#MTGOV DAILY RUNDOWN: Higher Percentage of Montanans Give to Gianforte, Continues to Reject Special Interest Money

Greg Gianforte’s message to create more high-wage Montana jobs is resonating with voters with 75% of his money coming from Montanans compared to only 68% giving to Governor Bullock’s campaign.

·         Of Gianforte’s $1.3 million from individuals, 75 percent -- $985,000 -- is from Montana –KXLH, 06/30/2016

·         Of the $1.9 million that Bullock has raised from individuals, almost $1.3 million, or 68 percent, has come from Montanans –KXLH, 06/30/2016

While Greg is rejecting ALL special interest money, Governor Bullock has amassed nearly $110,000 in special interest money–and refuses to join Greg’s pledge to REJECT any money from special interest groups.

·         Bullock has raised just over $2 million, including almost $110,000 from political action committees (PACs) and political party groups … Gianforte is not accepting any PAC funds. –KXLH, 06/30/2016

·         Before speaking in Helena on Thursday, Greg Gianforte walked into the office of Gov. Steve Bullock and hand-delivered a folder that contained a letter to Bullock and a pledge not to accept money from political action committees. –Lee Newspapers, 01/21/2016

·         “I refuse to accept any campaign contributions from special-interest PACs, state and federal … I will tear up and/or return any special-interest PAC donations previously sent to my campaign. Montana voters deserve a clean campaign focused on the issues.” –Lee Newspapers, 01/21/2016

Bullock has also gone all-in for Wall Street’s corporate cash raising $30 million mostly all of which are corporate donations while he served as Chairman of the Democratic Governors Association (DGA) last year. In addition, Bullock raised nearly $5 million in dark money. For Bullock to continually condemn corporate and dark money and then turn around and take tens of millions of dollars of it is the height of hypocrisy.

·         Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, a vocal critic of corporate money in politics, now heads up the Democratic Governors Association, which raises millions in corporate dollars to help elect Democratic governors –Lee Newspapers, 12/16/2014

·         Bullock, who has decried the influence of corporate money in state politics as attorney general and as governor, may find it difficult to take up that mantle again in 2016 after helping an organization raise corporate money to influence elections. –Great Falls Tribune, 11/21/2014

·         We have seen the rise of so-called “dark money” groups that target candidates, yet refuse to tell the voting public who they really are and what they really represent … These groups believe they can violate our laws and corrupt our government in order to create a system that benefits their special interests. –State of State, 01/30/2013

#MTGOV DAILY RUNDOWN: Timber Industry Continues to Struggle Under Bullock

Last week Montanans were shocked and saddened by the loss of 100 timber jobs and the closure of Weyerhaeuser’s plywood and lumber mills in Columbia Falls. Unfortunately, this news is all too common in Western Montana, and problems for the Montana timber industry have only gotten worse under Governor Bullock.

100 more jobs in timber were lost in Columbia Falls last week.

“The June 22 announcement that timber giant Weyerhaeuser Company was closing two mills in Columbia Falls and eliminating 100 positions is a gruesome testament to the flagging timber industry’s struggle to regain footing in the market after decades of decline.” -Flathead Beacon, 6/28/2016

Last year, the state lost more than 500 timber jobs under the Bullock Administration.

“Altogether, Altemus [of the Montana Wood Products Association] said timber mills employ approximately 7,000 people in Montana, and 235 mill workers have been laid off this year. Another 280 jobs that were indirectly supported by the timber industry have also been lost.

“So we are down a good 500 jobs this year alone,” she said. “’That’s a pretty big loss.’” -Missoulian 10/13/2015



The biggest issue cited by most timber industry officials is a lack of supply of logs.

“I am sitting here facing the exact same decisions [as Weyerhaeuser],” [Chuck] Roady said [of FH Stoltze Company]. “We haven’t run at full-throttle since last year, and these mills are not designed to run at half-throttle. It’s just not efficient, but we don’t have the logs. And what’s most frustrating is that we are surrounded by trees. They are everywhere.” -Flathead Beacon 6/28/2016



With the difficult situation facing Montana’s timber industry, one would think that Governor Bullock would be using every tool at his disposal to help with the supply issue. However, Bullock has, so far, failed to exercise his “Good Neighbor” Authority under the federal farm bill.

“The farm bill…provides the authority for the Forest Service to enter into sole source contracts and Good Neighbor Agreements with state agencies to perform forest, rangeland, and watershed restoration services, including timber sales.” Montana DNRC

“The primary goal of GNA is to provide another tool to increase the pace and scale of restoration at a watershed scale and to strengthen the partnerships between state and federal agencies to get more done across jurisdictional boundaries.”-Montana DNRC

As a strong proponent of Montana’s timber industry, Greg Gianforte believes that the governor should use every available to tool to help.

“Montana should be taking the lead in efforts to provide healthier forests and more timber for our mills. Instead, a lack of leadership in Helena has led to the lack of a Good Neighbor Agreement with the US Forest Service. The governor had tools in his tool box to help with timber jobs, and he’s failed to use them.” -Greg Gianforte, KMMS, 6/28/2016

#MTGOV DAILY RUNDOWN: Bullock Inherited Rising Revenues, Now Revenues are Declining

Governor Bullock inherited a decent fiscal situation when he was elected. Bullock inherited rising revenues, yet, during his two legislative sessions as governor he failed to take meaningful action on tax relief and needed infrastructure that would have boosted our economy. Now we have declining revenues and the next governor and legislature face some tough choices.

