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the montana legacy project

Standing just below the summit of Kalispell’s Lone Pine State Park, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., today announced the purchase of 320,000 acres of Plum Creek Timber Company-owned land by two conservation groups, calling the deal, “the largest land purchase, for conservation purposes, in American history.”

Dubbed, “The Montana Legacy Project,” The Nature Conservancy and The Trust for Public Land are buying the acreage for $510 million, and will finance payments on the land over the next three years through private and public sources, with the federal government paying for about half the cost through a forestry conservation bond mechanism Baucus inserted into the recently passed Farm Bill. [more]

From The New West Blog

In a Denver Post article all about the importance of political candidates being gun-friendly in Montana -- "where 'opening day' refers to the beginning of hunting season rather than baseball" -- Karen E. Crummy reports that although Obama has received an F rating from the NRA, and although he has spoken about "common-sense" gun control, it doesn't mean that John McCain will automatically win the state.

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New West News Brief

Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer will be on the Larry King show on CNN tonight.

According to a release from the Gov's office, Schweitzer will be talking up his favorite issue, energy. Chevron's Chairman and CEO Dave O'Reilly and other guests will join Schweitzer, who will be on during the second half of the show, at about 7:35 p.m. MST. [more]

Stockgrowers Respond to Brucellosis Status

In light of Montana’s recent loss of brucellosis Class Free status, the Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) would like to reiterate its opposition to split-state status as means for managing brucellosis in Montana.

Aside from our practical concerns about the implementation, maintenance and enforcement of two classification areas in MT, philosophically, we do not support geographically isolating ranchers according to problems they experience. We believe that the industry’s integrity and future depends on uniting producers against common threats.
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City Voters Allowed to Vote Country

Montana's Attorney General issued an opinion this week that gives voters living in incorporated communities a vote on any countywide referendum, initiative or ordinance – specifically zoning ordinances.

Mike McGrath made the call in a case over who should have been able to vote in 2006 on two controversial Ravalli County zoning ordinances.

According to some, this decision could have far-reaching implications for county residents across the state, because it gives voters living in cities a voice in county land-use regulations. Other say county land-use regulations affect city residents too, so every voter in the county should be able to have a say. [more]

politics

Enthusiastic Ron Paul supporters waited through a $45 a plate dinner, multiple GOP speakers and an auction conducted by Conrad Burns to hear their candidate speak Friday night at the 2008 State Convention Banquet.

They say it was worth it.

“He was fantastic,” said Elena Gagliano, a retired Philipsburg Mont. resident. “He believes in freedom and I’m sick and tired of infringement on my life.”

Paul, a tenacious, long-shot former Republican presidential candidate who has found considerable support in Montana with his message of small government and constitutionalism, received a warm welcome from the large crowd at the Hilton Garden Inn in Missoula. Montana GOP chairman Erik Iverson said nearly 470 people were in attendance—a record for the summer convention. [more]

ron paul back in town

The Montana GOP is in Missoula through Saturday for the state convention at the Hilton Garden Inn, and former presidential candidate and Texas Congressman Ron Paul (who won the Republican primary in Missoula County and came in second statewide behind Mitt Romney) and former three-term Montana Senator Conrad Burns Rod Knutson are headlining.

The party will be reviewing its platform, setting strategy and electing national convention delegates and national committee representatives. Click here for the convention schedule (PDF), which includes training workshops and additional speakers.

Paul and Knutson are set to speak beginning at 7:00 p.m. Friday. [more]

GOP Counts on Pro-Life Vote

Will Amendment 48, the pro-life ballot measure that will be voted on in the November election, cost Barack Obama Colorado?

That’s one possibility raised in recent days by local politicos eyeing the fall presidential race. , At the same time we are witnessing what the Grand Junction Sentinel calls “a fundamental realignment of the formerly reliably Republican Rocky Mountain West.”
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Insiders: Perplexed

Political insiders and analysts are scratching their heads in Montana.

I'm perplexed," said Dave McAlpin, a state representative and Democratic strategist, in Missoula.

"For me, what I'm taking away from this, is that anything can happen in Montana," said Brad Anderson, a Republican official in Yellowstone County and a student of statewide politics. [more]

Quick and Dirty Number Crunching

Montanans went to the polls in droves for Tuesday's primary, and predictions about an "energized" Democratic party were realized, surpassed even. Unofficial results show 181,986 Democratic ballots were cast, compared to 93,543 in the 2004 presidential primary, a jump of 88,443 Democratic voters and a 95 percent increase.

Overall, turnout was more than 45 percent, according to Secretary of State Brad Johnson's office. And, that's likely to climb a little higher as final tallies come in. If numbers hold, it will be the highest turnout for a primary since 1994 (when turnout statistics were higher before the National Voting Rights Act).

Sen. Barack Obama's 102,544 votes (56 percent) surpassed the number of votes the entire Democratic field got in 2004, and Sen. Hillary Clinton's 75,053 was more than John Kerry and John Edwards combined. Click here for the unofficial results from the Secretary of State's office.
[more]

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