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Prior to his appearance on Friday night, Vice President Pence received a first hand look at a Montana coal mine, then later declared that the “war on coal is over.” Vice President Mike Pence took the opportunity to visit coal country during his trip to Montana. Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke and Senator Steve Daines joined him in riding horseback at Westmoreland’s Absaloka Mine in Sarpy Creek. The meeting provided the Crow Tribe a platform to speak with the administration. With 85 employed at the mine, Westmoreland has faced a long battle. Since 2011, coal production has dropped 30 percent, and the number of those employed in the industry has plummeted from 130,000

United States Vice President Mike Pence declared “the war on coal” over Friday after touring a Crow Indian coal mine on horseback and meeting with stakeholders. “I just want to assure you that this administration is absolutely determined to continue to expand the opportunities to develop American energy in an environmentally responsible way,” Pence said. The vice president gathered with Crow tribal leaders and coal supporters at Absaloka Mine’s headquarters on the Crow Reservation. The mine is operated by Westmoreland Coal under lease with the Crow. Pence spent the afternoon at the mine before returning to Billings for an evening

Vice president Mike Pence headed to Montana Friday to garner support for Greg Gianforte, the Republican candidate vying for the Treasure State’s only seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. And considering he is in Big Sky Country, the former Indiana governor’s method of transportation while touring the Westmoreland Coal Company’s Absaloka Mine on the Crow Indian Reservation was, not surprisingly, horseback. Wearing denim blue jeans and sturdy boots, Pence toured the coal mine with Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, a Montana native, and Senator Steve Daines. Pence also met with tribal and business leaders. “Thank you to Crow Nation tribal

The director of pesticide programs at the Department of Agriculture is rooting against President Trump’s proposed budget cuts to her agency.   “We hope that won’t happen,” Sheryl Kunickis, director of USDA’s Office of Pest Management Policy, said at a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on pesticide registration programs.   Kunickis and U.S. EPA’s acting director of pesticide programs, Rick Keigwin, each took questions from panel Democrats about the potential effect of the deep cuts Trump envisions for their agencies in the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.   The officials said their agencies would have to adjust if Congress approves cuts,

In Montana, we know how important agriculture is — to our economy, to jobs and to keeping food on our tables, and on tables around the world. I’m thrilled to have former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue as our new Secretary of Agriculture. I know Secretary Perdue will be a champion for Montana agriculture. Don’t take my word for it — come hear from him yourself when he is the keynote speaker at the Montana Ag Summit 2017 in Great Falls May 31—June 1. During a time of historically low prices, we need to find ways to maintain and grow our

An expected expansion of the Trump administration’s laptop ban to include flights from Europe is causing heartburn among the travel industry and some European officials, who fear a logistical nightmare for millions of trans-Atlantic passengers just ahead of the summer vacation season. Briefings Thursday for U.S. senators and the major domestic airlines ended with no announcements from the Department of Homeland Security about changes to the restrictions, which already prohibit passengers from carrying laptops, tablets and e-readers into the cabins of planes flying to the U.S. from 10 Middle Eastern airports. But European airline officials are “preparing behind the scenes”