Revenue in Montana is falling and the rainy day fund could fall as low as $160 million by the end of the biennium despite being projected to be over $300 million.

“Montana’s general fund is nearly 4 percent behind projections, with oil and gas tax receipts down by more than half. The slowdown amounts to more than $67 million the government had counted on. What’s more, fluctuating prices at gas pumps are translating to budgetary uncertainty.” -Associated Press, 5/10/2016

Montana is already starting to feel the effects with funding for school libraries taking a notable hit.

“But as revenue directed to Montana libraries from the state’s coal severance tax loses steam, public and school libraries will lose access to EBSCO, a collection of databases. Billings’ high school librarians strongly oppose the move.

In January, the Montana State Library found out it would be losing $46,000 in expected tax revenue for the current 2015-17 budget. In mid-May, another $166,000 was cut.” -Helena Independent Record, 6/5/2016

Steve Bullock had the chance to invest in Montana’s economy while sitting on a nearly half billion dollar surplus. However, he failed to take action despite growing state spending by 20 percent during his first term.

 Governor Steve Bullock vetoed three tax cut bills in 2015 alone.

“The state House and Senate GOP caucuses touted tax cuts as a high priority for the 2015 session, but every major tax initiative that was passed out of the Republican-controlled Legislature has been vetoed by Gov. Steve Bullock. Bullock shot down the last of three principal tax proposals from Republicans on Monday. The other two vetoes came earlier this year on proposals to cut income taxes by 0.1 percent to 0.2 percent for every bracket.” -Associated Press 5/7/2016

Bullock also failed to deliver on infrastructure. In 2013, Bullock VETOED a critical Infrastructure bill for Eastern Montana after the bill passed both chambers of the Legislature by wide bipartisan margins. In 2015, Bullock VETOED the very same Infrastructure bill he’s now campaigning on.  “

“’He basically took the same plan I passed nearly one year ago – and the bill he vetoed, he’s calling his own,’ state Sen. Rick Ripley, R-Wolf Creek, said at a GOP news conference Wednesday. ‘Sounds like another campaign trick, if you ask me.’” –Sen. Ripley

#MTGOV DAILY RUNDOWN: Bullock Shows Himself to be a Typical Career Politician in First Debate.

In yesterday’s first gubernatorial debate in Big Sky, career politician Steve Bullock showed himself to be out of touch with most of Montana as he ignored major timber job losses, gave two different answers on the Syrian refugee question, and cited “delivering newspapers to the governor’s house as a kid” as proof of private sector experience.

First, Bullock NEVER ONCE in the debate mentioned the news that broke last week of timber mill closures in Columbia Falls. The news affects 230 jobs in the small town.

“Weyerhaeuser Company announced on Wednesday that it plans on permanently closing its lumber mill and plywood mill in Columbia Falls.

The closures are expected to take place in late August or early September, according to a news release from the company.” -Flathead Beacon, 6/22/2016

Greg Gianforte early on in the debate acknowledged the job losses and took the governor to task for trying to argue that everything is great in Montana’s economy.

“We’ve heard a lot about this great economy and all these jobs. The reality is different when you get out and sit across from people at the coffee table. Just this week we lost more jobs in Columbia Falls in the timber industry.” -Greg Gianforte

Bullock also seemed to give two different answers on the Syrian refugee question, first saying he doesn’t have the power to stop refugee resettlement, but then stating he would do “everything” he could to stop unvetted refugees.

Stated first: “First of all, fear shouldn’t define our values, and second of which, the Constitution doesn’t place the ability to determine and define exactly who all comes into our state borders.”


But then he states: “I will, as governor, do everything I can to make sure unvetted refugees do not come to Montana.”



Bullock also heavily distorted the current reality faced by the coal industry in Montana.


“More coal has been mined in the first 3 years of my administration than in the last 3 decades alone.” -Steve Bullock


However, the Billings Gazette noted recently that Montana coal production has fallen by ONE-THIRD this year.

“Montana coal production through spring is down a third, a trend that doesn’t seem to be letting up.

Through May 1, Montana coal mines have produced 9.6 million tons of coal, down 4 million tons compared to the same four months a year earlier. Should the mining trend continue, state programs dependent on coal revenue will feel it, said Bud Clinch of the Montana Coal Council.” -Billings Gazette, 6/9/2016

Trying to prove he is not a career politician, Bullock, at the end of the debate attempted to cite a jobs as a paper boy and as real private sector experience vs. Gianforte who has stared multiple businesses and created hundreds of high-paying Montana jobs.

“I always find it kind of funny, as he calls me a career politician, I don’t know if he’s going back to when I delivered newspapers to the governor’s house as a kid…And, as my opponent knows, I’ve worked in private sector more of the time than in public sector as a lawyer.” -Steve Bullock

 Western Word Poll finds Gianforte won hands down.