFWS director Dan Ashe called it a “proud moment” and said that it was the result of three decades of collaboration between state and federal agencies. “This is a triumph for partnership-driven conservation,” Ashe said. The proposal will be open for

President Barack Obama could easily return the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay to Cuba when he visits the country later this month, Sen. Steve Daines told Newsmax TV on Thursday. “With this president, you remain worried on every front in terms of his executive overreach,” the Montana Republican told “Newsmax Prime” host J.D. Hayworth. “His abuse of power, his complete disregard of the Constitution and the Article II powers that are clearly, clearly laid out in our Constitution are something this president continues to violate. Obama will visit Cuba on March 21-22 as part of his efforts to normalize relations with Havana.

On February 29th, Senator Steve Daines went to Cuba to visit the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. Upon Daines’ return, he took to the Senate floor to state the importance of maintaining the detention center and not bringing detainees to American communities. “Guantanamo Bay was a humble reminder of the services our military provides overseas to get these terrorists off the battle field and ensure that they don’t end up in American’s backyards,” said Daines. “President Obama has signed multiple pieces of legislation into law the explicitly prohibit the transfer of enemy combatants.” During the speech, Daines highlighted the threat

Republicans on a Senate appropriations panel challenged the head of the Interior Department Wednesday on a host of rules and energy assessments the agency is undertaking. During a hearing on the agency’s 2017 budget request, members were most concerned about regional issues, including regulations for offshore drilling in the Gulf and a pause in the federal coal leasing program. “The stakes are a lot higher today than they may have been in the past,” Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) said, arguing the pause on new coal leases on federal land would hurt the economy in parts of his state, where coal

Montana Senator Steve Daines is calling for changes in the Veterans Affairs system. A recent discussion held in Bozeman largely centered around the VA Bonus Accountability Act, which Daines and other senators are working to pass. The measure is designed to hold the VA accountable and keep under performing employees from receiving bonuses. “We’re mobilizing forces here and you know veterans know how to mobilize., that we can move forward here with changes in the VA, to move this VA accountability act forward, that puts accountability into the VA,” Daines said. “[It] allows hiring and firing these mid level managers that aren’t doing their jobs. There

After a nearly 40-year absence, Amtrak may resume making Culbertson one of its stops along the Empire Builder route. “It’s another service for the community,” Culbertson Mayor Gordon Oelkers said, adding it was estimated to generate 7,000 riders, with some of them being Canadians. He said they have the blessing of Amtrak and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, which owns the line. However, a BNSF official contacted late Friday afternoon was not immediately able to confirm. All that’s needed is a depot. “The track is good and the signals are good,” he said. It’s hoped the federal government can provide

Capital High senior Robert McCarvel has received an appointment to the U.S. Army’s West Point Military Academy. McCarvel’s appointment came from Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines, and Representative Ryan Zinke, with Daines making the initial call to the school, according to Capital football coach Kyle Mihelish. Pause Current Time0:00 / Duration Time0:00 Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% 0:00 Fullscreen 00:00 Unmute A 6-foot-1, 190-pound, three-year letterman with the Bruin football team, McCarvel was a 2015 honorable mention All-State tight end. He was also tabbed an alternate for the East-West Shrine Game. As a member of the Helena Reps baseball team

The Interior Department’s three-year moratorium on new coal leases on federal land could be longer than three years, Secretary Sally Jewell told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday. The length of the coal-lease freeze will depend on how long it takes the department to conduct its review of the federal coal-lease program, which Jewell estimated would take three years. But she warned that depending on the circumstances, some reviews have taken “six or seven years.” Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) expressed doubt that it could take three years to conduct the study, saying two years should be more reasonable. He

President Barack Obama’s plan to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba slammed into a wall of Republican opposition on Tuesday, stopping cold Obama’s hope for a bipartisan effort to “close a chapter” that began in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. The long-awaited proposal, which was requested by Congress, is Obama’s last attempt to make good on an unfulfilled campaign promise by persuading Congress to change the law that prohibits moving detainees accused of violent extremist acts to U.S. soil. Fourteen years after the facility opened and seven years after Obama took office, the president argued it